This old smoker was built by my dad and our old neighbor (who are both long gone). It's been up at my hunt camp for years now. I never use it up there as when I am there I am so busy with other projects or huntin/fishin I just don't have time to fool with it.
Figured I would bring it home as I have some projects in mind for it. I want to do some very low temp smokes in it for like cheeses, salmon, etc now that winter time is approaching.. I also want to be able to hang stuff inside of it as opposed to laying stuff on a rack. its got a very sturdy steel frame inside so I can jerry rig some rods to go across horizontally to hang meat off of. Smoked sausage sound good?
Gonna pressure wash it inside/out here soon and it needs some minor sheet metal repair at the bottom. The original fire box is a pile of rust in the bottom. However, i guess dad had built a new one and set it inside, and it looks like it never had a fire in it
Gonna experiment building a fire in the firebox...and also building a fire in either my BGE or my offset smoker, and venting over to it with a dryer hose or stove pipe hose. Interesting to see what kind of temps I can maintain with either
I had been looking at plans on the net for a small smokehouse..this will take the place of that idea
Open view (full of spider webs and all...)
Closed view
nice project. I'm sure the nostalga effect will make anything that comes out of there taste better. I think the firebox will be the most important. being able to pinch off 02 and regulate the fire, smoke and heat entering the meat chamber will be key. something off to the side of the chamber I'm thinking with meat chamber thermometers visable from the outside. and a fire that won't burn a ton of wood or have to be stoked every 3-4 hours. having the meat higher than the fire will be more efficient to move the smoke thru the chimneys with flue dampers to help regulate heat/smoke. real northern yankees from Vt, N.H. and Maine knew alot about good wood stoves. in my day yotel stoves were highly sought after. wish I knew sooner I just gave away at least another cord of oak. If you need some I have some good sized branches that need to come down right over the driveway, ez-pz.
Nothing like "Dad's old smoker"... This old smoker started when I brought home this box and told my dad that I thought it would make a good cooker. Little did I know this was going to be the start of a cook house. After a summer of working we finally finished it. Although it might look a little different it does a fine job of smoking anything that you might want.
:saluting
yeah Bossman, that's about exactly what I was thinking about. my Bro's old inlaws raised hogs and chickens in W.V. and had a working walk in smokehouse for app 40 years. held at least a dozen hams at any given time. some they claimed had been in there for years. not sure where smoking ends and curing begins for something like that, but it was the best ham,turkey,sausage I've ever had. but they had 10 kids to cut wood and keep the fire going. cool bell in that first pic Allen, where'd it come from?
Well I pressure washed it and all the racks. Did a minor sheet metal repair and loaded it up with some lump and a piece of oak. Got it fires up waiting on it to hit 225° and 2 racks of wild hog ribs are going on for its maiden voyage
