Post #779895 by AceExplorer on Thu, Sep 21, 2017 6:46 AM

Ran into this "how to" on Instructables.com this morning for a "reverse flow offset smoker from an old water boiler" and thought I'd share. I've been toying with the idea to build something at home to re-create the effect of a Chinese Oven, so every once in a while something catches my eye.

I realize that Chinese Oven design elements have been copied and improved over the years and smoker grills with offset fireboxes are now quite common and easy to buy. So this is just some more food for thought.

In the example below, this guy is REALLY GOOD with metal and with tools. He did a great job. I think the basics are interesting and inspirational. But...

Personally, I award maximum "style points" to the person who can figure out how to stack a bunch of bricks in 30 minutes and get the same basic functionality. So in my book, the original Chinese Oven design and construction is a huge winner because of its simplicity. And I think someday that's what I'll do - I will try to figure out old-school style how to build it quickly and cheaply using just basic stacked bricks and blocks.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Reverse-Flow-Offset-Smoker-From-an-Old-Water-Boile/

Guy: You made a Chinese Oven from stacked bricks? It has no wheels - you can't take it anywhere.
Me: Get the hell out of my yard! :)