IN Lately people often spend time outdoors, relaxing from the hustle and bustle of megacities. In addition to admiring nature, every self-respecting person cannot do without barbecue on skewers, for the preparation of which it is recommended to use a barbecue with a spit for comfortable cooking and uniformity when heating meat.
There are many types of such devices on the market, among which the most popular is the electric spit, which allows you to rotate the skewers in automatic mode. But most simple options is the creation of a product with your own hands, which gives confidence in the quality of the selected materials, and subject to all the rules and recommendations, it will delight with its functionality for several decades.
A mechanical barbecue spit requires the following materials:
- Metal rods;
- Actually a brazier for carrying out the main measurements;
- Rotary handle;
- Metal bayonet;
- Welding machine;
- Pliers;
- Meter or tape measure;
- Bulgarian.
Making a skewer with your own hands is quite simple and the process does not require special knowledge in this area.
The main condition when choosing a bayonet is taking into account the material from which it is made. It must necessarily be a hard-melting product, since otherwise there is a risk that it will melt, thereby spoiling the quality of the meat carcass. It is also important to choose stainless steel.
For convenient fastening meat on a skewer for barbecue requires 4 bars, which are welded crosswise, and each of them must match in size, otherwise it is impossible to achieve a uniform load.
Steps to create a skewer at home
Many are interested in how to make a spit with their own hands. First you need to decide on the length of the skewer, as well as its diameter. An ordinary barbecue requires an ordinary bar with a diameter of less than 1 cm, but for frying a pig, a bar with a diameter of 1 to 1.6 cm will already be needed.
After welding the bars in a crosswise position, it is necessary to create a handle that can be made either stationary or removable as desired. You can even take an ordinary doorknob.
The rods can be round, square and flat - it all depends on the preferences of the master. round view is not ideal, as there is a risk that the carcass will slide, and turning it to the other side will become a difficult process, but on the physical side it is much easier.
The square shape of the spit, although it guarantees uniform roasting of the meat, is difficult to turn physically.
Each of the forms has its advantages and disadvantages, so everyone chooses what he can do.
The final stage is fastening the teeth to the spit with the blunt side or from the side of the handle, which can also be removable. But this is not a required element.
After finishing this stage we can say that the skewer is completely ready for use, it remains only to purchase your favorite type of meat and cook it.
To create the perfect spit on the grill, you must adhere to the following some nuances:
- For even placement of supports, their installation must be carried out on flat surface, as this helps to keep the skewer level while roasting the meat.
- It is best to keep the skewer as short as possible to minimize extra effort during its movement, and the handle should, on the contrary, form a large lever. So you can make the rotation of the product the most comfortable and easy.
Creating an electrical fixture
To create an electric spit, you need a little more effort and some knowledge. Stages of creation:
- For the drive, 2 small plastics should be cut out of a metal sheet.
- Then a hole should be cut on the resulting plates.
- For the gearbox, you need to fix the sprocket from the bicycle on the motor shaft, and then the gear. This design should be fixed on the plate, and then mounted on the shaft.
- On the opposite edge, a second gear is installed through the bearing.
- After that, it is necessary to fix the gears on the skewer a little further than the handle.
- Now you can install the engine on one of the barbecue legs and pull the chain to the body.
- The final step is to weld the support on the other side of the barbecue.
As you can see, creating a skewer is a fairly simple process, the main thing is desire. If you follow all the steps, you can get a device that will become indispensable assistant in making barbecue. And an additional bonus in the form of funds saved on the purchase will not leave anyone indifferent.
Outdoor cooking is becoming more and more popular. Barbecue or barbecue is on almost every suburban area. And if kebabs are already a fairly traditional method of cooking meat, then the use of a skewer is still a rarity. This detail allows you to fry large pieces of meat and even whole carcasses. It is not difficult to build such a device for the barbecue with your own hands.
The right choice of rod is half the success
Before you make a skewer and all the accessories for it, you need to prepare the material for work and decide on its length and shape.
Mostly flat, square and rounded designs are used. It all depends on what products. Boneless or minced meat will be difficult to grill on a rounded skewer because it will slip off. It is more convenient to fry shish kebab and small pieces on a flat rod. In order to cook a whole carcass without any problems, it is best to take a square shape. With such a spit, the meat will not slip off and will be able to fry evenly from all sides.
