How do you fire an ugly drum smoker... I am A new owner!!!!!!!

[nucornhusker]

I use method very close to N8man's.

http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/showthread.php?t=109339

 

[TuscaloosaQ]

Wow!!!! All great responses... I did not even look in the drum.... But after shagdog saw the post he called me and gave his input...what was cool when we stopped to get gas and I looked inside and there is 2 levels of grates and a cylinder type charcoal basket.... Heck to me it looks well built.... I've never seen one before... The price was 320$$$ I gave him 400$$$ and told him to carry his wife out to eat... I was very happy to get it... I'm hoping my new Shirley cooker...will be ready by thanksgiving.... Being that I cook a lot when I work... Matt (shagdog) said it would be perfect for me.... I'm very very exited about it.. Kinda like kid with a new toy... Think I will order another one and when I'm back in Cincinnati get it for Tyler!!!!!

 

[SmittyJonz]

I run KBB. I dump about 3/4 chimney of lit on top of loaded basket and leave lid half off for about 10 minutes then put lid on fully, at 250* I usually Cap 2 intakes and run on 2 settling in around 300*.

 

[Cliff H.]

I fill the basket and torch the top a little bit all over. Then I throw a few big chunks of pecan on.

ps: My drum is very ugly.

 

[guero_gordo]

Fill, add chunks, open 2 valves, and give it a 20s burn in one of the gaps to light about 4-5 briquettes, let it run up to 225 while I prep the meat.

...and when I say torch, I mean plain ol' bernzomatic sweat-solder type propane torch, not one o' them tactical defoliant flamethrower modified to burn hydrazine.

 

[gtr]

I use method very close to N8man's.

http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/showthread.php?t=109339

Yup!

Paul - you'll get it after a run or 2 for sure! UDS is a great cooker for when there isn't time to tend to a stickburner.

 

[ebijack]

Congrats on the drum! And your way of helping others!!!
Fill coal basket with coal/wood. The more wood, the more smoke flavor profile. For 225-275* use 1/2 of a chimney full. For over 300* use a full chimney of lit coals dumped on top of unlit coals. Much like N8mans example.
If you have alot of pieces of wood on top of the unlit coals. Those will start to burn within a few minutes creating more smoke than you might think/want while your drum comes up to temp. Just a note on that.
Depending on the draft of your drum, will depend on how fast your drum will respond to intake changes. You should see the results of your intake change with in 15 minutes. And the smoker be stable from there.
When putting your food on, the temp will drop like any smoker, so don't worry about a temp of 50* higher than what you want to cook at before adding the food to the drum. Like mentioned, some UDS's can be very responsive.
Any questions, give a shout.

 

[Ayvatr]

BUILD A UDS! (Sorry, couldn't help meself) :mrgreen:

Fill the basket full of charcoal and 6-8 wood chunks, put about 15 lit pieces on top and when it gets to about 50° of target temp cut your intakes down to about 3/4" diameter and let'er roll...

That's what I do anyway...

Nooooh! Please don't put ideas in Obiwan's head! He needs to " Keep on target".
What a outstanding guy to do what he did! Kudos to Paul.:clap:

 

[chicagokp]

That's awesome Paul. Can't wait to see what you turn out of it! :thumb:

 

[Titch]

Cant help but say ,your a nice Bloke.
I will be privileged to meet you one day

 

[AussieMatt]

I just fill mine with lump and hit it for about 30 seconds with the weed burner on the edge closest to the open intake. Chuck the lid on and I'm good to go in about 30 minutes.

 

[KevinJ]

Congrats on the Drum and good on ya for helping out a person in need. We need to see pics. :mrgreen:

 

[Daggs]

Personally when I used my UDS all the time I could go well over 24 hours @300 with ease. All depends on basket size and fuel. I start mine with 1/4 chimney and dump on side opposite the temp probe so I don't get false readings off the bat. As stated above let it run for quite a while so the drum itself gets up to temp as well as the fuel stabilizes.
You will not be disappointed!

 

[16Adams]

My basket is to small to play with y'all. , but reading the myriad of ways to fuel a full size UDS with a big boy basket is quite interesting. I read one that was a layer of briqs, then smoking wood chunks, then a chimney or two of lit lump dumped on that then topped with wood splits. Wow.

 

[aawa]

It really does depend on the size of your charcoal basket for how long it will go. My fire basket is huge. It can hold 40lbs of kbb briqs along with wood chunks. I have had it running for 24 hours at 300 and still have plenty of coals in the basket.

You will love the drum. It is pretty much a set it and forget it type of cooker. If you want to make it even easier, get a temperature controller and it is basically like setting the temperature of an oven.

The flavor is different than the stickburner you are used too. If you don't use a diffuser or a pan, the fat will drip on the coal and that flavor does transfer to the meat. I like the flavor it imparts by this process.

 

[Ham14]

I tried my drum for the second time yesterday and still could not get it past 331. I tried everything. I think were I bought it the air intakes may be to low but I'm staying with my kettle. I couldn't finish two chickens. Guess I got a bad drum.

 

[Fwismoker]

I tried my drum for the second time yesterday and still could not get it past 331. I tried everything. I think were I bought it the air intakes may be to low but I'm staying with my kettle. I couldn't finish two chickens. Guess I got a bad drum.

I'm sure the location of the intakes is fine ham but it's the balance of intake and exhaust that will let you get higher temps. Show me a pic of the drum if you can.

 

[pitbossJB]

I put a coffee can( #10 can) in the middle of the charcoal basket. Fill up the basket all around the can. Pull the can out the basket. It will leave a hole. Dump in about 10 lit coals from a chimney, and there it is. Have the exhaust and intakes open. When temp starts to get where you want them start shutting down the intakes to stabilize the target temp. On a full basket of charcoal I could get 15 hours of cook time easy.

That's how I do it too! Then I throw a couple of splits on top and go prep the meat.

 

[aawa]

I tried my drum for the second time yesterday and still could not get it past 331. I tried everything. I think were I bought it the air intakes may be to low but I'm staying with my kettle. I couldn't finish two chickens. Guess I got a bad drum.

Are your intakes just holes at the base of the drum, or do you have the lazy man pipe attachments? If your intakes comes from a pipe that is bent almost 90 degrees, that could be your issue, the bend decrease air flow drastically.

I ended up doing 2 - 3/4 in holes at the base of the drum. Then 2 - 3/4 in pipe intakes on my drum. I keep my 2 holes at the base open and then dial in my temperature using the lazy man intake pipes.

 

[Lowki]

How is your fire basket set up? Does it have good clearance from the bottom of the drum? If not you will start to choke out your fire before you can get it up to a higher temp. range. As others have said, pic of vents, stack and inside minus the grates would help. (unless i missed the posted pic)