"Alan" > wrote in message
.. .
> Hi,
>
> I am thinking about tackling a do-it-yourself project and construct my own
> grill and my own smoker. I have rough plans sketched out. I do some
> occassional welding (total amature and mess up a lot) but this will give
me
> a chance to work on my skills. However, I am looking for some advice as
to
> what guage steel people out there would suggest and any other things I
> should think about.
>
> Alan
>

Alan:

I'm relatively new to the whole BBQ thing, although I've been a "griller"
for many years with a couple weber kettles and various gas grills. I bought
a WSM last summer, it's been great. If I had the know how and tools to weld
up my own like you're doing, i'd probably build it pretty much like the WSM
for traditional BBQ. It's really easy to use once you get the basics down.
The one area I think it falls short ( which it was not really designed for
in the first place ) is cold smoking. You can do it, but it takes a LOT of
tinkering and a watchful eye to keep the temp below 150 deg F for long
periods of time. I'd much prefer an offset firebox/vertical combo for that.

Listen to what other folks have to say here, there are a lot of people who
really know their stuff when it comes to BBQ