The basis of the spit is a metal bayonet, and right choice material for it is a guarantee of successful use. For a bayonet, you should not choose fusible alloys or use an old scrap metal rod. The best decision — stainless steel. In addition, to work on creating a skewer, you will need:
- Rotisserie handle.
- Roulette.
- Bulgarian.
- Metal rod.
- Pliers.
- Welding machine.
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Making a skewer
Before you make a skewer with your own hands, you need to decide on its length and diameter. For the preparation of small pieces of meat, a 7 mm thick rod is suitable. To fry the carcass of a small animal, a device made of a rod from 9 to 11 mm is suitable. If you plan to cook large pieces of meat, then you should prepare a rod with a diameter of 12 to 16 mm. As for the length, the barbecue skewer is made the same length as the barbecue itself.
If there is no barbecue, then a kind of stand should be built, which will be installed above the fire. A skewer with a carcass is placed on it. Metal rods for this must have the same length, so that the load is distributed evenly. 4 prepared rods must be welded 2 crosswise. You will get grooves that will allow you to conveniently and firmly install the spit over the fire.
Drawing skewer for barbecue: minimum dimensions.
There is one important detail What distinguishes a skewer from a regular skewer is the handle. It is she who helps to turn the meat over for even frying. You can make it from any improvised material. An ordinary door or bicycle handle can be used, or a piece of pipe that can be shaped to fit comfortably.
The handle should be welded to the main structure of the spit. If there is nothing suitable at hand, then the bent end of the rod can become a handle. The main thing is to create a lever. Thanks to this, the cook can easily twist a rod of any shape, and the cooking process will take place without additional physical effort. Be careful about the size of this rod. The cook's hands should be kept at a safe distance from the hot flame. Therefore, a piece of rod that will protrude beyond the limiters must be at least 1 m in length.
The final stage in the construction of the skewer is to equip it with teeth that will hold the meat. On commercially made skewers, these tines are clip-on and removable to make it easy to skewer the carcass. For a do-it-yourself construction, one pair of teeth is made from metal rods. They should be bent in an arc and welded to the base. The teeth are firmly fixed from the side of the "blunt" end at a distance of 1/3 of the length. The spit is ready. Now in the summer cottage there will be not only a brazier, built with your own hands, but also adaptations to it.
After a hard day spent at their summer cottage, people want to please themselves and loved ones with "sweets" in a hurry. Having built a brazier with an electric drive at the dacha with his own hands, the owner will get such an opportunity. Equipped with a mechanism for automatic rotation of the skewers, the brazier will not need constant attention.
Design features
The main disadvantage of traditional barbecues is that an experienced cook should be nearby all the time, who will make sure that the meat does not burn during cooking, because fire is the enemy of barbecue. The follower has to sit at the barbecue inseparably, soaking in smoke and inhaling fragments of soot.
Automatic adaptation solves many issues at once:
- Frees up time to spend on other household chores.
- The kebab is fried much more evenly than under the supervision of a person, without charring, the meat is more juicy and soft.
- By purchasing an additional grill with a spit, the device will be able to cook several dishes at the same time, saving time.
- The brazier with all accessories has compact dimensions, is easily disassembled, does not take up much space during storage.
- The device cleans up quickly.
This is interesting:how to make a skewer for barbecue with your own hands.
The only serious drawback is that there must be a power source nearby. It turns out that cooking can only be done near a residential building, from where it is easy to reach the carrying cord. But at a picnic in the forest or on the river bank, it will already be useless, unless you get an additional battery.
In addition, you will have to take into account the cost of electricity.
It is also worth mentioning the fact that, according to gourmets, barbecue prepared in this way differs in taste from roasted on a regular grill. But this, it seems to us, is a moot point.
Video "Barbecue with an electric drive with your own hands"
From this video you will learn how to upgrade the brazier and add an electric skewers drive to it:
Purchased electric drive
For those who are at odds with technology, it will be easier to purchase a ready-made drive in a store. This approach eliminates difficulties, moreover, a purchased electric drive is often supplied with a proprietary battery.
