# Plans for a 55gal drum smoker/bbq



## saichele (Jan 16, 2008)

Anybody have plans or a pic of a 55gal drum based smoker/bbq.  I have two empty drums, a MIG and a cutting torch, and the desire to be able to roast a half hog from time to time.

Thanks
Steve


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## BrotherBart (Jan 16, 2008)

I don't have any plans for it but for a lot of years I used one I built from the double barrel stoves kit that is available. Bottom barrel was the firebox and the top one the smoking chamber. I didn't cut the barrel but put doors on both ends of the top one and installed racks in it. Worked great. For doing halves of hogs you would need to cut the top barrel and put hinges on it and a large rack inside.

Be sure to put the smoke inlet of the top barrel at the opposite end from the stack to draw the smoke through the meat on the rack.


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## Molson (Jan 16, 2008)

Aha! Something I can help with, after all the great advice I've read on here.  I'm one of the Canadian BBQ Series Champs, competed at the Jack in Lynchburg TN this year.  I've seen a few barrel smokers, and this one seems to work the best:

Big Smokey
http://www.mikesell.net/smoker/main.html

There is also one similar, the Big Baby

bbq.netrelief.com/pits/metalpit/bigbaby/build_big_baby_metal_bbq_pit.shtml


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## babalu87 (Jan 16, 2008)

Molson, can you link the plan page?


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## Molson (Jan 16, 2008)

Sorry about that, there should be a left hand frame with all the links.

http://www.mikesell.net/smoker/


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## babalu87 (Jan 16, 2008)

Thanks
Thats better , maybe a Spring project.............


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## saichele (Jan 18, 2008)

i think I'm looking more at an end to end design - one barrel as the grill, then maybe half a barrel as a fire chamber off to the side and down.  Whole thing mounted in an angle iron or black pipe frame.  

Steve


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## Molson (Jan 18, 2008)

ah, you're looking for a offset design. Watch the opening size between the firebox and the cooking chamber. You'll have to put some baffles/plates in to control the hotspots. If you're running a chimney from the top of the cooking chamber, bring it down close to grill level.


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## saichele (Jan 18, 2008)

Molson said:
			
		

> ah, you're looking for a offset design. Watch the opening size between the firebox and the cooking chamber. You'll have to put some baffles/plates in to control the hotspots. If you're running a chimney from the top of the cooking chamber, bring it down close to grill level.



Right - those are the reasons I was looking for some plans.  What's the appropriate dimension on the firebox to cooking chamber connection, how big a stack, what might the baffles look like?

Thanks
Steve


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## Molson (Jan 18, 2008)

I'm off to a seminar now and wont be back till Monday, but leave it with me and I'll see what I can dig up


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## bjorn773 (Jan 19, 2008)

Here's a pic of my firebox just before welding it into the main chamber. You can see the angle iron on top extending out the right side. This angle iron was welded to the bottom of the tank, then baffles welded on top. I will post more pics as soon as I get them downsized in photoshop. The opening from firebox to cooking chamber is only about 2x18 inches. I figured it should be roughly the same size as the stack in volume. Been working great for 5 years now.


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## bjorn773 (Jan 19, 2008)

Here it is welded in place.


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## bjorn773 (Jan 19, 2008)

The opening from firebox to the inside of the cooking chamber.


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## bjorn773 (Jan 19, 2008)

The baffles are just plate steel welded from the opening to the far side of the cooking chamber. They force the smoke to the opposite side of the chamber under the grates. Then the smoke has to travel across your vittles to finally exit out the stack. Just like BrotherBart was explaining with the drum setup.


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## bjorn773 (Jan 19, 2008)

Here's what it looks like with the grates and stack installed. Hope this helps understand the theory anyway.


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## bjorn773 (Jan 19, 2008)

Finally, the finished product. You could certainly use drums for this design. The firebox would probably only require half a drum. May not be the best design out there, just what I came up with using what I had. Most of it was salvaged steel. The used compressor tank and wheels are the only things I paid for. Very time consuming project, but you will have a blast doing it!!


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## saichele (Jan 22, 2008)

I like it.  Nice project.  Very much like what I was trying to come up with.  Thanks

Steve


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## bjorn773 (Jan 22, 2008)

No problem. Have fun!


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