Originally posted: 07/01/2008
Last updated: 08/07/2008

Purchase The Hardware

You'll need the following hardware for this project:

• 2 Brinkmann charcoal pans
• 3 1/4"-20 x 1-1/4" long round head machine screws
• 6 1/4" flat washers
• 9 1/4"-20 hex nuts
• 3 1/4"-20 wing nuts

The Brinkmann charcoal pans can be ordered from Brinkmann at 800-468-5252 or from the Brinkmann Web site. The part number is 114-0002-0. The pans are also available at stores and online retailers that sell Brinkmann smoker replacement parts. As shown in Picture 2, retailers sometimes sell the pan as part number 812-0002-0 and UPC code 39953-10191.

The price of each pan is $4 to $14 depending on where you purchase it.

The screws, nuts, washers, and wing nuts don't have to be any special material. I paid less than $3 for the parts shown here.

Drill The Alignment Hole

Insert one bowl inside the other and clamp them together in preparation for drilling holes.

Using a very small metal drill bit, drill an alignment hole through the rim of the bowls. These holes act as witness marks to help you realign the bowls in the event you take them apart for cleaning.

Drill Three Holes To Accept The Screws

With the bowls still clamped together, and using a 1/4" metal drill bit, drill three holes in the center of the rim—one hole at the 12 o'clock position, one at the 4 o'clock position, and one at the 8 o'clock position.

Remove the clamps, separate the two bowls, and remove any sharp burrs around the holes.

Picture 2 shows how the bowls look after drilling the holes.

Install The Fastening Hardware

Insert a screw and a washer through the top of one of the bowls (Picture 1).

Flip the bowl over and put three hex nuts on the screw, tightening each as you put it on (Picture 2).

Repeat these steps for the remaining two holes.

Using the alignment holes to ensure the bowls are lined up properly, place the second bowl over the screws.

Put a washer and wing nut on each screw and hand tighten (Picture 3).

The Finished Project

Here's how the Piedmont Pan looks after assembly. The wing nuts allow for easy disassembly for washing, if necessary.

As shown in Picture 2, the Piedmont Pan sits just fine on the grill straps inside the WSM and does not interfere with the position of the bottom cooking grate.

But What About...

• Using stainless steel hardware: If you want to pay the higher price, feel free to do so.
   
• Using four screws instead of three: My hardware came in little bags of three screws, three hex nuts, etc., so that's why I used three. Three is plenty strong, but four would be just fine, too.
   
• Using two hex nuts instead of three: Three hex nuts provides the maximum amount of air space between the two bowls without interfering with the position of the bottom cooking grate. Two hex nuts will work fine, too.
   
• Using copper tubing as spacers: In the original instructions posted by Mike Willsey, he used 3/4" pieces of copper tubing as spacers instead of hex nuts. Don't bother using copper...hex nuts are cheaper and easier.
   
• Using a Brinkmann charcoal pan and a WSM water pan: If you already own a Brinkmann charcoal pan that you use instead of the stock WSM water pan because of its larger water capacity and more stable fit inside the WSM, I'm told you can use the WSM water pan as the top pan in the Piedmont Pan configuration. You may have to drill the holes a bit differently, and the length of screws and the number of hex nuts used may be different.

Alternatives To The Piedmont Pan

Putting together a Piedmont Pan is easy and inexpensive, but if you're not ready to take the plunge just yet, or you're not convinced it's right for you, try doing one of the following with the stock WSM water pan:

• Suspend a single sheet of wide, heavy-duty aluminum foil inside the pan without letting it touch the bottom. When cooking something like a turkey that doesn't render more than a cup or two of drippings, this method works just fine and the drippings will not burn.
   
• Place crumpled balls of aluminum foil in the bottom of the pan, then cover with two sheets of wide, heavy-duty aluminum foil. The top sheet of foil catches the drippings and is discarded after use. The foil balls create the air space needed to keep the drippings from burning. They also help support the weight of the drippings in the foil above, which may be important if cooking six pork butts that give off a lot of drippings.