The devil made me do it!


 

Robert-R

TVWBB Diamond Member
Picked up this today:

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Was in Lowes (it called out to me in passing) & it had a reduced tag on it. Except the reduced price wasn't there. Talked to the manager: it was a return because the original purchaser said he couldn't keep the coals lit. So after one cook, it was back to the store. Did a little haggling & you can see the price I agreed to pay.

I can see a few leaks & there are a few "bad fits" and scratches. I'm sure I can fix most of what's wrong with it.

I've been wanting a stick burner for a while & the price was right!

This will probably get me excommunicated from TVWBB. I sure hope not.
 
Nice score!
Now if it had been an ECB, that's a whole different ball game! Let us know how it does. Pics, or it didn't happen!
 
I used to cook on a Brinkmann offset before I got my WSM. It's fun but for me wasn't near as efficient. But what a great price! Hope you have fun and success on it.
 
Make sure you do the mods. Lower the temp gauge to grate level, install a deflector. Make a charcoal basket,
 
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My best friend has an Oklahoma Joe. Great offset...I would have trouble walking away from that price, too.

"Stick burner" might imply an offset with a much larger firebox...at least it does to me. My buddy Dennis burns lump charcoal topped with just a bit more wood than I would use in my Egg.

For those of you who have never been around an Oklahoma Joe...consider the weight of the average offset smoker you've seen, then double it...maybe twice. It is a serious chunk of steel.
 
I've got an offset in that size range. You can definitely stick burn on it and you should. You'll wanna cook around 275 or hotter. 225 is tough although I did it on mine with lump and chunks for a long time.
 
So since you are calling it a "Stick Burner" can I assume you intent on using wood exclusively for fuel and not charcoal? That is the fun of an offset in my opinion-Managing the fire using only wood. Okay, some charcoal to start the wood is okay but then wood only after that is the real definition of a Pit Master.
 
Those are fun to cook on. They need a little more attention, but if you're sittin' on the deck drinkin' a beer, no big deal. I had the charbroil and made the reflectors for it out of some SS sheet. Definitely worth the effort.
 
Thanks for the comments, everyone! I'm happy that I didn't burn my scene here.
From internet searches... looks like I will have to dissemble the cooker & seal the firebox with high temp RTV & also seal between the firebox & main cooking chamber. Also make a charcoal/wood basket. Oh .... & make a diffusion plate to even out temps in the cooking chamber & also fab an extension to the exhaust stack to lower it to the cooking grates. No problemo.. I can do that.
It might be a few weeks before the rig is up & running.....
 
.............adding chems (RTV) seems like a bad idea to the uninformed (me).................is there something more food safe like clay or is it even needed? I'd run it as-is a few times, maybe find a friend with a welder (I have one!) Air-tight on a stick burner.....might not be such a big deal
 
Robert, it sounds like you did some good research into the mods. They do help. I had a charbroil offset very similar to the OK Joe. The mods along with the charcoal basket helped tremendously. If using mainly charcoal, try this: take a used metal coffee can and cut out the bottom so it is like a tube. Place your metal "tube" in one corner of your charcoal basket and surround it with unlit charcoal. Light up a chimney of charcoal, when fully lit, dump the lit coals in the can. Use a pair of pliers to lift up the can leaving the coals. Just place chunks of wood on top of the unlit coals at intervals. You will get a longer burn time. This is a variation of the minion method.
 

 

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