McBroom’s 250G Smoker and Trailer build.

McBroom · Post by **McBroom** » May 3rd, 2019, 6:37 pm

I’m gonna use this thread to track my 250 gallon propane tank build. With costs of materials when possible.
Yesterday I bought the tank $100
The trailer I’m using I’ve had for years and has served me very well, many purposes from moving to hauling firewood.
For the build I’m buying a set of plans from Smokerbuilder.

The finished product is gonna be a reverse flow with a warming cabinet and a charcoal grill on the opposite side. The charcoal grill will be used for veggies,burgers and other foods.
My goal is selling my Q at flea markets, special events like car shows,football games...
So let’s begin

I love my truck!
Blue Mule 18 Ram 4x4 C/C
Tradesman Power Wagon

Chromeski · Post by **Chromeski** » May 4th, 2019, 2:27 am

Looks like an ambitious project, I'm excited to see it come along

Dirtytires · Post by **Dirtytires** » May 4th, 2019, 11:56 am

Very nice....looking forward to watching your build.

McBroom · Post by **McBroom** » May 5th, 2019, 8:43 am

A new thought for the consensus...
Tell me what y’all think Please

I’ve been thinking about making this a center feed smoker as it might be cheaper to build as well as saving space on the trailer. I need to have room to carry tables,chairs,ice chests etc.

On another note...
I don’t have a plasma cutter so unfortunately I have to cut everything with cut off wheels.

***I’m not sure how thick the tank is but the FB is gonna be 1/4” plate.(Yep a lot of cutoff wheels involved in this one)**
I haven’t ordered my plans from Frank yet but will be doing so this week.

I love my truck!
Blue Mule 18 Ram 4x4 C/C
Tradesman Power Wagon

towtruck · Post by **towtruck** » May 5th, 2019, 9:44 am

McBroom wrote: ↑
May 5th, 2019, 8:43 am
A new thought for the consensus...
Tell me what y’all think Please

I’ve been thinking about making this a center feed smoker as it might be cheaper to build as well as saving space on the trailer. I need to have room to carry tables,chairs,ice chests etc.

On another note...
I don’t have a plasma cutter so unfortunately I have to cut everything with cut off wheels.

***I’m not sure how thick the tank is but the FB is gonna be 1/4” plate.(Yep a lot of cutoff wheels involved in this one)**
I haven’t ordered my plans from Frank yet but will be doing so this week.

I love my truck!
Blue Mule 18 Ram 4x4 C/C
Tradesman Power Wagon

I would think a center feed would eat up more space.....most fire box's hang out the back and making a center feed seems like it will take up more space no matter what position you put it in. You also have to make the smoker taller with that style and that is not a good thing for a trailer mounted one. Set that tank on the rear on one side with the fire box out the back and you still have 3/4 of the trailer or more free.

McBroom · Post by **McBroom** » May 5th, 2019, 10:14 am

towtruck wrote:
McBroom wrote: ↑
May 5th, 2019, 8:43 am
A new thought for the consensus...
Tell me what y’all think Please

I’ve been thinking about making this a center feed smoker as it might be cheaper to build as well as saving space on the trailer. I need to have room to carry tables,chairs,ice chests etc.

On another note...
I don’t have a plasma cutter so unfortunately I have to cut everything with cut off wheels.

***I’m not sure how thick the tank is but the FB is gonna be 1/4” plate.(Yep a lot of cutoff wheels involved in this one)**
I haven’t ordered my plans from Frank yet but will be doing so this week.

I love my truck!
Blue Mule 18 Ram 4x4 C/C
Tradesman Power Wagon
I would think a center feed would eat up more space.....most fire box's hang out the back and making a center feed seems like it will take up more space no matter what position you put it in. You also have to make the smoker taller with that style and that is not a good thing for a trailer mounted one. Set that tank on the rear on one side with the fire box out the back and you still have 3/4 of the trailer or more free.

Awesome answer thanks.
The way I was thinking is that the firebox would still hang out the back and the tank would be across the axle with the feed being about the 7:00-8:00 position. Jus below the BP. And using a single door along with chimneys on both ends of course one being a fake.
Thought’s???

