Author Topic: James Jerky Dryer out of stock - any alternatives?  (Read 11898 times)

Grampy

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Re: James Jerky Dryer out of stock - any alternatives?
« Reply #15 on: February 12, 2018, 12:27:04 PM »
Duck, thanks for the clarification. That makes much more sense to me now. :o
Jimmy from Arkadelphia, AR
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NDKoze

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Re: James Jerky Dryer out of stock - any alternatives?
« Reply #16 on: February 12, 2018, 12:29:17 PM »
You could put a flat PVC end-cap on the bottom and then drill a hold in it just big enough to fit around the smoker blowhole and it would look/work similar to the Smokin-It drier bottom. I am not sure if this is necessary or not, but it would help prevent leakage from around the base of the PVC.
Gregg - Fargo, ND
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Ducksoup

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Re: James Jerky Dryer out of stock - any alternatives?
« Reply #17 on: February 12, 2018, 12:34:13 PM »
You could put a flat PVC end-cap on the bottom and then drill a hold in it just big enough to fit around the smoker blowhole and it would look/work similar to the Smokin-It drier bottom. I am not sure if this is necessary or not, but it would help prevent leakage from around the base of the PVC.

Thanks!

Yeah I was trying to think how I would get a good air seal on the bottom without using something like tape. I was pondering using some of my kids silly putty along the bottom around the PVC since I could easily remove it. :-D

Not sure what I'm going to end up doing though.

NDKoze

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Re: James Jerky Dryer out of stock - any alternatives?
« Reply #18 on: February 12, 2018, 12:40:52 PM »
You could put a flat PVC end-cap on the bottom and then drill a hold in it just big enough to fit around the smoker blowhole and it would look/work similar to the Smokin-It drier bottom. I am not sure if this is necessary or not, but it would help prevent leakage from around the base of the PVC.

Thanks!

Yeah I was trying to think how I would get a good air seal on the bottom without using something like tape. I was pondering using some of my kids silly putty along the bottom around the PVC since I could easily remove it. :-D

Not sure what I'm going to end up doing though.

It is not like it has to be super-sealed. But, you just need to have enough so that the suction from the fan is not affected. This idea just came to me because that is pretty much how the James Jerky Drier works as noted from the highlighted attached picture of the bottom section of the James Jerky Drier.
Gregg - Fargo, ND
Smokin-It #3 (purchased in 2014) that replaced a Masterbuilt XL (ugh) and a 10+ Year-Old Big Chief (still used for fish), and few others over the years, along with variety of Weber Gas/Charcoal Grills, Anova Sous Vide, etc. devices.

Ducksoup

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Re: James Jerky Dryer out of stock - any alternatives?
« Reply #19 on: February 12, 2018, 12:48:29 PM »
You could put a flat PVC end-cap on the bottom and then drill a hold in it just big enough to fit around the smoker blowhole and it would look/work similar to the Smokin-It drier bottom. I am not sure if this is necessary or not, but it would help prevent leakage from around the base of the PVC.

Thanks!

Yeah I was trying to think how I would get a good air seal on the bottom without using something like tape. I was pondering using some of my kids silly putty along the bottom around the PVC since I could easily remove it. :-D

Not sure what I'm going to end up doing though.

It is not like it has to be super-sealed. But, you just need to have enough so that the suction from the fan is not affected. This idea just came to me because that is pretty much how the James Jerky Drier works as noted from the highlighted attached picture of the bottom section of the James Jerky Drier.

Yup, good point. I have a few ideas but I'll need to wait until I get the parts to see if it's really going to work. It's a bit more work, but it will look a lot cleaner than something like a silly putty idea.

Ducksoup

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Re: James Jerky Dryer out of stock - any alternatives?
« Reply #20 on: February 14, 2018, 09:56:41 PM »
All done!

(Quick disclaimer: I support Smokin-It products, and I feel bad posting cheaper solutions to their products, so hopefully this doesn't break any rules. I'm just impatient and I wanted to make some jerky this weekend as opposed to waiting for the jerky dryers to be in stock again. That and I felt like sharing this.)

Okay, I'm not a DIY'er. Actually I hate DIY stuff, but this was pretty easy, and cost me about $30 bucks. So here we go.

I started with a 4 inch PVC pipe. You can pick one up here:
https://www.lowes.com/pd/Charlotte-Pipe-4-in-x-2-ft-Sch-40-Cellcore-PVC-DWV-Pipe/3223375

I then got 2 sheets of Acrylic.
https://www.lowes.com/pd/OPTIX-0-08-in-x-8-in-x-10-in-Clear-Acrylic-Sheet/3143395

This acrylic is safe to use around 175 degrees. Considering that the top of the smoker doesn't really get that hot to the touch, I think this will be fine.

Lastly I got this 37CFM fan:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B009OXDAWY/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
This fan is metal and appears to be well built. It's not like a cheap plastic case fan. If you want a higher CFM, you can scroll down and the same manufacturer makes a higher powered fan. (47 CFM)

What I did was cut 6 inches off the PVC pipe, and cut a 5 inch by 5 inch piece of acrylic and mount that on the bottom of the pipe using some caulk I had leftover. From there I cut a small hole in the acrylic that would fit over the little smoke hole on the smoker. I'm not sure the exact measurement, I just hand drew it and it came out really well. This will allow for a good seal while sitting on the smoker.