Structurally, the magazine drive is an ordinary nozzle that is easy to attach to any flat surface. The drive can be powered by batteries, however, the rotation speed will be minimal. Devices equipped with a speed controller are produced.
There are ready-made electric grills for sale. The meat is fried from the incandescent filament on vertically arranged skewers, the juice and fat flow into the recesses provided. The taste of shish kebab fried from a heating element really differs from meat cooked on fire, but you can use such a device even in a city apartment.
How to do it yourself
If you need a stationary brazier, it is easier to make it yourself. The device in this case can be massive. It provides a solid foundation.
The simplest device should include two main elements:
- Engine. It is removed from any unnecessary electrical appliance, a microwave oven or an electric toy will do. It is good if the engine is equipped with a gearbox that allows you to adjust the speed of rotation of the skewers.
- rotation mechanism. good decision will use an ordinary bicycle chain and several sprocket gears. Gears can be machined, but it is easier to buy, preferably with a coating that prevents rust.
The prepared materials will need to be fixed on a metal plate equipped with a shaft with bearings. The plate will be mounted outside the brazier; for this, bolts are provided in it.
Principle of operation homemade device: the turned on motor will begin to rotate the gears, they will gradually transfer the torque to all the parts in turn, causing the skewers fixed in the holes to rotate.
To create such a device, you will need a drill and a grinder.
Don't forget about 2 main elements
Box making
Those who do not have the brazier itself will also have to make a brazier. Required for installation metal sheets approximately 3 mm thick. They are cut, then cut with a grinder to get the bottom of the brazier and four sides in the form of a rectangle.
Manufacturing takes place as follows:
- Each plate is fixed in turn in a vise, then they begin to drill holes with a diameter of 1 cm.
- In the walls they are placed at the bottom in increments of 3 cm. The heat from the coals will be drawn through them.
- At the bottom, holes are made with a smaller distance. They are needed for ash removal.
- All parts are welded into a box - the body of the future barbecue.
- In the upper part of the long sidewalls, recesses are drilled into which skewers will be inserted. The distance between the notches is equal to the width of the gear with a minimum tolerance of 0.5 cm.
Now it remains to "plant" the brazier on the legs.
Engine selection
It is desirable to select a motor with a power of 12 watts. You can borrow it from:
- power window;
- car wiper;
- microwaves;
- cordless screwdriver;
- replaceable timing phase;
- an outdated electric stove with a grill function.
More on initial stage it is worth deciding whether your motor will be powered by the mains, batteries or accumulator. However, one does not interfere with the other. By making the power supply universal, you can be powered from the outlet, staying with your family in the country, or from the battery, leaving the whole company on a picnic.
Assembly of skewers
To rotate, the skewers are inserted with their ends into the middle of the rotational gears connected together in common system. Two types of torque transmission from the motor shafts to the gears are used:
- Serrated. The mechanism is compact. Forms too hard transmission, makes a lot of noise. The transmission constantly has to be lubricated during operation.
- With the use of flexible elements. For this purpose, a bicycle chain, belt, thick tape or cord are suitable. Unfortunately, soft parts (belt, tape) can slip from time to time, and such a mechanism cannot be called durable. The device will turn out bigger size, it is necessary to take into account the increased load on the shafts and supports.
You can start the rotation from the central gear, which will begin to move the neighbors on both sides. Another option is to turn one of the extreme ones, it transmits the moment adjacent to it, etc. This mechanism makes the skewers rotate in one direction, so that the strung meat will not cling. The juice is also distributed more evenly, falling on neighboring pieces, making their surface more juicy.
When rotating in different directions, the friction force of the skewers against each other increases, which is why they can even fall out of the nests, i.e. the presence of a person will be useful. The gears are installed strictly perpendicular, even a slight misalignment can jam the mechanism.
Experienced cooks have noticed that the meat should receive the main portion of heat in the initial 2-3 minutes of cooking. To achieve this, it is desirable to heat it manually - first on one side, then on the other. As a result, a crust is formed that will not allow the juice to flow out. Only after that the skewers are connected to turning mechanism electric grill and start automatic uniform roasting.
