Weber lid idea

[cmwr]

I know there's been a hundred posts on the internet about how to make a Weber lid fit a UDS barrel. I don't know if this has ever been mentioned before but just in case it hasn't I thought I would throw this tip out there that I discovered a few builds ago. A co-worker wanted me to build him a UDS several months ago and I was having a hard time finding open head drums locally. But I found an old antifreeze barrel from the local lube shop that was in immaculate shape with no dents. I also discovered this barrel was bare steel on the inside and had no liner. So I remembered seeing a tip on here years ago where you could grind the lip down all the way around and the lid would separate and voila you could use it like a flat lid. So that is what I did for the first time ever and it worked beautifully and my coworker now has a nice flat top UDS smoker. But one thing that I discovered when I built this was that once you grind that outer lip down enough for the top of the lid to separate at the seam, a Weber lid then sits down on that drum nice and tight. I wasn't setting out to discover this but I did and I've built several out of old antifreeze and oil drums since and they've all been the same. Thought I would throw that out there in case anybody was struggling to get a Weber lid to fit.

 

[loomis1228]

I thought about making a UDS with an old weber lid but it never really fit. I did go ahead and order the $169 kit from udsparts.com The quality is unbeatable, the process is a blast, and I am about to sell my ceramic grill because the drum cooks better than the ceramic for a fraction of the cost. Make it your own and you’ll be thrilled with the results! I’ll try to figure out how to post a pic and will update later. https://udsparts.com/kits.html

 

[CivilTrojan]

How do you clean them to make sure they are safe to cook food in?

 

[loomis1228]

Build very hot fires. Here is the exact way I burned my drum out. https://youtu.be/6Zwc_JNL6c8

 

[cmwr]

Build very hot fires. Here is the exact way I burned my drum out. https://youtu.be/6Zwc_JNL6c8

Exactly what he said. ^^^^ actually I have come to think I would rather prefer antifreeze or oil barrels over food grade. Most the food grade barrels I have gotten in the past have had them damn liners in them which you can barely get out. At least a antifreeze or oil barrel is unlined and bare steel. Nothing like a good hot fire to clean it