Diameter of bottom coal grate

[BluesDaddy]

Does anyone know the diameter of the coal grate at the bottom of the Akorn? The CI one for a BGE can be had fairly reasonably (cheaper even then me getting a small sheet of expanded metal) and would solve the lump falling through grate issue if it fits.

[John Setzler]

I just went out and measured mine... it's 11 5/8" in diameter.

There are a couple options you have, including cutting a set-on grate out of 1/2" expanded metal... you can also arrange several larger pieces of lump on the grate and then put the smaller stuff on top of that.

Upon inspection when I did this measurement, I believe the charcoal grate is going to be the first point of failure in this cooker. Mine is bending/sagging probably from the heat. I'll have to keep my eye on that.

[rwhinton]

I believe the charcoal grate is going to be the first point of failure in this cooker.

Isn't the charcoal grate the first failure on most charcoal grills? The charcoal grates in my Performer are bowed where I set the chimney over the propane-assisted burner.

[John Setzler]

Yup.... probably so. Mine is bowed just a little so I'll just flip it over and keep going with it This one hasn't had any weight other than the charcoal on it.

[Big Smoke]

I was thinking of using this stainless steel wok as a charcoal basket. The base is 11" wide and top is 14" so it might fit, after cutting off the handles. I could also bring it up to the middle of the grill for high heat searing. Any thoughts? It's on sale for $15.

[Ross]

I'm thinking this would be a great way to bring up the fire a bit on my vision, as well. One challenge with the Vision, as opposed to BGE, KJ and GD is the fire box is one piece, and the top lip sits about 3" higher. To get that 3" back I was thinking to raise the fire a bit. This might be the way to do it.

[bennyblowssmoke]

Big smoke I thought about doing the same thing. i found one at bed bath and beyond for $6.99 comes with a removable handle. its only a bit smaller than yours (10" bottom 12" across the top) but these things don't use much lump anyway.

[rwhinton]

Replacement parts for grills made by Old Smokey could work as well. The bottom grate for the small Old Smokey measures 11.5 inches.

http://www.oldsmokey.com/Products/CharcoalGrillParts/gratesandgrills.html

And the top grill on the medium Old Smokey fits on the Akorn's flanges, if you want to lower your cooking surface.

[BluesDaddy]

Replacement parts for grills made by Old Smokey could work as well. The bottom grate for the small Old Smokey measures 11.5 inches.

http://www.oldsmokey.com/Products/CharcoalGrillParts/gratesandgrills.html

And the top grill on the medium Old Smokey fits on the Akorn's flanges, if you want to lower your cooking surface.

Interesting. While hard to really tell accurately from the picture, it looks like the bottom grate would cut down air supply significantly, which might make temp control for low and slow much easier on the CGK.

[John Setzler]

That old smokey grate would not have to fit perfectly... you could just set it on top of the existing grate. You need to be careful cutting off the airflow too much in the Kamado... We have seen cases here where small bits of lump get in the holes and choke it off almost completely.

For what it's worth on the low and slow side of the Akorn kamado, I had excellent results with Stubbs all-natural briquettes instead of lump for maintaining low and slow.... That stuff works really well...

[bennyblowssmoke]

That old smokey grate would not have to fit perfectly... you could just set it on top of the existing grate. You need to be careful cutting off the airflow too much in the Kamado... We have seen cases here where small bits of lump get in the holes and choke it off almost completely.

For what it's worth on the low and slow side of the Akorn kamado, I had excellent results with Stubbs all-natural briquettes instead of lump for maintaining low and slow.... That stuff works really well...

Stubbs huh? I'll check into that. Thanks JM

[BluesDaddy]

That old smokey grate would not have to fit perfectly... you could just set it on top of the existing grate. You need to be careful cutting off the airflow too much in the Kamado... We have seen cases here where small bits of lump get in the holes and choke it off almost completely.

For what it's worth on the low and slow side of the Akorn kamado, I had excellent results with Stubbs all-natural briquettes instead of lump for maintaining low and slow.... That stuff works really well...

I agree that Stubbs is great stuff. Honestly, I've always had good performance from Kingsford Blue - not sure why so many dump on it. Seeing as I have a goodly supply of it from the HD sale earlier in the year, I'll be seeing just how well that works in the CGK. Unfortunately, I've only been able to do one cook in it so far, and that was just some Brats (fresh from Patak Meats for you ATL area folks, they are the BEST). Work, family and a new grandson are keeping me a bit tied up in what would otherwise be smoking time.

[John Setzler]

That old smokey grate would not have to fit perfectly... you could just set it on top of the existing grate. You need to be careful cutting off the airflow too much in the Kamado... We have seen cases here where small bits of lump get in the holes and choke it off almost completely.

For what it's worth on the low and slow side of the Akorn kamado, I had excellent results with Stubbs all-natural briquettes instead of lump for maintaining low and slow.... That stuff works really well...

I agree that Stubbs is great stuff. Honestly, I've always had good performance from Kingsford Blue - not sure why so many dump on it. Seeing as I have a goodly supply of it from the HD sale earlier in the year, I'll be seeing just how well that works in the CGK. Unfortunately, I've only been able to do one cook in it so far, and that was just some Brats (fresh from Patak Meats for you ATL area folks, they are the BEST). Work, family and a new grandson are keeping me a bit tied up in what would otherwise be smoking time.

I don't dump on it... I use a ton of it in my other grills/smokers. The only drawback of using it in a Kamado is that you could potentially build up enough ash during a very long took to choke off the airflow. What I'm finding with experience on the Akorn is that it might be possible to use kingsford blue in it for long cooks since it's so efficient. I have not tried it myself yet but I might.

One of the things I have noticed since getting the Char-Griller Akorn Kamado is that I sorta like the flavor profile that lump gives, especially when cooking steaks/burgers and other high heat cooking. It creates more of a wood-fired oven effect instead of the standard charcoal profile. So far, I have only experimented with Cowboy lump, Royal Oak lump, and Stubbs all-natural briquettes. I wasn't much of a fan of the Cowboy, but the other two are excellent.

[BluesDaddy]

I don't dump on it... I use a ton of it in my other grills/smokers. The only drawback of using it in a Kamado is that you could potentially build up enough ash during a very long took to choke off the airflow. What I'm finding with experience on the Akorn is that it might be possible to use kingsford blue in it for long cooks since it's so efficient. I have not tried it myself yet but I might.

One of the things I have noticed since getting the Char-Griller Akorn Kamado is that I sorta like the flavor profile that lump gives, especially when cooking steaks/burgers and other high heat cooking. It creates more of a wood-fired oven effect instead of the standard charcoal profile. So far, I have only experimented with Cowboy lump, Royal Oak lump, and Stubbs all-natural briquettes. I wasn't much of a fan of the Cowboy, but the other two are excellent.

Please don't think I was aiming that directly at anyone, just a general observations regarding comments on BBQ forums in general. You may be right that ash becomes a problem in a long cook, but eventually I'll get to try it out. My next two weekends won't afford me the opportunity, so I may have to take a day off from work to get some smokin' in!