# HOME MADE SMOKER... UDS style



## ohiorobp (Nov 20, 2011)

Nicely done............._and now Im hungry_. LOL


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## matthews547 (Jan 9, 2009)

looking good :thumbs_up


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## dw'struth (Mar 14, 2008)

Nice! I *will* have a smoker one day! haha


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## Bownut400 (May 29, 2007)

NIce job.. Can't wait til someone invents smell-o-vision..


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## ksgoosekillr (Jul 9, 2009)

creole butter injected beer can chicken on the smoker!


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## dw'struth (Mar 14, 2008)

So in the 7th picture, from the first post, is the screen just to hold coals.....or what? thanks


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## IL_Hunter (Sep 22, 2004)

I built one of these a few years ago. It works great.


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## ksgoosekillr (Jul 9, 2009)

dw'struth said:


> So in the 7th picture, from the first post, is the screen just to hold coals.....or what? thanks


thats a charcoal basket, i added a few more things to this since that build. my remote thermometer and a second set of eyebolts for a lower rack to smoke taller items


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## 3DLord (Aug 7, 2008)

I dont' know if its a good idea to use a chemical barrel container as a smoker. Chemical is suppose to be very harmful to your health. I guess it depends on what's inside that barrel.


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## ksgoosekillr (Jul 9, 2009)

3DLord said:


> I dont' know if its a good idea to use a chemical barrel container as a smoker. Chemical is suppose to be very harmful to your health. I guess it depends on what's inside that barrel.


LOL... chemical barrel??? who said it held chemicals? barrels hold anything and everything. this particular one is an unlined food grade barrel that held corn oil. it was burnt out, sanded clean given a high temp engine paint outside and seasoned on the inside. i would lick the inside of this barrel that's how confident i am

google "brethren UDS" first link choose it... good luck it took me 2 weeks to read the entire thread....


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## reezen11 (Oct 22, 2009)

what i want to know is where do you all find the recipes for smoking food. have a smoker but never made much on it.. never been able to find any recipes .. as far as temp and length times..


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## ksgoosekillr (Jul 9, 2009)

reezen11 said:


> what i want to know is where do you all find the recipes for smoking food. have a smoker but never made much on it.. never been able to find any recipes .. as far as temp and length times..


experiment with rubs and sauces, and my fav apple juice spritz. below is a chart you can use that i created
i prefer chicken higher temp and lower time to get a crispy skin i usually stay 320-350 for 90 min or until 160deg 

View attachment MEAT-TEMPS.pdf


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## reezen11 (Oct 22, 2009)

ksgoosekillr said:


> experiment with rubs and sauces, and my fav apple juice spritz. below is a chart you can use that i created
> i prefer chicken higher temp and lower time to get a crispy skin i usually stay 320-350 for 90 min or until 160deg
> 
> View attachment 1336197


thanks man. never really knew what temps to cook at and how long to do so.. that chart is perfect. now i will start smoking.. thanks again..


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## dw'struth (Mar 14, 2008)

So.....where would one look for such barrels?? I would really like to get this project going!! Just think...smoked turkey! mmmmmmmm


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## ksgoosekillr (Jul 9, 2009)

dw'struth said:


> So.....where would one look for such barrels?? I would really like to get this project going!! Just think...smoked turkey! mmmmmmmm


craigslist, food grade barrel, lots of places go to the place i directed above and it will lead you to all souces of barrels. i got mine on craigslist


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## isaacdahl (Feb 27, 2010)

Nice, I have one of those half sized 25gal drums I plan to make a smoker out of sometime (once I get my bowpress finished) lol.

How important is it to use a food grade barrel? The one I have held some sort of gear lube but I don't feel afraid of using it as a smoker once I get it cleaned out and burn a few bonfires in it. Should I rethink this? I don's see why it would be a problem if it's cleaned out well.

I should add it's a fairly new barrel with no rust or anything.


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## ksgoosekillr (Jul 9, 2009)

isaacdahl said:


> Nice, I have one of those half sized 25gal drums I plan to make a smoker out of sometime (once I get my bowpress finished) lol.
> 
> How important is it to use a food grade barrel? The one I have held some sort of gear lube but I don't feel afraid of using it as a smoker once I get it cleaned out and burn a few bonfires in it. Should I rethink this? I don's see why it would be a problem if it's cleaned out well.I should add it's a fairly new barrel with no rust or anything.


there are two types of barrels, one that has a red liner and ones without... either one will work the ones with the liner will take you a lot of hard work and cleaning, burning to get it to bare metal... if they contained toxic materials and you are goin to still use them burn them several times, clean some more and then some more... even then i wont reccomend anything i dont know about... i know guys that use hyd oil, motor oil, other type barrel and they still are kickin today lol... i went with a food grade for a reason


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## Skunkworkx (Apr 2, 2011)

I'm willing to lend my taste buds on those ribs 

Love the taste of meat off a smoker.... but don't have the patience for it


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## isaacdahl (Feb 27, 2010)

ksgoosekillr said:


> there are two types of barrels, one that has a red liner and ones without... either one will work the ones with the liner will take you a lot of hard work and cleaning, burning to get it to bare metal... if they contained toxic materials and you are goin to still use them burn them several times, clean some more and then some more... even then i wont reccomend anything i dont know about... i know guys that use hyd oil, motor oil, other type barrel and they still are kickin today lol... i went with a food grade for a reason


Gotcha. The one I have doesn't have a red liner so I think I should be good.