I love my truck!
Blue Mule 18 Ram 4x4 C/C
Tradesman Power Wagon

Dirtytires · Post by **Dirtytires** » May 5th, 2019, 11:46 am

A center feed design seems to work ok for a patio model but I’m not sure it is the best setup for a trailer. It is definately not going to be more compact. I’m also not convinced it is any easier to build than a rf and definitely not less work than a traditional offset.

Just my opinion, of course.

McBroom · Post by **McBroom** » May 5th, 2019, 1:21 pm

Dirtytires wrote:A center feed design seems to work ok for a patio model but I’m not sure it is the best setup for a trailer. It is definately not going to be more compact. I’m also not convinced it is any easier to build than a rf and definitely not less work than a traditional offset.

Just my opinion, of course.

Yeah I’m rethinking that idea. And a standard RF offset on the trailer will allow room for the wood box on the other side too. The trailer I’m building is a 13’ dove tail. I’m gonna cut the dovetail off and put the FB as close to the axle as possible.

I love my truck!
Blue Mule 18 Ram 4x4 C/C
Tradesman Power Wagon

McBroom · Post by **McBroom** » May 5th, 2019, 1:45 pm

I think I wanna build it like this

Sorry I hijacked your picture

I love my truck!
Blue Mule 18 Ram 4x4 C/C
Tradesman Power Wagon

McBroom · Post by **McBroom** » May 5th, 2019, 1:47 pm

@SJB67 I’m following your build hope you didn’t mind me taking your picture and putting it on my thread.

sjb67 · Post by **sjb67** » May 5th, 2019, 5:14 pm

Not a problem. I bought the plans from Smokerbuilder. Good luck

McBroom · Post by **McBroom** » May 5th, 2019, 5:17 pm

sjb67 wrote:Not a problem. I bought the plans from Smokerbuilder. Good luck

I’m getting my set this week. Gotta putthe paycheck in the bank first.

I love my truck!
Blue Mule 18 Ram 4x4 C/C
Tradesman Power Wagon

McBroom · Post by **McBroom** » May 12th, 2019, 6:29 pm

Got my plans today.
YEAH HAPPY ME!
The plans I bought are for the 250 G reverse flow with the warming cabinet and cold smoker.
One thing I do wish that were included in the plans for each build is a materials list. I think if a material list was included it would take some of the guesswork out of it.

I relocated the axle today and am thinking there may be some ride height issues. I want it to sit as low as possible but not drag the ground either.
So experts tell me how to figure the ride height out.

How far off center(towards the driver side) of the trailer is safe. Keeping it safe to pull at highway speeds and easy access to the c/c.

I love my truck!
Blue Mule 18 Ram 4x4 C/C
Tradesman Power Wagon

Post by **Big T** » May 12th, 2019, 7:50 pm

It's tough to say how far off center you can have your pit because it depends on the other things that you plan on putting on the trailer. You can mount it all the way to one side if there's enough weight on the other side to balance it out. Something to keep in mind also is the rating of your springs, if it's mounted in the center of the trailer then the springs share the load but if it's offset then you have to make sure that the spring is rated for the load that it's toting. I remember one guy had to put a larger spring on one side because of the offset of his pit. As for the ride height and axle placement, that is something that you'll have to fine tune once you get ready to mount your pit. I ended up having to relocate my axle on my first trailer build because it was very tongue heavy. You can address that by shifting the pit forward or rear depending on how much tongue weight you have. The FB is normally very close to the axle so if you have about 8'' of clearance from the bottom of the FB then it should be fine.

towtruck · Post by **towtruck** » May 12th, 2019, 9:50 pm

Mount your springs on a piece of angle iron that rides on the outside of the frame. Slide that angle iron front and back after you are built to get the tongue weight you want then bolt or weld it in place.

