Char Griller Offset Barrel Smoker Modifications

[Tomaron]

I hope I have put this in the right thread and let's get the obvious out of the way. Yes I know the Char Griller is a COS that leaks and isn't very good, but it is what I have and I do not have the budget to get a proper offset. All done? Good! lol


This is what my smoker looks like.


I have already done a number of mods to my smoker.

Baffle: The basket is upside down as a "poor man's baffle plate".

Chimney Stack: Stack elongated to grate level.

Smoking chamber: Attempted to seal the leaky smoking chamber with adhesive smoke seal strips (it is a million times better, but still not "perfect".

Fire basket: Made a fire basket from expanded metal, might need to make a new one from thicker metal, however.

This has all been a lot of fun and I have really enjoyed doing it so in a way it's not a bad thing that this is the smoker that I have.


Now for what I would like to do in addition and that I am hoping someone in the community might be able to give advice on:

Baffles: The upside down coal basket is fine, but I am sure I do not have to tell you all that balancing drip pans and water pans on a curved surface is far from ideal. I'd like some proper metal for a baffle that then rests flat, does anyone have any suggestions?

Smoking chamber: Ideally I'd like this to be less leaky, does anyone have experience in either fitting angle iron to make a "lip" on the inside or any other clever ideas?

"Cooking plate": I have seen a lot of offsets have a piece of metal making a shelf above the firebox, e.g. this one:


I am guessing that the purpose is as a home for a coffee pot, or a sacuepan with a mop sauce to keep it hot? Does anyone have any experience in adding one? From looking at the lid of my firebox I would think it should be an easy enough thing to do?


Any help/advice/suggestions you can give me would be most appreciated. Thank you.

[Darchie03]

You should find everything you need here

http://www.bbqsmokermods.com/

[jhapka]

+1

[Tomaron]

You should find everything you need here
http://www.bbqsmokermods.com/

Thanks Darchie03, I have had a look there and the problem with that is that I live in the UK and shipping, VAT etc is prohibitively expensive. Basically, if I was to order the baffle and the water pan shipping and VAT would be more than the items.

[UncleSpike]

I have the same unit, and have modified it to work quite well, even in winter temps in Canada. I'll get some details for you in the next couple days...

[Tomaron]

That would be amazing. Thank you so much.

[Jerod Broussard]

Keep layering adhesive strips until the lid seals. I used a welding blanket over the lid.

[Tomaron]

I didn't think you could do adhesive on top of adhesive. I've looked at fire rope, but from what I have seen most people say it only lasts a cook or two.

[Jared49]

I used a piece of stove pipe for a baffle. Open it up and cut to length if needed. I found it to work quite well. Might need to drill a few holes in the length of it to help with heat distribution.

[Tomaron]

Did you manage to get that flat? I'm using the Coal basket slightly raised (on the legs of the firebox that can be attached when the firebox is used as a grill) at the moment, which actually evens the temps quite well, but as it is not flat doing the water and drip pans becomes a nuisance.

[UncleSpike]

I did not make a charcoal basket. Just used the cooking grates that it came with...

I got a piece of 3" galvanized pipe with adjustable elbows, and dropped the chimney to about 3 cm above the grate.

For baffles, I used a piece of 1/8" flat steel plate and laid them in as pictured. You can slide them around as needed, but the way the are now keeps a pretty consistent temperature across the whole thing. When cooking, I put a water pan in the center...

On the lid, I bolted on some 90 degree angle iron. I believe it was galvanized as well... My son works for a heating and air conditioning company. I then bought this gasket:

https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B06XRF2Q62/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

and stuck it on. The back side required more layers just to close it up. That was the trickiest part.

If I was doing it again, I would try turn it into a reverse flow, by moving the chimney to the same side as the fire box, and using a solid baffle plate across it instead of two pieces. Also, don't waste your time or money by adding thermometers at the grill height. Use a wireless system like the Thermoworks Smoke or something.

Just my two bits.

P.S. Now that I'm taking pictures, I see how dirty the thing really is. It needs a good cleaning sometime soon.

[Tomaron]

Thank you so much UncleSpike. That's really helpful. Any chance you have the dimensions/measurements for the pieces you've used?
It also looks like you have bent one of the baffles at the firebox end, or is that just a trick of the light?

[RonB]

Galvanized steel emits toxic gas when heated above 392 F. Ya might want to rethink using it in your grill. I know I would not eat anything exposed to heated galvanized metal - sorry.

[Tomaron]

UncleSpike Would you mind getting me the dimensions of some of your mods please?

Also, do you have an issue with the Firebox? I find I have to prop the lid open a lot lately or the fire will go out and the logs just smoulder and produce a lot of smoke.

[UncleSpike]

I will try get something for you this weekend. We just moved to a new place, and things are a bit hectic right now.

I actually usually leave the drawer slid open about about a quarter or half an inch to get more airflow into the firebox. I don't really like propping the lid open, as hot air rises...

[Tomaron]

UncleSpike Thank you so much, no super hurry if you are busy. Exciting with a new place though I hope.
I tried the drawer, but couldn't get it right so figured maybe that's not what people do. Now I know that that's what you do I will try that again next time!
Btw. do you just burn wood or do you replenish coals throughout the cook?