Project: Barbecue Trailer

Super excited to see how this turns out. Is this going to be a straight up grill, or will you add the accoutrements for smoking as well? ala:



PS - I love the rear facing style, and it would be perfect for that trailer.

meep.
Thanks a lot.
I had it all planned out, but now you've got me thinking again.

The original plan is just a flat box-style open grill with a fire tray underneath that can be cranked up or down with a handwheel in the back.
Well, while I'm reconsidering the entire damned design, here's how far I've gotten today:
I tacked on a leveler far enough in to tuck under the frame a bit at normal extension.



The box is three inches in from the edges to keep the heat away from the tires.(I may narrow the frame and keep the wheelbase the same.)


I ninety'd the corners and meep-welded for strength.


I'll grind the welds flat, skin it, and weld the fire box together tomorrow morning (if I don't do a complete redesign and cut the box back apart.)

It occurs to me that issuing inmates a cool BBQ and no meat might be an inexpensive way to reduce the over crowding in our prison system.

Human flesh is full of protein and it tastes more like pork than chicken.

Okay, I really like the idea of an enclosed barbeque for the even heat, but I need surface area for cooking for 40-50 people. We don't usually have time really for anything fancy like smoking the meat, so I'm kinda torn between revamping the design into a rear-facing multi-tier enclosed grill and just putting a domed lid on top of my original design.

This was what I started with:


Now I'm thinking:


Thoughts?

On a related note to the YouTube, I would add some baffling inside above the firebox. This will spread out the smoke so you don't burn the meep out of the meat right above the fire.

If I could build a cool BBQ, I would call it a toaster, and win the coolest handmade stashbox/treasure chest you've ever seen.

Do it.

Russian BBQ

You, sir, are wrong.

^I lol'ed until I saw where you got that from.
(That poor meep)
Anyway, I've decided to go with something like DeJeR's picture.
I widened the frame since the fire box will be above the level of the tires.

That's all I had time to do today since the kids insist on being catered to and entertained all weekend.
My rest home better be meepING SUPER NICE.

Sorry it's taking so long

It would be nice if you could use that area under the smoke box for extra wood storage. It sure makes it nice to be able to transport the wood and charcoal without messing up your car or truck.

I keep misreading the title of this thread as "Project: Baroque Trailer," and therefore I think you ought to ornament it with flowing floral filigree pierce-work and spikes, and possibly a cherub.

@GooberMcNutly

It would be nice if you could use that area under the smoke box for extra wood storage. It sure makes it nice to be able to transport the wood and charcoal without messing up your car or truck.

So shall it be!

Also:
I has it a plan!

So it transforms from a robot into a BBQ cart?

Hah!
It'd be like a mexican Go-Bot!
-But no. That's just a person-sized outline I whipped up for scale.

I was going to ask if you were including the manikin for scale to be sure he would fit into the smoke box.

And the sink is for fermenting the hooch in? "Pork" meep always tastes better when marinated in hooch.

Ladies and gentlemen, I have an announcement:
As you know, there comes a time in every man's life when he'll have to make some tough decisions.
Choices that will be seen as logical and for the greater good by some,
and as an outright betrayal by others.

I am faced with soch a choice now.

I pray that you will all see that what I do, is what I feel will be in everyone's best interest.

In short:
I'm thinking of running this thing on propane.
(flinches)

And propane accessories.

Propane makes sense for a workplace BBQ. It is a lot easier and quicker to get ready if time is limited (lunch break etc).

Mind you, with a rig that size, is there any reason why you can't build a wood-fired smoker into it as well?

I was planning on installing a bean-burner and tray in the bottom of the smoker chamber to heat wood chips (like a regular smoker) and installing rows of burners in the upper chamber.
We have a big propane tank on site for charging bottles, and as Dragonstaff said, it heats up faster for when time is short.

I had some trouble locating a decent-sized tank, so I'm going with the box-style I drew in the second set of plans(rear-facing)

Starting with the lid.


