Years in the making, thanks to everyone - My Smoke Joe Mini


 
RicardoL

RicardoL

TVWBB Fan
I have been following the threads on the Smokey Joe Mini WSM for a couple years now. Even though I had a Smokey Joe Silver, and no smoker, I never got around to building one.

Today, after re-reading lots of the posts in this forum and drawing from all the knowledge shared, I built a Smokey Joe Mini WSM.

I found this pot, which ChangL used successfully in his build.

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Before going to work I cleaned up my old Smokey Joe. I have had it since I was married, it was my second grill ever. I had a Coleman camping gas grill, which was about the same size first. 12 years later, I still have the SJS, and the Coleman has disappeared. Oh, I still got my wife...

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I am not the handiest guy, and actually PM'ed TonyR this week to see how easy this would be and ask a few questions. I got it done in about 1 hour and here is the end result.

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Didn't have time for a cooking session, but I could not resist lighting her up with some Stubbs. Shut her down after an hour, the temperature was around 150. I didn't use much lit charcoal and she turned off really quick once I closed all the vents.

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Bottom line, if you're on the fence .... build one. It is pretty easy. I have really crappy tools and still got it done. If anything, I just convinced myself to invest in better tools and cook more BBQ.

Thanks to everyone who has shared information to create a great resource when it comes to building these cool little smokers.
 
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You're going to really like that mini. Very fuel efficient. I’ve run just shy of eight hours on a warm windless day at 225-250 without a reload and still had unlit coals.
 
Nice job buddy.
Try pollo Asado on it. Remove the heat diffuser and let the drippings hit the coals. Flip every 5-10 min until done.
 
Rich Dahl said:
You're going to really like that mini. Very fuel efficient. I’ve run just shy of eight hours on a warm windless day at 225-250 without a reload and still had unlit coals.
Click to expand...

In my limited dry run yesterday, it used barely any coal - I was very impressed and it preformed pretty good on a very windy day.

Tony R said:
Nice job buddy.
Try pollo Asado on it. Remove the heat diffuser and let the drippings hit the coals. Flip every 5-10 min until done.
Click to expand...

Now that sounds good Tony. Do you put the chicken up high or down low in the cooker?
 
RicardoL said:
In my limited dry run yesterday, it used barely any coal - I was very impressed and it preformed pretty good on a very windy day.



Now that sounds good Tony. Do you put the chicken up high or down low in the cooker?
Click to expand...

Top grate.... I only have one level on mine.
 
These are superb smokers and they really are bigger than they look (you can do two Boston Butts at the same time, or eight half-racks of ribs using two rib racks, or-r-r...)

The products you can produce with these is nearly unlimited. I have two grates on mine and could add the third for "small food" (appetizers like "moink balls" or jalapeno poppers, etc). Your only limit is your imagination...

Keep on smokin',
Dale53:wsm:
 
Ricardo, I use my steamer tray (cut to size and wrapped in foil) as my diffuser, and have been able to run for 10+ hours on a single load of Stubbs. You will be amazed at the versatility of these low budget high output smokers! Keep it out of the wind as much as possible, pack the charcoal tight, and let it go! Good luck with yours, and I hope to see lots of action shots in the future!
Tim
 
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