McBroom · Post by **McBroom** » May 12th, 2019, 9:50 pm

I’ll do that

I love my truck!
Blue Mule 18 Ram 4x4 C/C
Tradesman Power Wagon

mp4 · Post by **mp4** » May 14th, 2019, 5:34 am

McBroom wrote: So experts tell me how to figure the ride height out.

Mine is a 180 and I put the axel as far back as I could and made sure I had 8" ckearance under the firebox.

I do like the sliding mount idea set the tongue weight.

Dirtytires · Post by **Dirtytires** » May 14th, 2019, 11:17 am

I had always figured the easiest way was to build a trailer and ‘mock it up’ with a standard spring setup and build it out. Then, after measuring the weight of the finished trailer at each wheel, order springs that match the weight/compression rate that I need.

Even custom built springs aren’t real expensive and they can give you whatever ride height and compression rate you want.

McBroom · Post by **McBroom** » May 14th, 2019, 11:20 am

I’ve got the trailer figured out. It’s read to get the tank mounted on it.
I’m currently laying out the tank for cutting. I cut a slice in the tank yesterday.

I love my truck!
Blue Mule 18 Ram 4x4 C/C
Tradesman Power Wagon

Dirtytires · Post by **Dirtytires** » May 14th, 2019, 11:35 am

McBroom wrote: ↑
May 14th, 2019, 11:20 am
I cut a slice in the tank yesterday.

...and you are still with us so I will assume no issues with the first cut. Nice.

McBroom · Post by **McBroom** » May 14th, 2019, 11:38 am

Dirtytires wrote:
McBroom wrote: ↑
May 14th, 2019, 11:20 am
I cut a slice in the tank yesterday.
...and you are still with us so I will assume no issues with the first cut. Nice.

Yeah I was nervous about it. Pucker factor meter was pegged out for sure. Lol

I love my truck!
Blue Mule 18 Ram 4x4 C/C
Tradesman Power Wagon

McBroom · Post by **McBroom** » May 15th, 2019, 3:58 pm

Alright men I’ve got to put my build on hold for a little while.
Life happened and Mama ain’t happy.
Steel prices are kinda outta my budget for a month or so. $248 for a 4x8x1/4 flat steel.
Maybe 1 a month at the moment. I’m guessing that I’ll need 3-4 sheets.
The plans that I bought are for the 250 with the WC and the CS. There’s a lot of metal in that one. At least the trailer is done and the tank is tack welded in place.
Ohh the plans call for a 100” tank.
What adjustments should I make since it’s an 88” tank??

I love my truck!
Blue Mule 18 Ram 4x4 C/C
Tradesman Power Wagon

TheBigToe · Post by **TheBigToe** » June 11th, 2019, 1:35 pm

I've been following your build trying to learn as much from everyone as I can. I have no idea on a 88" tank since Im a newbie. I have a 100 inch tank and they recommended I get the 30x94. Im doing a RF with a warming cabinet one of these days. I just got my plans and I do have to agree with you on the materials list. Good luck!

McBroom · Post by **McBroom** » June 11th, 2019, 2:27 pm

TheBigToe wrote:I've been following your build trying to learn as much from everyone as I can. I have no idea on a 88" tank since Im a newbie. I have a 100 inch tank and they recommended I get the 30x94. Im doing a RF with a warming cabinet one of these days. I just got my plans and I do have to agree with you on the materials list. Good luck!

Sounds like we have the same set of plans. I’ve got the tank,build plans & trailer. I made a cut in it to be sure it was clean and safe to cut.
Now life has gotten in the way again.
Saturday morning I took the wife out for a day of fun at a new entertainment center...
On the way home she said “I wanna stop by the Ram dealership and look at some SUV’s.” Well lookin around the dealership she saw a Jeep Grand Cherokee Trailhawk that she fell in love with and I bought it for her.
The things we do for our women... when Mamma’s happy I get well ya know...

I love my truck!
Blue Mule 18 Ram 4x4 C/C
Tradesman Power Wagon

TheBigToe · Post by **TheBigToe** » June 14th, 2019, 3:55 pm

yep... sadly sometime its hard to make her or keep her happy

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