The Lexington Collection
 
Pretty Polly
 
    A Backyard Barbecue Machine
 
The Pit

Wilber D. Hog is a combination of a barbecue pit and a fireplace for making coals to use in the pit. Firewood is burned to coals on the hearth of the open fireplace chamber on the left. The glowing embers are "harvested" when needed and transferred with a shovel to the pit on the right.

Early Morning
Wilber emitting a thin blue smoke in the early morning light.

The pit, surrounded on all sides by 8 inches of bricks for thermal mass, has provisions for holding two gridirons about 2 feet above the coals. The top door of the pit provides access to the gridirons. Coals are shoveled onto the floor of the pit through the bottom door. Air flow through the pit is regulated by a spin draft in the door and brick vents at the base of the pit.

Gridirons
 
Gridirons, above, are about 2 feet above the floor of the pit, below.
 
Pit Floor

The meat, laying on the gridiron lattice, is primarily cooked by the direct action of the heat and smoke rising from the hot coals below on the floor of the pit. Little heat passes through the common wall between the fireplace and the pit.

See the Design & Construction pages for detailed information about Wilber.

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The Cooking With Wilber Collection