I'm using the cutting torch my dad passed down:

I've come to the conclusion that Dad bought the cheapest piece of meep in the welding supply place, but it'll do until I get around to buying a real one.


The sides of the lid, cut out of 1/8" plate:


(The bottom half will be 3/16")

If you are talking about a propane tank, what about sourcing a forklift-sized tank from your local supplier? One of those should fit quite easily under there, and mounting brackets are easy to get as well. They are also designed to work lying on their sides rather than standing up and looking obvious.

Too late.
Already bought the 3/16" steel plate.

Oh, wait.
You meant the gas supply tank!

Yeah, there's a dozen or so places that supply propane bottles.
No worries there. :)

(I'm researching the home made pipe-type burners at the moment)

3/16" plate is always good to have around. Wood-burning BBQs can be a pain in the meep, more so in the work-place. And in your workplace, a stick of firewood could be seen as a weapon.

I would still go the propane route.

Ah. What are you looking for a tank for then?

That was for the body of the grill.(upper chamber)
I was looking for something slightly bigger than a 55-gallon oil drum in a 3/16 to 1/4" thickness.
I'd probably be searching for months though, so I'm just making it out of sheet steel.

Gotcha. That would be quicker and easier. But does it need to be that thick? If it is only the body and support for the plate, you could probably get away with 1/16" sheet, with a strip of 1/4"x 1' flat stock around the inside of the top for strength. Much lighter to move around and more weight available for steaks and beer.

Although, with the frame you have in place already, the reinforcing strip probably wouldn't be needed either. No need to over-engineer things.

I was wondering about that.
I'm not sure what the minimum thickness needs to be to avoid warpage and burn-thru, so I'm just playing it safe-ish. (I could've gone 1/4")

With propane burners, the flame would be far enough away from the sides that it shouldn't be an issue. The body itself should not get hot enough to burn paint off, let alone burn through, and that frame is good enough to stop it warping.

(whispers) I might be going back and forth between using charcoal and gas. I wanna have the option

Personally, I would go with a 3/8' Diamond plate steel outer and a 1/2" u -frame to avoid burn through, warpage, and to hold heat like an oven. May seem like overkill, but if you put in gas burners to run/start oak or charcoal fires, plus put in a smoke chip box a third of the way up, you may need the extra thickness. The base is there to hold the extra weight.. Don't forget the cut holes for adjustable vents at half way up (slot-vents will do, or 1/2 inch holes with a slide cover), because you will have to feed a carboniferous flame with an oxygen source, and have a choke for smoking. You might want to consider that this beast will be cooking things as quick as burgers, as thick as roasts, and as delicate as fish or marinated portabellas. Plus the smoke box & vents give you a slow cook option for things like whole slabs of beef, ribs, hams, turkeys, etc. Turn the gas on low, two wet chunks of oak, some almond chips in the box, and a glaze chunk or two of pork shoulder or tri-tip, and let it go for an hour...Boy Howdy! All you need is a good Glaze or Rub.
IMHO
Goat, Lover of Meat

@spankerchief

Fair enough.

@Wotak

Not true...the face of a baby, when braised , is rather like flounder...mild, and fishy, best serve in a meeper sauce.

Boiled, the elderly are a bit more like mutton.

RedHeads are inedible without proper dark ales. Period.

The rest generally taste closer to spam than anything else...why do you think it's so popular in the Islands?

There's something cathartic about building this thing.


The thought and process of setting up the cuts...



The little bit of joy you feel when another piece is tacked into place and the whole thing starts to take shape:


The little jigs that you've learned to make because you've worked alone so long...


And spending a moment after each move to stare at it and think about what you want it to be:

I spent a good solid couple of hours welding the box together.
(I'm using a small wire feed, so I have to do both sides of the join)

This is pretty much it for this weekend:


On a side note; I take back what I said about the little torch kit.
It took some practice, but now that I've tinkered with it a bit I can make some sharp-meep little cuts with it.(About 1/8" wide. I meep you not.)