I then cut a 5 1/2 inch by 5 1/2 inch acrylic sheet for the top. Before mounting it on the PVC pipe, I mounted the fan on the acrylic sheet. Once it was mounted I used a Dremel to cut a hole for the fan. Once that was done, I mounted the acrylic sheet to the top and that was it!

Because I had some caulk, and tools, this project set me back about 30 bucks. It's not the prettiest job, but it looks like it will get the job done.

I did run the fan and see what kind of airflow I could get from the smoker. Holding up a papertowel under the smoke hole on the inside, I could tell there was good air circulation.

I'm going to make some jerky this weekend to see how it goes, but I'm feeling pretty good about this. One modification I will make is a cover for the fan to keep stuff out of it.

I've heard that some folks who used the duct fan (Around 67 CFM) said the air-flow might be too high, so I'm hoping this 37 CFM fan will work well.

Feedback is always welcome. I suck a DIY stuff so forgive my shoddy work!
« Last Edit: February 14, 2018, 10:09:33 PM by Ducksoup »

Durangosmoker

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Re: James Jerky Dryer out of stock - any alternatives?
« Reply #21 on: February 16, 2018, 05:42:04 PM »
Nicely done!
Eric in New York's Hudson Valley, unless I can get out to Durango.
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DivotMaker

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Re: James Jerky Dryer out of stock - any alternatives?
« Reply #22 on: February 16, 2018, 07:28:59 PM »
The only thing I would suggest, Duck, would be a filter.  The SI fans have a filter that looks like a metal mesh material.  I think you may regret not having some kind of a filter because it will keep the moisture and smoke residue off of your fan.
Tony from NW Arkansas
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Ducksoup

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Re: James Jerky Dryer out of stock - any alternatives?
« Reply #23 on: February 18, 2018, 03:46:30 PM »
The only thing I would suggest, Duck, would be a filter.  The SI fans have a filter that looks like a metal mesh material.  I think you may regret not having some kind of a filter because it will keep the moisture and smoke residue off of your fan.

Yeah I was thinking about that as well. This fan is supposed to be able to take a beating, but I guess we will see. The bottom side of it appears protected from build up and stuff, but only time will tell how well it holds up.

Anywho, first batch is done! I did some 1/4 inch Eye of Round strips, and just made a small batch to start with. I threw it in the smoker for 6 hours, and I had the temp set to around 160. Temperature fluctuations were going from 145 to 175. A bit much, but I think if I had more meat in there, the temps would have been more consistent. I also had to run the meat thermo to measure the box temperature under my fan. Didn't cause any problem, still had good circulation.

The meat came out great though. Good flavor, and dried up nicely. The fan did an awesome job.
« Last Edit: February 18, 2018, 03:48:43 PM by Ducksoup »

old sarge

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Re: James Jerky Dryer out of stock - any alternatives?
« Reply #24 on: February 18, 2018, 06:02:31 PM »
Seems like your project and the resulting jersey were both successful..Congrats!  Was the jersey as tasty as it looks?
David from Arizona
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DivotMaker

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Re: James Jerky Dryer out of stock - any alternatives?
« Reply #25 on: February 18, 2018, 07:03:35 PM »
Nicely-done, Duck!! :)
Tony from NW Arkansas
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Ducksoup

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Re: James Jerky Dryer out of stock - any alternatives?
« Reply #26 on: February 20, 2018, 01:16:45 PM »
Seems like your project and the resulting jersey were both successful..Congrats!  Was the jersey as tasty as it looks?

Yes! It came out perfectly. Going to wait until that meat is on sale and do a much larger batch.

Cook_in_Colorado

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Re: James Jerky Dryer out of stock - any alternatives?
« Reply #27 on: February 21, 2018, 08:41:54 PM »
I love that!

I was wondering when the jerky drier would be in stock and would also be impatient.

I have a dehydrator, so for now, will smoke meat for jerky and then put it on my dehydrator.  But I know my son would love to make something like this!
Deb near Denver, CO
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skioutwest

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Re: James Jerky Dryer out of stock - any alternatives?
« Reply #28 on: March 30, 2018, 03:09:47 PM »
You can find 3D printed 4" adapters that directly mount to a 120mm computer fan.  They cost about $10.  I have one for my coffee roaster and they work great and are made out of nylon so they can withstand about 400deg.

Here is an example of one....I may try this myself

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Antminer-S1-S3-S5-S7-S9-T9-L3-120mm-Fan-Duct-Cooling-Shroud-to-4-Inch-Vent/292495723309?_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIM.MBE%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D20160908110712%26meid%3D65ea2bbee6c441afa2c4f34663236df7%26pid%3D100677%26rk%3D6%26rkt%3D30%26mehot%3Dlo%26sd%3D173207122609%26itm%3D292495723309&_trksid=p2385738.c100677.m4598

-Mark


LarryD

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Re: James Jerky Dryer out of stock - any alternatives?
« Reply #29 on: March 30, 2018, 07:30:34 PM »
I have one for my coffee roaster

Hello, fellow coffee roaster!  Maybe I'll go start a thread in the anything goes channel and we can see who is does or might roast coffee on here.  :)
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