Oklahoma Joe Smoker Mods to make a great smoker!

One of my hobbies I have found is smoking various meats and trying new recipes to cook. Not to boast but think I am getting fairly good at smoking brisket, pork shoulders and ribs.  My thin tin can of a smoker finally rusted through the bottom of the firebox making it difficult to smoke anything to say the least - so here goes another research project!

The first step was researching various smokers and I decided on the Oklahoma Joe from Lowes. There are many modification videos, articles on YouTube and is what I based my modifications from - so thanks to everyone whom previously posted; that made my research and work much easier!

Modification Parts:

I ordered the following from Amazon:

• Food Safe RTV red adhesive 2.8 oz BBQ gasket grill smoker pit NSF silicon rubber High temp - Sold by: Island Outdoor, LLC
• 2" 550F(2-pack) BBQ Charcoal Grill Smoker Temp Gauge Thermometers  2.5" Stem
• 1/2" x 1/8" Nomex High Temp BBQ gasket smoker pit seal, self stick Sold by: Island Outdoor, LLC

With the smoker, I purchased the following at Lowes: 

• 2 - expanded sheet metal 12" x 24"
• 5 - 6 x 24 26 ga metal sheets for heat shield
• 1 - OK Joe cover

 Unpacking the smoker:

This is a heavy unit so you may need help with unloading.  I unpacked in the bed of my pickup and my son helped me unload.  Assembled it weighs almost 300lbs.





The first step was the firebox.  Using the RTV, make a seal around the two halfs and bolt together. Then I assembled the bottom, legs, stood up and added the top lid.

Around the firebox opening on the main unit, add more RTV.  This will seal between the main smoker and the firebox once connected. 

I put the firebox back in the styrofoam packing and using a car jack, lifted it up until the holes matched, then mounted the firebox to the main chamber.

I sealed the firebox door by mounting a metal strip on the inside so the door would seal.  As it turns out, my unit is so air tight now, that I might not of needed this mod.  I must keep the fire door open almost 1/2 and the flew open to allow enough airflow to maintain 220 degrees.


Add the heat shields from the 5 metal 26GA sheets.  For the firebox opening, I bent one at about a 75 degree angle and mounted to the bolts that attached the firebox.  The rest just lay in the chamber so you can slide them together or apart to adjust the heat transfer.  I also made a wood basket from the corrugated expansion sheets.  Just place in a cross, mark the lines, and then bend up using a 2x4 as the guide.

Once you are done, drilling and assembling, you can add the heat tape around the doors, add the temperature probes and follow the instructions to season the grill.

Happy smoking!

tim