Many of us are accustomed to cooking meat using skewers. But for cooking large pieces of lamb, pork or chicken, it is recommended to use a skewer. It is a long rod with a handle and clamps for fillets or small animal carcasses.
To do this, we need a brazier, round rental and necessary tools. Experts recommend using profiled rods to eliminate the risk of carcass slipping. you can do it yourself without much effort.
A manual structure can be built in a few minutes. And if you have some experience and skills, you can implement a device with an electric drive. Let's look at several options for manufacturing fixtures.
DIY hand spit
For the simplest construction, we do not need complex drawings. Determine the length taking into account the width of the barbecue and add about 15 cm. The materials used must be hard and heat-resistant. The best option is a stainless steel that can last a long period of time.
Manufacturing instruction:
- We weld plates with slots and holes along the edges of the brazier, as shown in the diagram above.
- We prepare a rod with a thickness of 10-12 mm.
- We weld two rods to the base to fix the meat.
- We fix the handle.
Such a model will be noisy and will not last long. If you can find rotation units with bearings, then use the drawing below.
In this case, you need to initially determine the height of the skewer so that the meat is well fried and does not burn.
Automatic spit with electric drive
If you want to completely relax in nature, then it is better to make an electric version of the device. For this, a conventional motor from car wipers is suitable.
For the manufacture of the gearbox, we perform the following steps:
- We attach the asterisk from the bicycle to the motor shaft.
- From above we weld a small gear and fix the structure to the body of our engine.
- On the other side of the base, we also fasten the gear through the bearing.
- We mount the motor on one of the legs of the barbecue and pull the bicycle part between the small and large sprocket.
If such a task is difficult for you, then buy already finished device with a motor in a specialized shop. The build process takes a few minutes. You can watch one of the examples in the video clip:
Modern manufacturers offer various models, so you can choose according to your barbecue or stove.
Hiking option
If the skewer is only in your plans, but you need to cook meat, then you can use improvised means.
To cook a rabbit carcass, you can use an ordinary thick branch that does not bend, so the trees softwood won't fit. We clean a suitable branch from the bark, on the one hand we sharpen the end for convenient stringing of meat.
Plant the carcass along the spine. It will take about 3 hours to prepare.
If you like kebabs cooked on skewers, try using a homemade skewer as an alternative. The whole process will take you a little time.
A reliable option that will serve for many years is a steel bar skewer. Its production will require more effort, but will pay off with interest. It is important to choose the right metal - it should be high-density stainless steel. Do not use rods made of light alloy materials, which include lead, zinc, tin, bismuth.
For greater strength, it is better to use not one, but several rods, welding or twisting them together. In this case, at least one of them must be long enough to lie on the racks of the brazier supports. The overall thickness of the metal may vary depending on the weight of the meat. For ordinary kebabs of 100-200 g, a 0.7 cm thick skewer is suitable, a 0.9-1.7 cm thick rod can withstand a rabbit or chicken carcass, cooking a lamb or a pig requires more solid construction- not less than 1.2-1.5 cm.
It is important to choose the right section of the spit. If it is round, frying boneless meat can be a problem, even with extra teeth. A flat skewer will most likely not be strong enough and will sag under the weight of the carcass. Perfect option- triangular or square section, the meat will not turn and slide off.
Be sure to weld at least one pair of prongs on the skewer to hold the meat and a long, curved handle to rotate it. It is convenient if any position of rotation on the brazier can be fixed.
wooden skewer
In the field, in a forest or field, it is quite possible to fry the carcass of a small animal using a wooden skewer. It is better to use fresh alder, walnut or maple wood, they have the necessary strength and do not burn so quickly.
To do this, you need to pick up a strong, even branch, with several forks, and clean it from the bark. One of the forks will become a handle for rotation, the next - teeth to hold the meat. The end of the branch must be well sharpened so that the carcass is easily strung on it. On the other hand, it is convenient if the end of the skewer is slightly bent or has a different method of fastening so as not to fly out of the support.
Further, on both sides of the fire, you need to install supports - strong branches forked upwards. In these forks, a wooden skewer with an animal carcass is placed. You can use any other support options: bricks stacked on top of each other, metal barrels.
