Author Topic: RoundBoy Oven (Read 2064 times)

DarqMan · « **on:** April 29, 2012, 11:48:12 PM »

My RoundBoy oven arrived Friday. I asked a buddy who drives a Toyota Tundra to help me pick it up. The shipping weight of the crate was 1498 pounds. My buddy thought for sure his truck could handle it, but once they started to drop the weight on his bed we had to resort to "Plan B". It was just way too heavy of a load for this truck. I had followed in my car so we ended up removing the individual pieces from the crate and placed some of them in my car and the majority in the bed of his truck. In hindsight, this was a smart move as I didn't have a huge wooden crate to dispose of since we left it at the freight carrier. We got to the house late, unloaded the pieces in the garage with plans to assemble Saturday,

Here are some photos of the assembly process. I will update this thread with any observations that might be useful to others considering this oven as well as photos of delicious food that will be cooked in the years to come. Feel free to ask any questions you might have about this fine, affordable brick oven.

DarqMan · « **Reply #1 on:** April 29, 2012, 11:49:00 PM »

More photos

DarqMan · « **Reply #2 on:** April 29, 2012, 11:49:35 PM »

Finished

Bigfoot21075 · « **Reply #3 on:** April 30, 2012, 07:48:28 AM »

We picked ours up from Rounboy on Friday. After the 3 1/2 hour ride each way by the time we got home Friday afternoon we were just too tired to mess with it, so I left it in the truck until Sunday (yesterday). The wife and I started about 9am and finished at around 1pm with a luch break and really taking our time. I will get the pics loaded and start a thread on it soon.

I see from your pics you added a reflective material under the bricks and over the dome - did you not use the 2 bags of vermiculite that came with it? Have you cooked anything yet?

DarqMan · « **Reply #4 on:** May 01, 2012, 12:10:49 AM »

Quote from: Bigfoot21075 on April 30, 2012, 07:48:28 AM

We picked ours up from Rounboy on Friday. After the 3 1/2 hour ride each way by the time we got home Friday afternoon we were just too tired to mess with it, so I left it in the truck until Sunday (yesterday). The wife and I started about 9am and finished at around 1pm with a luch break and really taking our time. I will get the pics loaded and start a thread on it soon.

I see from your pics you added a reflective material under the bricks and over the dome - did you not use the 2 bags of vermiculite that came with it? Have you cooked anything yet?

The assembly instructions had a note which stated that heavy duty tin foil could be placed between the base plates and bricks, as well as covering the dome. Since I had loads of tin foil I use to wrap my ribs and briskets, I decided to put it to use. I'm glad I did. When we were laying the bricks we noticed that they were all slightly different heights. We used pieces of tin foil in an attempt to level the brick floor so pizza peels and ash racks don't hang up. So far it's working great. I also covered the top of the dome with foil as an extra reflective barrier. I did use the two bags of insulation, but had half a bag left over as there wasn't enough room for all of it. Were you able get all of both bags in Bigfoot?

I just built my second fire in it tonight. The first fire stayed relatively low but still produced some moisture. The fire tonight had a bit more punch to it and produced even more moisture which I understand is normal. Getting the moisture out of the cement is part of the seasoning process. Tomorrow night, I'll build an even larger fire and perhaps cook a pizza or two.

I'll have to say, considering the affordable price point (free shipping) and the fact I was able to get heavy duty casters for mobility, I'm extremely pleased. We'll see how well this baby cooks pizzas!

Stay tuned.

Jackie Tran · « **Reply #5 on:** May 01, 2012, 12:14:05 AM »

Congrats guys. Looking forward to those pizza pictures.

DarqMan · « **Reply #6 on:** May 01, 2012, 12:21:34 AM »

Quote from: Jackie Tran on May 01, 2012, 12:14:05 AM

Congrats guys. Looking forward to those pizza pictures.

Thanks Jackie. I'm going to learn how to produce the leopard style crust as shown in your avatar. But until then, please bare with me

Bigfoot21075 · « **Reply #7 on:** May 01, 2012, 09:48:37 AM »

Mine could not take both bags either, I had a little less than half a bag left. Good i dea about the foil to level, I used a sander on the underside of each one to even everything up. I actually plan on building another enclosure around the existing one to blend it in with my soon to be Engelbrecht 2000 Series Stahlkammer Masonry Grill. Should be a nice outdoor kitchen when done.

http://www.grillsandcookers.com/2000-masonry-grill.php

DarqMan · « **Reply #8 on:** May 01, 2012, 10:05:08 PM »

Quote from: Bigfoot21075 on May 01, 2012, 09:48:37 AM

Mine could not take both bags either, I had a little less than half a bag left. Good i dea about the foil to level, I used a sander on the underside of each one to even everything up. I actually plan on building another enclosure around the existing one to blend it in with my soon to be Engelbrecht 2000 Series Stahlkammer Masonry Grill. Should be a nice outdoor kitchen when done.

http://www.grillsandcookers.com/2000-masonry-grill.php

I would say that is going to be an awesome outdoor kitchen! That is one serious grill.

