I think Farmer John is trolling for Kamado owners with stuck dampers. Oh, poor me. My damper spins too freely. And my wife is too beautiful, my lawn is too green and my ribs are too tender.
Perhaps, if not cooking at very high temps, some teflon tape will correct this "problem".
But on a bigger note, while the spinning cap is attractive and iconic of a range of K-style cookers, I'm starting to think that as a control it is fundamentally flawed.
I have a Mexico-epoch K7. My damper has never stuck but it seems to be a not uncommon complaint - one which KK has addressed in part through coarser threading. But for a low-n-slow on my cooker I only open the damper 1/4 turn. The K7 has a 10tpi pitch so 1/10" x .25 turn is 25/1000 inch gap. The KK is probably similar and while lacking the sticking problem is, I would guess, a tad fussier in terms of temperature change per unit of adjustment.
Also, with only a 25/1000 gap, any tip of the cap changes the gap from one side to the other. As long as nothing is touching, it might average out but when trying to make small tweaks that play might, er, come into play.
More problematic is that at certain parts of a long low-n-slow, the moisture from cooking condenses in the gap and reduces the opening. There is no drip lip so if cooking in the rain, the rainwater wicks around the bottom and further exacerbates temperature control issues. (Yes, I know a Stoker or Guru addresses this issue but I've been generally quite successful with the manual method. And using the electronic controls in the rain presents other problems.)
By recollection, the hole in the top is about 3" across. If so, the circumference is, in round numbers, 10" and the area of the opening is 0.25" or a square 0.5" on a side.
I therefore submit the following concept:
Reshape the damper cap so instead of a flat bottom it is a hood. This provides a drip lip and preserves the current look.
Place a damper similar to the one on the front of the draft door into the throat of the dome opening. Turning the top cap will rotate that plate to adjust airflow. Threads are eliminated altogether as are condensation, tilting and rain problems. The shape of the openings on the plate could be designed to provide finer adjustment at the low end of the range if desired and a small notch on the edge of the cap could provide a visual reference for remembering settings.
There are a few details of proper design of the mounting bracket for use and assembly but I think the basic concept is sound.
Thoughts?
Dennis, if you like the idea, I'd be happy to accept a cobalt blue Gen II Ultimate proof of concept prototype for testing.
