07/12/2026
This one took some time to get right, but I’m proud of where the design ended up.
This is the final prototype of my Mad Dog XL Charcoal Chimney, built from heavy-duty 14-gauge steel and designed from the ground up rather than copied from a store-bought chimney.
The pentagonal body is cut as one piece, hand-formed, and assembled with precision tabs and recesses. The closing seam now fits nearly flush, and the internal grate is designed with only about .020–.030 inch of working clearance around the walls. The grate tabs pass through matching slots and are welded from the inside, leaving the exterior clean without long weld seams or unnecessary grinding.
Some of the details I worked through:
Precision-fit tab and slot construction
Internally welded, self-locating charcoal grate
Large airflow openings through the body and grate
Heavy 1/2-inch steel handle with a spring grip
XL charcoal capacity
Customizable panels for names, logos, brands, or graphics
Minimal exterior welding and cleanup
It may look like a simple charcoal chimney, but a lot of measuring, cutting, testing, bending, and small tolerance adjustments went into making all five sides come together properly.
The next step is loading it with charcoal and putting the airflow and capacity to the test.
Designed and built by Mad Dog Metalworks. Built heavy, built clean, and built to be used.
