Lowering the charcoal grate for smoking

[VetteDoc]

After looking into adding a diffuser to my 26er I came across the Hunsaker Vortex basket for the WSM - I really liked to look of it but it's 12" tall so there is no way it will work in a kettle. But that did get me to thinking how much could you lower the charcoal grate for smoking?
I grabbed the charcoal grate from a 22 and set it inside the bottom of the kettle and it sits just above the one touch blades - and it ends up lowering the grate by a little more than 3". I took an old charcoal grate and an old cooking grate from a 22 and went to work - I think I will call this the SCB "Submarine Charcoal Basket".

Removed all of the center grate from the outer 22" grate


Cut out some 13 gauge 1/2" expanded steel


Welded it to the ring


I removed the center grates from the 17" charcoal ring, and welded the 17" cutout from the expanded metal to the ring. Then with a separate piece of expanded metal made the "basket"


It fit just like I had hoped



I bought just the vortex plate from Hunsaker which is 18" in diameter



I also have a 22" comal I'm planning on using as a diffuser as well, that should be coming in today.


We'll have to see how that fits, I'll probably have to make some risers to elevate it and keep the center section out of the charcoal basket.

[Garvinque]

Nice can't wait to see the final version


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[michaelmilitello]

That's awesome!   Now you'll have huge indirect capacity!


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[tvt]

I did something similar with my 26er. The order from bottom to top:

-charcoal grate from 22" - fits perfectly above the sweepers and don't interfere w/ sweeps
-17" x 4" charcoal ring made from expanded metal, similar dimensions to wsm charcoal ring
-22" cooking grate w/ 4 bolts that act as spacers to "float" the grate just right above the charcoal and is a "shelf" for the diffuser
-18" pizza pan/diffuser (still experimenting with this)
-26" cooking grate at very top

I have put a water pan on top of the pizza pan/diffuser plate to help regulate temps, the set up works really well for low and slow indirect smoking.

There are several other people on YouTube that have a very similar set up w grate results.

video of my setup for low and slow:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/11hKAI-fghoXBcZgjAIXEmDKKYJxMl-mm/view?usp=sharing

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[VetteDoc]

I figured others have tried something similar - have you been doing minion method or snakes? How much charcoal do you start with to get a low and slow cook going?

[VetteDoc]

I added some stand offs for the comal



I think the comal will be a really good diffuser with a few tweaks, the top edge is 2" tall so I think I'll trim it to 1/2" for more mounting options. With it's tapered shape and stainless structure it's a nice piece for $50.

[tvt]

I figured others have tried something similar - have you been doing minion method or snakes? How much charcoal do you start with to get a low and slow cook going?

the setup is fairly new to me, i've used it twice using w/ the minion method with good early success, temps have been low and stable.

first, I put down chunks of wood, fill the charcoal ring then light up 8-10 briquettes on the side and then add them to the middle of the ring. alternately, i have seen people light 1-2 wax cubes right in the middle of the basket full charcoal.

i have thought about utilizing the same setup in the form of a snake. i suppose the snake wouldn't have to be perfectly stacked if the ring is in place.

weber kettles are so versatile, so many cool and neat ways to achieve bbq!

just an idea, i see that you removed the handles from the comal, can they be added to the inside? at some point during the cook you may need to lift it to take a peek at how much charcoal you have left or to add charcoal.

[Tbagley]

May have to try my 22" grate in my 26" next time I put my coal ring into action, though I may have to tighten up the ring a touch.

[michaelmilitello]

Has anyone tried this with a flat top, older style 26 with daisy wheel vents?

[VetteDoc]

Has anyone tried this with a flat top, older style 26 with daisy wheel vents?

I would be happy to do the R&D on that, someone can send me their Aristocrat or Chief and I'll return it when I'm done. I should warn that it may take 5 or 10 years to properly test though.

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