I had a few dove hunters in from East Texas over the weekend. They told me when they booked that it wasn’t necessary to cook steaks out in the field and that they would be eating at a restaurant. It sure was nice not having to drag my pit from Dripping Springs to Pflugerville. As they left the field for lunch Saturday, it was mentioned that they would like to cook some of their doves right after the evening hunt.
My first inclination was to hit a few garage sales around the fields and pick up a small Webber or an Old Smoky for a few bucks. No luck there, though I did pick up several hand tools, a cooler, 100' of rope, an extension cord, and a couple of deer blind chairs for a whopping $9.
I had to run back to the house to do a few things mid day. Figured I could get an old grill top and a few bricks, and with some charcoal, do just fine. Well, one thing led to another and 10 minutes later, I had my truck loaded with welding tools and a few pieces of scrap iron.
Got the hunters out at 4:00, unloaded my truck, and started trying to figure out what might work…not just for today, but maybe at the beach or camping.
Didn’t really have a plan, but winged it as I went. Started with 2” angle and made a 13x17 rectangle frame.
The next hour would have been a good time to stop and take a few pictures, but with the shooting all around me, I wanted to GET DONE and pop a few myself. The next time the camera crossed my mind, I was here…
I already had a 13x17 piece of flat iron, 1/2” thick. The idea was to drop it into the frame and be able to remove it for cleaning. I also tacked on the legs - ¾” rod. This was fun without a square. I improvised, using a 4” sanding pad. In the pic above, I was in the process of fabricating a frame for the grill top.
A few welds later, I covered it with expanded metal off my old pit, tacked it on, cut off the overlap, and ground down the sharp edges. In two hours, and with an hour of shooting light left, I completed the job!
At sundown, hunters came in with their limits and I fired up a bag of mesquite charcoal, adding a few pieces of scrap mesquite from wood projects. No one complained, and I’m happy to have a new little cooker.
I might note that I’m fairly new at this welding thing. I always promise myself that “next time” I won’t do a project in short and crocs. Yet, I always do. I am thoroughly enjoying working with iron. Nice break from wood working.
My first inclination was to hit a few garage sales around the fields and pick up a small Webber or an Old Smoky for a few bucks. No luck there, though I did pick up several hand tools, a cooler, 100' of rope, an extension cord, and a couple of deer blind chairs for a whopping $9.
I had to run back to the house to do a few things mid day. Figured I could get an old grill top and a few bricks, and with some charcoal, do just fine. Well, one thing led to another and 10 minutes later, I had my truck loaded with welding tools and a few pieces of scrap iron.
Got the hunters out at 4:00, unloaded my truck, and started trying to figure out what might work…not just for today, but maybe at the beach or camping.
Didn’t really have a plan, but winged it as I went. Started with 2” angle and made a 13x17 rectangle frame.
The next hour would have been a good time to stop and take a few pictures, but with the shooting all around me, I wanted to GET DONE and pop a few myself. The next time the camera crossed my mind, I was here…
I already had a 13x17 piece of flat iron, 1/2” thick. The idea was to drop it into the frame and be able to remove it for cleaning. I also tacked on the legs - ¾” rod. This was fun without a square. I improvised, using a 4” sanding pad. In the pic above, I was in the process of fabricating a frame for the grill top.
A few welds later, I covered it with expanded metal off my old pit, tacked it on, cut off the overlap, and ground down the sharp edges. In two hours, and with an hour of shooting light left, I completed the job!
At sundown, hunters came in with their limits and I fired up a bag of mesquite charcoal, adding a few pieces of scrap mesquite from wood projects. No one complained, and I’m happy to have a new little cooker.
I might note that I’m fairly new at this welding thing. I always promise myself that “next time” I won’t do a project in short and crocs. Yet, I always do. I am thoroughly enjoying working with iron. Nice break from wood working.
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