Outdoor Cooking with The Smoker King

Hi guys I'm new to the site. I have several smaller smokers and am really happy with them.

Here's the deal, I have a tandem axel boat trailer I'd like to turn into a large competition/caterer smoker. My plan is to sell it when I'm done. I like to eat Q but don't care to cook it for large groups. I have most of the stuff to build it setting around, so my out of pocket cost should be pretty minimal.

So here's my questions

1. If you were building a big smoker how big would you make it?

2. Is the vertical smoker after the horizontal smoker worth the time and effort?

3. A. Would you preffer 2 smaller smokers hooked to 1 firebox or one big smoker?
B. If you answered yes- side by side or horizontal to vertical

4. Build it out of a propane tank or sheet metal?

5. How big do you make the firebox?

6. How do you decide the size (diameter) of the chimney?

7. Any things you would add, that I haven't asked about?

First let me say HELLO and welcome to the forum. We are glad that you have joined us here. There are several people who come around here regularly who have built and or designed pits. To answer your questions; 1. Depending on availability I think that most believe that either a 150 or 250 gallon propane tank is a great starting point. 2. There will differing opinions but I do not favor a vertical at the far end of a horizontal main chamber. I prefer a reverse flow design with a vertical above the firebox. Verticals at the far end of a horizontal generally run about 75 to a hundred degrees cooler than the main chamber thus in most instances rendering them only to duty as warmers. 3. I prefer the above set-up with the ability to use either the vertical only or the horizontal only or the ability to use both as smokers or use the main chamber as a smoker and use the vertical as a warmer as needed or both at the same event as you move from maximum cooking capacity to needing to hold product as the event goes on. 4. Both 5.That depends on the size of the main chamber and the size of the vertical if any and then this can be determined. Example, on a 150 gallon propane tank horizontal with no vertical I would recomend a 24" sqare firebox. 6. This answer like number 5 is hard to determine at this point but once again using a 150 gallon tank Horizontal with no vertical as an example I recommend a 5" inside diameter tube sticking down 2"s below the bottom grate level. and extending to a height of 22"s above the top of the cooking chamber. 7. I would suggest that you ask yourself just what is avaiable and how far you want to go with this project and your skill level which I can not pretend to know and then as you fill in the blanks sit down and come up with a proven design in its entirety BEFORE you start. Most who undertake these projects build some and then design some and then build some and then design some and quite often fall far short of their intevded goals and MANY then have to do modifications that are much more troublesome to do later rather than in the design stage. I wish you all the best on your project and hope that it is a COMPLETE success. Others on here are also capable of helping you reach your goals.

I would start with two 250 gallon propane tanks. both with slide out removeable shelves.. reverse flow system with duel firebox with warmer on top. Why two ?? So you can smoke a hog on one side while smokin ribs, butts, and loins on the other !!

Or even a 500 gallon tank with six shelves that all slide out !

A nice touch would be a propane flat top grill on the front..

ahh...I think i just placed an order.....