kw
Knows what a fatty is.
- Joined
- Jul 12, 2010
- Location
- Owings, MD
Hey all,
A few years back, a smoker was donated to the church I attend. When I spoke with one of the pastors about it, in the recesses of my mind, I was thinking this was probably some thin skinned cheap sheet metal unit, that was all rusted out, and in need of transport to the local landfill.
I was quite surprised to find out I was mistaken, as it turned out to be a first generation Lang 84.
It was in need of some repairs, though. It seems the previous owner had an aversion to removing the lower grates and scraping down the baffle plate (for lack of a better term). There was considerable debris built up and once I got the clinkers out of there, it was pretty clear the smoker needed some attention.
I contacted Ben Lang, and he gave me some tips on how to rebuild the pit. A friend of mine, now retired from the welding profession, has a son attending welding school out in Ohio. Together, the two of them cut out the old metal, and welded in new stuff, based on Ben's instructions.
Since then, I've done several cooks on the pit, some for personal use, and some for church functions. I can't say enough good about this thing. It still needs a little more attention, and I'm planning on hauling it back to the house for a paint job once the weather turns a bit warmer.
I have noticed there's a considerable temperature difference between the firebox side of the pit, and the far side, of about 40 degrees. Is this normal? I find myself playing musical meat during the cooks, which may be just the way things are with an offset, but I'm asking the board if any of you may know of ways to tune this thing to get things a little more uniform.
Thanks for any advice you can give me, and I'm attaching a few snapshots of the pit, before and after the repairs.
Kurt
A few years back, a smoker was donated to the church I attend. When I spoke with one of the pastors about it, in the recesses of my mind, I was thinking this was probably some thin skinned cheap sheet metal unit, that was all rusted out, and in need of transport to the local landfill.
I was quite surprised to find out I was mistaken, as it turned out to be a first generation Lang 84.
It was in need of some repairs, though. It seems the previous owner had an aversion to removing the lower grates and scraping down the baffle plate (for lack of a better term). There was considerable debris built up and once I got the clinkers out of there, it was pretty clear the smoker needed some attention.
I contacted Ben Lang, and he gave me some tips on how to rebuild the pit. A friend of mine, now retired from the welding profession, has a son attending welding school out in Ohio. Together, the two of them cut out the old metal, and welded in new stuff, based on Ben's instructions.
Since then, I've done several cooks on the pit, some for personal use, and some for church functions. I can't say enough good about this thing. It still needs a little more attention, and I'm planning on hauling it back to the house for a paint job once the weather turns a bit warmer.
I have noticed there's a considerable temperature difference between the firebox side of the pit, and the far side, of about 40 degrees. Is this normal? I find myself playing musical meat during the cooks, which may be just the way things are with an offset, but I'm asking the board if any of you may know of ways to tune this thing to get things a little more uniform.
Thanks for any advice you can give me, and I'm attaching a few snapshots of the pit, before and after the repairs.
Kurt