My Mini WSM...with my poor skills


 
Tony R

Tony R

TVWBB 1-Star Olympian
I did my Mini today.I have no real tools and poor skills to build stuff... Changes made per George's suggestions..

I added a damper handel to my smokey joe..


I found this tin pot in the pantry.. I think it was from a beer can chicken holder. I drilled some holes on top. Hope this works other wise I can do the tuna can method.


I didnt buy a spare grate so I figured this should hold. It came with the tamale pot. I also cut a hole in the bottom. 12 inches round



As you can tell the top has creases. I had to use a clamp I found to make the lid fit.


You can see the creases better on this pic...I was a little disappointed but now I think the look cool.


Thanks for looking. any suggestion and or tips are welcomed. If I can improve something let me know.
 
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George Curtis said:
to be sure, i'm not getting your setup. why is the steamer plate on the grate lip of the body and the terra cotta plate on top of that ?
you will not get much temp out of that nor will you have much room for coals. go back and read up again on how most are made.
http://tvwbb.com/showthread.php?22543-S-J-Gold-Mini-WSM-Smoker
this sounds harsh but it isn't, just helpfull help.
Click to expand...

I put the steamer plate because I don't have another grate... I read the link.. So the terra cotta plate is not necessary? I can flip the steamer plate if necessary
 
As noted, the steamer plate should not sit in the kettle itself. That area ideally should be wide open to give the coals some breathing room. You can place the steamer plate on the ridge of the pot and use that as your only diffuser, or get another grate and place it on the pot's ridge and place the saucer on the grate.

As for the crease marks you made, I think they add some character to the build. No problem.
 
George L said:
As noted, the steamer plate should not sit in the kettle itself. That area ideally should be wide open to give the coals some breathing room. You can place the steamer plate on the ridge of the pot and use that as your only diffuser, or get another grate and place it on the pot's ridge and place the saucer on the grate.

As for the crease marks you made, I think they add some character to the build. No problem.
Click to expand...

Thanks George!!
I see what your saying now. I will post new pics with your suggestions.
 
you can find a small cake/cookie rack and add some small bolts and washers to raise it also. i love going to second hand stores for stuff like that.
 
Nice job tony. I am going to try to make one of these myself this summer and am not to mechanically inclined myself so hopefully my mini comes out as good as yours!
 
Tony, your mini looks great! I just finished reading your post in the photo forum, great looking ribs as well. My only suggestion would be to loose the clay saucer all together! You will find that you don't need it and that all you are doing is wasting precious fuel/energy heating it! That being said, that's the beauty of these little smokers, there's as many ways to build 'em as there are people using them! Yours looks great and turned out some AWESOME looking ribs!
Good luck, Tim
 
As Tim suggests, one option is to lose the clay saucer.

I use my mini in one of two ways.......with absolutely no diffuser/barrier at all, or with just a metal drip pan / heat barrier. It basically boils down to whether you want some radiant/direct heat hitting the meat with its dripping vaporizing on the coals or not.
 
i decided on the clay saucer cuz i guess the way i cook i found that because of the size of the mini, its more susceptable to temp fluctuations.
so far i like the way it cooks with it. and i cooked alot without it before using it and could see the differance.
but yes, there are no set rules and you just need to try differant things till you find what works for you.
 
Here's a shot from the bottom of the my pot. That's a 12" pizza pan, its lip perched on 3 bolts.

P1070181_zpsf62125cd.jpg
 
I have a smokey Joe waiting in the garage. It's been sitting there for a few months. You're cooking on yours, I am jealous.
 
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