My *WEBER* mini build

[Chad Bman]

As any good story should start out, this build got up-and-running with a Craigslist freebie. Complete with the Match Light & lighter fluid. <shaking head>
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The $21 pot from Target. The rim was a hair too big for the Joe lid, but a light squeeze with an F clamp around the perimeter was all it took. 2 minutes...
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Since I can't do anything easy, and J. Pichey made some good lookin' mini's, I'm creating a "WEBER" mini.
Printed the logo on Avery paper and stuck it to vinyl shelf paper. Getting ready to cut it out.
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At this point, I used more shelf liner over the top to hold everything together. Otherwise, I'd have all loose letters.
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Applied to the pot and ready for paint.
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Primed
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After priming, I shot the 'grill' area with red paint. After that cured for a week, I installed the grill decal and shot the pot with a couple coats of black.
I got too excited and forgot to take a photo. But, here she is with just the grill decal removed.
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I also added a lid holder from a simple angle bracket
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And here she is in all her glory.
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[Chad Bman]

I also built a charcoal ring from $10 Home Depot expanded steel. I believe this was 3.5" high and it's the size of the charcoal grate.
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Since the 24" length wasn't enough, I had to splice in a shorter length. I started by bending the ends to 90 degrees on all mating ends.
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Now they're bent to 175 degrees and you can see how they'll interlock together.
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Once they were locked together, I set the ring on the concrete floor and tapped the joint with a hammer. Holds together, and looks, awesome.
Then I wire-tied the ring to the grate
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Setting in the bowl.
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Since I had some expanded metal left over, I made an ash blocker for the lower vent.
Used the cut-out from the bottom of the pot to create the top of the ash blocker.
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Setting in the bowl.
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Used a stainless steel cabinet door knob on the top vent for a handle.
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Used a 12" all thread rod for the lower vent adjustment. To make the 'handle' I used the threaded connecting rod splicers & capped it with an acorn nut.
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[Dwain Pannell]

Very clean build

 

[George Curtis]

nice indeedy ! more work than i would want to do but love it when others go crazy with it.

 

[Don Fry]

Great work. How did you configure the inside in terms of grates etc.?

 

[J Pichey]

Great build. Love the charcoal basket.

 

[Mike Willis]

Beautiful job Chad! And are you serious - a brand new looking SJS for free?!? Where are those deals when I'm looking?!?

Anyway, enough of my whining - the Mini WSM turned out great!

 

[Sam Anthony]

Nice! Can't wait to build one and then cook some stuff. What will be the first meal off your mini?

 

[Chad Bman]

Great work. How did you configure the inside in terms of grates etc.?

Pretty boring & standard, actually. Cut out the bottom, used an 18" charcoal grate that'll hold the TBD diffuser, replacement Joe cooking grate sits on the built in pot indentation, and I installed some bolts 5" down from the lip for the top grate. Only the stock grate is a hair bigger than the replacement & it doesn't fit.

 

[Chad Bman]

And are you serious - a brand new looking SJS for free?!? Where are those deals when I'm looking?!?

So I shouldn't tell you I picked up a Genesis Gold C today,,, for free....

 

[Mike Willis]

So I shouldn't tell you I picked up a Genesis Gold C today,,, for free....

STOP IT!!! You're killing me Chad, you're killing me!!

 

[Tony R]

Nice work Chad!! I want one now!! Weber logo looks nice.

 

[Michael Gelinas]

Looks great! Great job with the painting/logo.

 

[George L]

Very nice work on that logo Chad! Very sharp looking Mini!

I also like the lower vent control handle where you threaded the rod through both tabs. This prevents eventual twisting of the tab if the rod was mounted on just a single tab, which will happen. I think I will get a longer rod to do the same.

 

[George L]

You made me do it. No more bendy tab. Run that rod thru both tabs for that solid action!! Yes Sir!

 

[Chad Bman]

Nice work, George. While I'll have to wait until Sunday to fire it up (paint is in the 7 day drying period) I'm hoping everything will work as planned.

 

[Chris Sherman]

That pic with the shadows behind the decals on the table is awesome!

 

[BrianBishop]

Great work Chad! I had my mini all built and ready to spray straight black but this thread kicked in my OCD and I had to try the weber logo. I sprayed the black yesterday, how long did you let the final coat cure before pulling the stencil? Also, did you have to cut the paint line along the stencil or just get it started and pull?? I've never attempted a project like this so I don't want to muck it up at this point in the game!

Thanks for the help and inspiration.
-Brian

 

[Chad Bman]

Thanks for the kind words, Brian. I shot a couple of coats and let it dry to the touch before pulling the stencil. Maybe a couple of hours.
Being that close to the finish line, and knowing my luck with pulling tape, I went ahead and ran my exacto knife around the edge. Made for a very clean line.

Glad to hear I'm not the only OCD fella here. lol
Can't wait to see/hear how yours turned out.

 

[BrianBishop]

Ok thanks, I figured it would be good insurance to slice the paint line at the stencil. As long as the paint job turns out (fingers crossed) I will be extremely satisfied with the outcome. I'll probably make a new thread for it even though it will be quite similar to yours...