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In this topic: Several Weber Smokey Mountain Cooker owners have created rolling platforms or added wheels to their cookers. Here are a few examples. Disclaimer: Adding wheels to your WSM may be dangerous and you do so at your own risk. Weber warns that you should never move a hot cooker. As always...click on any of the pictures to view a larger image.
Joel K. built a rolling platform to move his cooker between the garage and patio (Photo 1). Joel writes, "I started with a 22" decking square made of pressure-treated lumber I picked up at a home center (about $3). I added four 2" casters—two are locking (about $10). Then I topped it with a drip pan made of some kind of plastic material ($8). The pan is screwed to the decking square. "I haven't secured the WSM to the rolling platform yet, but I'm thinking about a way to do it that allows easy release. I'm also thinking of attaching a handle to the side, maybe mounting a side table there." Joel used his rolling platform for several "low and slow" cooks and had no problems...until one day he cooked a meatloaf at high temperature and "kind of melted the pan." So Joel is now looking for a metal pan, perhaps a hot water heater pan or an undercar oil drip pan. Donny Anderson of Maryville, TN has a WSM mounted to a satellite dish (Photos 2-5). Donny writes, "I bought a WSM on Craigslist that was mounted on a convex disc with casters. I quizzed the previous owner about where he found the dish for mounting. Turns out it is a satellite TV dish! It really fits well and the casters are mounted well. The caster system held up well during its first overnight cook. We had a pretty strong thunderstorm blow through and it stayed right where I left it. I did learn that the dish needed additional holes for drainage as there was standing water inside." Scott Zanders from Germany attached his WSM to a metal ring outfitted with 3 locking casters (Photos 6-7). "A friend of mine made the ring and I painted it," says Scott. "The wheels are from an old roll-around table." David Verba fashioned a platform out of a thick sheet of aluminum and added locking caster, all for about $100 (Photos 8-10). Sandee McKinivan from Cheektowaga, NY mounted his WSM to the wheelbase of an old office chair (Photos 11-12). He attached a piece of 1/2" plywood to the wheelbase, then drilled 1/4" holes through each leg and attached them to the plywood using screws and wing nuts for easy removal. Sandee says, "This works great because it lifts the smoker up 18", moving it is a snap, and best of all it only takes up about the same floor space as the smoker itself. It is very stable...it does not move around unless you pull/push on it. It looks tipsy because of the height, but I can grab the plywood with both hands, try to tilt it as hard as I can, and it will barely budge. The top cooking grate is 46" from the ground." John Kliem from Munich, Germany made a platform for his 22-1/2" WSM using a plywood base with casters and covered it with aluminum (Photo 13). Small aluminum blocks at each corner hold the legs in place. Dan Peter from Ohio writes, "I built this little cart from leftover 3/4" plywood and 4" casters (Photo 14). The smaller piece of plywood on top stiffens it up and gives the legs a place to nest. The smoker just sits on top and wheels around easily even when fully loaded. Only the front wheel swivels, so it is very easy to move. I had to paint the front because it was hard to remember which wheel swiveled. Cost was about $20." Charlie Noble works in a small welding shop. One benefit of his employment is that he gets to barbecue on the job...as long as he shares the 'que with the boss! He rolled 1/8" x 1" metal stock into a ring and welded on a circle of 1/16" sheet metal (Photo 15). Short pieces of 2" pipe are welded to the platform to hold the cooker legs. Add 3 casters to the bottom and this WSM is ready to roll!
Wayne Maxwell added casters to the legs of his Weber Bullet (Photo 16). Wayne says, "The addition of the wheels went smoothly, taking a little less than 1 hour labor and another 1/2 hour or so tracking down washers, nuts and tools. The wheels are 2" threaded stem caster-type bought at Home Depot for about $4 each. Since I had everything else on hand, the total cost was about $16 (including 1 spare wheel - they come in sets of 2). Although an empty WSM is a little top heavy, with the wheels on and fully assembled, it easily rolls across the concrete with me just holding on the top section handle for balance."
Shaun R added an axle and steel wheels to his 22-1/2" WSM (Photos 17-21). He drilled 5/8" holes into the legs and used a 3/8" steel rod as an axle. Square washers were fastened to the legs to add strength where the holes were drilled (Photo 21). Spacers were placed on each end of the rod and then the wheels were attached. An adjustable carriage bolt was used on the front leg for leveling the cooker (Photo 18). If you look closely, you'll notice that Shaun made some other changes to this cooker. It looks like he's taken another charcoal bowl and added handles and a thermometer to make a lid with 3 exhaust vents. He used 4 sheet metal screws to fasten the middle cooking section and the charcoal bowl together and added a handle to the middle cooking section above the access door opening. This allows Shaun to move the cooker around without it coming apart. Paul from Overland Park, KS created a pull-behind 22-1/2" WSM (Photos 22-30). Besides adding an axle and 2 wheels, Paul used a gate hinge, spacers, and stainless steel hardware to attach the lid to the middle cooking section. He positioned 2 fasteners 180° apart that allow the middle cooking section and the charcoal bowl to be locked together. To ensure stability while cooking when the lid is open, he rotates the middle cooking section as shown in Photo 22 and locks the fasteners. This allows the lid to open over the leg with no wheel; if the lid were to open over the axle, the unit would have a tendency to tip over. A stainless steel chain and hardware are used to provide a stop for the lid. To transport the cooker, Paul rotates the middle cooking section as shown in Photo 23 and locks the fasteners. Now he can pull the cooker by the lid handle as shown in Photo 29. Paul says if he had it to do all over again, he would add some material to the inside of the lid where the gate hinge attaches for additional strength. He's also considering upgrading the lid handle, as he feels the standard handle may not be strong enough for pulling the unit. Miscellaneous mods include handles on the middle cooking section, a hole for probe thermometers, an upgraded glow-in-the-dark lid thermometer, a gasket around the access door, and, of course, a beer bottle opener (Photo 30).
Brian Moriarty bought a beat-up Weber Performer charcoal grill for $10 on Craigslist and converted it into a twin WSM cart (Photo 31). "I removed the top frame cross pieces and turned the charcoal bin around to make the fold-down table," says Brian. "The wood shelf is 1" x 6" Ipe decking and the legs rest in 1-1/2" ABS pipe plugs. I have a galvanized drip pan that I use underneath the cart when parked on my cedar deck." Chris Bjork's father built a cart for his 22-1/2" WSM with powder-coated frame and stainless steel shelves (Photo 32). The WSM legs sit in shallow cups welded to the frame. "Due to my dad and his buddies' line of work, they came across the stainless very cheap as it was being scrapped," writes Chris. "Original plans had the whole cart being made out of stainless but after construction began, he realized the cost would be way too much. He was able to get the tubing powder coated for $30-35. Large pneumatic tires make rolling easy. I think it's a hit!"
Photo of rolling platform,
2004 by Joel K. |
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