Ugly Drum Smoker

[RustyPup]

Looking good! It's going to be one nice drum.

[Heisenberger]

what size hole did you make to thread in the 1" nipple? was it just 1-1/4"?

[CambuiAl]

Originally Posted by Heisenberger

what size hole did you make to thread in the 1" nipple? was it just 1-1/4"?

I don't have the drill parts with me to check, but will update you at the weekend. It was a Makita 6-piece plumbers holesaw kit, but looking online there are some variations between Brazil and other countries, so I cannot say for sure. The 3/4" pipe hole was done with a 25mm part, and I *think* the 1" was done with a 38mm part.

[CambuiAl]

So - the burn out is now done, and I am ready to give the drum a final clean out inside before spraying with vegetable oil.

I have 3 questions please:

Painting outside - Not sure if I need a primer or not, and I was going to use a high-temp spray paint that people use for painting wood burner chimneys here. I assume I need a paint that will do high-temps, even if this thing will never get that hot? What paint do most folk use?

The lid fit question - it sits okay, but there are a couple of points where it wobbles. I have read (700 pages so far) in this post about people using a type of gasket tape, the type of silicone sealant used in oven doors (I can get this in Brazil) and there is also a type of rope that might or might not have fibre-glass in it. Any thoughts? Of course, I could just sit a heavy weight on the lid while cooking!

Thermometer - I have one on my pizza oven and it has a 12" probe on it. I take it that people just push this in and out when ready to cook (i.e. it's removable) as otherwise it would get in the way of loading the charcoal basket in and out?

Many thanks!

[CambuiAl]

Forgot to add this one - everyone loves the burning out part!

This burnt it back to bare metal - job well done!

[RustyPup]

Looking good!

First, yes I would suggest using a primer anytime you're going to paint over bare metal. The primer gives the paint a clean surface to stick to. I too used high-temperature stove paint, but others use engine paint sold in auto parts stores, and it appears that it works very well.

I can't help you with the lid. I used a Weber lid, and I understand that's not an option for you.

The 12" thermometer that you describe sounds like the right one to me. The thermometer is removed to allow you to take the charcoal basket out. Then it's installed after the basket of lit charcoal is put into the smoker.

It sounds like you're moving right along, and you're almost there. Good luck!

[Heisenberger]

I had a loose fitting flat lid as well. I basically bent the rim of the lid in at two different spots. I did it by holding it vertically to the ground and kinda banging/dropping it on the ground. This didn't make it airtight but ever time I put the lid on I would press down at that two points to kinda lock it down. I don't know how warped your lid is but it worked for me and you can always bend it back with channel locks...

[Peddler]

I used a 12 in thermometer for a while and drilled a bolt for it to go thru. Holds the stem straight.

[CambuiAl]

So - I have bought my primer, and spray paint for high temperatures. I bought 4 x 300ml cans of mat black and 1 x 200ml can of gold - the colours were fairly limited, but I figure I can do a nice logo with the gold on the mat finish.

I also bought some silicone seal (2 metres) - the type used for high-temperature oven doors. I am curious about this stuff to see if this helps with making a good seal on the lid. I am thinking of using this on the rim of the barrel, so the lid sits nicely on top. Anyone used this stuff before?