While I’m taking my time building this, I can’t wait to go into the first burn. I’ve got two dogfood bags full of engine grade char to break it in, I should do some complete burns and make some ash while I’m at it to prefill the V grate and restriction lip.
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The char bed I made today I used the soot dust and real fine stuff for my ash cone seems to be working
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I’ve got a little bit of fines, I should have been more specific when I meant by make some ash, just need to burn some junk wood in the firepit for a couple days and save the ashes.
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I’ve been thinking about my cooling rails for either of the trucks, and I think I’ve found a good way to make them both modular and sturdy. Norman and Bobmac use rubber couplers to attach the straight shots from the headache rack/center cooler. It looks like over time that can sag. I’ve been thinking to expand the ID of the mating surface of one pipe using a trailer ball hitch and my shop press, I’ve tested this before and it makes a very good close coupler.
That way it nests the straight shots into the corner sections, and the rubber couplers just have to maintain the airtight seal. I’ll have to demonstrate to show what I mean.
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I get what your saying Cody, I’m upgrading mine to some silicone couplers my sales rep from Morse hydraulics was here looking at the truck and said I got just the thing to fix those sagging couplers. She said it’s 500° rated but even though the gas is hotter then that it never directly contacts the coupler since I cut my pipes to fit tight together. She is also working on some high strength vacuum proof crush proof corded hose for routing into the engine bay for me as well
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High temp silicone would definitely be an upgrade. I like the serviceability of takedown cooling rails, easier to get in there with a ramrod to clean it out.
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There’s also the rubber couplers that have a sheet metal sleeve over them, I used that with some of the plumbing in my engine bay to keep it stiff. Works best with like-to-like sized pipe.
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Cody, You can prevent sagging by attaching about 3" of pipe to the center or the corners. Cut the unattached end of the pipe at a 45 or a little more. So that the rail will lay on the pocket you have created and slip the coupling over just to use as a seal.
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I use radiator hose for the couplers, and my cooling rails are touching where they couple up. No sagging problems on my new setup. The temperature at the rails run from 250°f , about 300°f to 350°f coming out of the drop box into my 3" header to the rail tree on each side of the truck bed. The temperature at the grate runs 1380°f to1560°f on average. The gases through the drop box heatexchanger area will drop to around 400°f being the highest reading.
This is a big plus when running a heatexchanger in the drop box, it cools the gases down quickly and preheats the incoming air for the nozzles.
Bob
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Hey @Bobmac you’ve talked about grate width before. How wide should the grate be compared to the diameter of the firetube?
I was thinking of making my grate 12" in diameter same as the firetube, unless you think I should go wider for more char reserve. It will be on chains, still dead set on trying out the angle iron grate as well.
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Okay, this is a very good question Cody.
Now as we know the grate holds the charcoal bed up off the bottom of the gasifer. It has holes in the grate to let ash and fines to go through. But at the side 360 degrees around the grate the charcoal can fall off the edge between the grate and bottom open of the gasifer. I here talk about this 60 slope used in discussions. If the grate is larger then the opening it helps keep the charcoal from slipping out at 60° charcoal angle slope.
But that not taking in consideration the vaccum pull on the charcoal.
My grate was 1 to 3/4" below the gasifer opening. 45° slope. I still slip charcoal on hard pulls. My next grate is going to be bigger. But how much bigger. I am going to try 4" bigger all a round. So if my opening at the bottom of the gasifer is 8" let say, then my grate will be 16" across. I might go a little bigger. I think mine is 14" right now. So that is 3" bigger all around on the grate,
On my truck I do not mind slipping charcoal because I just use it up going back into my truck. Making my rocket fuel. But on the Jeep build I will want to slip less charcoal. Because it will be used more off road driving, bouncing around on bumpy roads and this will cause charcoal to slip off the grate.
Bob
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Right now this restriction is 4.5" opening. So a 12" grate would be 3.75" overhang.
I bought 6 feet of some good 1/8" thick 1" size angle iron, so I can go bigger if need be. I’m thinking of having the grate hang 1" below the bottom of the restriction as a starting point.
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I used 1/2" angle iron with about 5/16" to 3/8" spaces between because I thought it would breathe better. Not sure if I was right on that or not but it seems to work OK. Weld only one end and use sliding support on the other end to keep from warping.
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So if I were to weld it into a ring, weld one end on the underside of the ring but support the non welded end over the ring?
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That will work! . . . Or lay the ring over the layed out angle irons and weld every other angle.
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I got the idea for angle iron grates from one of Max Gasmans comments on here. I can’t remember which post if it was a suggestion to you or he was just giving general advice.
Good to know someone else has tried it with results.
It may have been on one of Chris Saenz’s posts because he gave the same advice of only welding one end and alternating sides so it almost gives a scissor action.
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I forget who it was, might have been Don or Max said to weld every other V on one of the V side and then the other V side opposite. Build the ring so it is a circular channel all the way around. It Will have a round stock ring on top and bottom welded together with a flat stock ring weld to both holding the rings a part. No warping each
[V ¥ V ¥ V ¥ V ¥ V ¥ V] ( side view) is weld on one side or the other inside the channel ring. The heavy duty chains are welded to the out side ring. Making it larger then the opening of the gasifer bottom by 3 to 4 inches all the way around for slipping charcoal control. I just might build this for my new Jeep Gasifier grate. It gives the grate a higher melting point, the ash is prospecting it all the time. If you need a drawing I can draw this up for you.
Bob
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A drawing would be great, I know you have a more artistic talent than me. That’s why I use prop comedy for mockups.
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Hope this helps you see how I plan to build mine. The drawing is not to scale.
Edit. I forgot to add there is a space on the end where it is not welded to keep the V^V 's angles space evenly apart.
Bob
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