Anyways, think of it this way...the carcinogens from the wood smoke are probably gonna do worse damage than a few stray (and I mean very stray) motor oil particles haha.


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## Musgrat (Oct 22, 2008)

Looks good. Getting ready to smoke some bacon in mine.


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## dw'struth (Mar 14, 2008)

What exactly are the valves for? If you already told us, I missed it.


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## SBF (Apr 6, 2010)

dw'struth said:


> What exactly are the valves for? If you already told us, I missed it.


To control air intake, there are usually three holes with one being capped. By pinching the valves, you control air intake, thus temp and burn time. You can also make a lazy man version by piping the vent to near to top of the barrel and putting your valve there. Then you don't have to bend over to adjust the air flow.


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## ksgoosekillr (Jul 9, 2009)

SBF said:


> To control air intake, there are usually three holes with one being capped. By pinching the valves, you control air intake, thus temp and burn time. You can also make a lazy man version by piping the vent to near to top of the barrel and putting your valve there. Then you don't have to bend over to adjust the air flow.


my thinkin there was if im too lazy to bend over to adjust air flow how in the hell am i going to load the charcoal basket!


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## ksgoosekillr (Jul 9, 2009)




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## Bownut400 (May 29, 2007)

Now you have tipped the scale from good to awsome. I am very hungry now.


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## dorkbuck33 (Sep 12, 2011)

reezen11 said:


> what i want to know is where do you all find the recipes for smoking food. have a smoker but never made much on it.. never been able to find any recipes .. as far as temp and length times..


http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/
here it is fellas - anything and everything .


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## rdneckhillbilly (Jan 25, 2010)

Awesome!!!
Howd'ya make the basket?


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## Armed_AL (Jun 8, 2012)

Thats some good looking food!


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## rand_98201 (Sep 24, 2008)

ive always wanted to build a smoker,i just need to do it


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## rjd (Dec 3, 2005)

Love the "FATTY" Been wanting to try one . Don't know if my Doctor would approve. Going to build me one of the UDS but my wife isn't a big a'smoke flavor " fan


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## ksgoosekillr (Jul 9, 2009)

dorkbuck33 said:


> http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/
> here it is fellas - anything and everything .


besy site is bbq brethern... more recipes, and awesome food than one can ever make in a lifetime. plus it has a thread that is 700+pages devoted to this smoker build its called a UDS (ugly drum smoker)


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## ksgoosekillr (Jul 9, 2009)

rjd said:


> Love the "FATTY" Been wanting to try one . Don't know if my Doctor would approve. Going to build me one of the UDS but my wife isn't a big a'smoke flavor " fan


thats actually a version of a fatty, but hamburger with pepperjack and spinach... then cut into slices for the burger


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## oldschoolcj5 (Jun 8, 2009)

dw'struth said:


> So.....where would one look for such barrels?? I would really like to get this project going!! Just think...smoked turkey! mmmmmmmm


if you make it up to Lexington, there is a place that sells all kinds of barrels http://www.lexingtoncontainercompany.com/index.html


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## duby8609 (Oct 10, 2007)

ksgoosekillr said:


> besy site is bbq brethern... more recipes, and awesome food than one can ever make in a lifetime. plus it has a thread that is 700+pages devoted to this smoker build its called a UDS (ugly drum smoker)


X2 for BBQ Brethren. My two passions in life...Hunting and BBQ. And I'll tell ya what, livin in KC teaches ya a lot about both. Love my UDS. Temp controls are so easy and its the cheapest most efficient smoke I've ever used.


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## striker34 (Jun 8, 2007)

Very nice well done, well made, and looks like it works very well...


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## ksgoosekillr (Jul 9, 2009)

rdneckhillbilly said:


> Awesome!!!
> Howd'ya make the basket?


sorry i missed your question, the basket is made from expanded metal that i rolled by hand to fit a charcoal grate out of a weber kettle. I used hogs panel clips to ho'd it together, and then all stainless hardware to give a 3" offset bottom with a pizza pan underneath it. This makes cleanup a ton simpler... THe handle came off a 5 gallon bucket.


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## lrbergin (Jan 19, 2009)

I've been smoking on my UDS for a couple of years now. These things are easy and fun to make but the best part is, they flat out work better than any other smoker I've ever used. I've got a basket about as big as the OP's in mine, and I will burn for 14 hours easy and holds temp very well. If you want a set it and forget it smoker, this is the one for you. Can't say enough good things about these. Check out the link to bbq brethen forum that was posted above. Everything you would ever want to know about a UDS is in one thread over there.


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## wekilldeer (Nov 26, 2008)

Built my UDS a few months ago and so far I absolutly love it. I am amazed how easy it is to use. We have a BBQ comp. every year and I am not suprised when the winners UDS beats out the guy with the expensive commercial smoker! Will post pics when I get some.............Lets see some smokers fellas!!


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## luv old #7 (Aug 14, 2011)

rjd said:


> Love the "FATTY" Been wanting to try one . Don't know if my Doctor would approve. Going to build me one of the UDS but my wife isn't a big a'smoke flavor " fan


 And I suppose you're a huge fan of everything she cooks? Build a smoker and use it. Your wife can eat her leftovers.

X2 on the smoking meat forum. Good stuff in there!

The "Meat Smoking and Smokehouse Design" book by the Marianski's is a wealth of information. Their website is loaded with info and pics too.

It's been 2 years since I've had my smoker up. I'm thinking its about due time. Nice UDS. Food looks good. But the question is..... how does it taste?


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