I had planned on cooking pizzas tonight but the AC went out so I didn't make it to the grocery for some key toppings. Besides, keeping the dough in the fridge another day will only improve it. I did manage to build a fire and get it up to cooking temp. Karl told me when the inside turns white, it's ready. Well, tonight I had a thick bed of coals, a hot, white dome and the floor was right at 700 degrees next to the coals. Less moisture is coming out so I think I've done all the dry runs I need. Tomorrow.... PIZZA!

bigfoot, post some pics when you get a chance, I'd love to see your setup.

Bigfoot21075 · « **Reply #9 on:** May 02, 2012, 06:48:38 AM »

Hi Darqman!

I started a thread here for mine;

http://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php/topic,18992.new.html

I think I can do Pizza Saturday! It is a very cool setup, seems easy to build the fires. I look forward to seeing your pies.

DarqMan · « **Reply #10 on:** May 02, 2012, 11:21:05 PM »

Tonight I cooked my first pizzas in the new RoundBoy oven. I brought the oven up to temp much faster this time, taking about an hour and a half instead of 3 hours to get the inside of the dome white. I was super tired after a long day at work so I didn't take a lot time being artistic when topping the pies.

My dough had been in the fridge since Monday night. It was the basic recipe from "The Art of Making Pizza: Trade Secrets and Recipes". I used Antimo Caputo Superfine "00" flour and ADY.

The first I brushed with EVOO and minced 3 garlic cloves to start. Then I added a thin layer of white cheddar and a thin layer of Fontina. Next I added some caramelized onions and some diced Pancetta I had rendered until crispy. Finally, I topped it will slices of mozzarella.

The first pizza tasted the best, but I didn't get the bottom of the crust the way I wanted. It looked better and tasted better than the second, but didn't have a crispy bottom. I figured out that I started the pizza too close to the fire and the edges immediately started browning. One the second pizza, I raked the fire to the opposite side of the oven and cooked the pizza in the side previously occupied by the fire. I also started the pizza further away from the fire and left it there for a minute or so and then moved it closer to the fire to crisp the edges.

DarqMan · « **Reply #11 on:** May 02, 2012, 11:26:18 PM »

The second pizza started out with the EVOO and garlic. I then added a thin layer of Philadelphia cooking cream. I then added a layer of mozzarella and topped with Hormel pepperoni. My local gourmet grocery is supposed to be carrying Old World pepperoni but it hasn't arrived yet.

I really like the flavor combination of the first pie better, but this one had a much crisper crust.

Bigfoot21075 · « **Reply #12 on:** May 03, 2012, 06:15:23 AM »

For the first try they look great! Is that Masa on your peel? Did you let the dough sit at room temp long enough (may help to make forming the pies easier) Did they launch ok off the peel?

JConk007 · « **Reply #13 on:** May 03, 2012, 08:44:51 AM »

Corn meal for the launch right ? Exactly how I started. Try a rice flour or semolina will help a bit if you are getting burning on bottom. I Cant wait to see your pies progress as with others here who are lucky enought to pull the trigger on a WFO. This oven should cook siimlar to some of the mobiles (mine) as we basically just have the floor brick/ tile as the mass. Do you have infr red thermo to get the temps of the floor and dome when you are ready to go ?
Thanks for posting!
JOhn

Ev · « **Reply #14 on:** May 03, 2012, 11:53:12 AM »

Congrats on the new oven. The first pies look pretty good too!

I think you need this t-shirt!

DarqMan · « **Reply #15 on:** May 03, 2012, 09:21:04 PM »

Quote from: Bigfoot21075 on May 03, 2012, 06:15:23 AM

For the first try they look great! Is that Masa on your peel? Did you let the dough sit at room temp long enough (may help to make forming the pies easier) Did they launch ok off the peel?

Thanks bigfoot! I've always used corn mean, probably because I don't know any better. I didn't let the dough sit at room temp as I recently read in the book I mentioned that he likes his dough to be cold when it hits the brick. I usually let them rest at room temp at least an hour but didn't do that this time. They launched off the peel just fine. It was easy to turn them using the 8" turning peel I bought from Forno Bravo.

DarqMan · « **Reply #16 on:** May 03, 2012, 09:41:19 PM »

Quote from: JConk007 on May 03, 2012, 08:44:51 AM

Corn meal for the launch right ? Exactly how I started. Try a rice flour or semolina will help a bit if you are getting burning on bottom. I Cant wait to see your pies progress as with others here who are lucky enought to pull the trigger on a WFO. This oven should cook siimlar to some of the mobiles (mine) as we basically just have the floor brick/ tile as the mass. Do you have infr red thermo to get the temps of the floor and dome when you are ready to go ?
Thanks for posting!
JOhn

Hello John. I will try your suggestion of using flour for the launch. I was pleased with my results for the first attempt. You mentioned you have a mobile oven? Do you have a pic? I would love to see.

I just received a new thermo that reads as high as 1900 degrees. The one I had was a cheapo and only went to 600 degrees.

DarqMan · « **Reply #17 on:** May 03, 2012, 09:43:01 PM »

Quote from: Ev on May 03, 2012, 11:53:12 AM

Congrats on the new oven. The first pies look pretty good too!

I think you need this t-shirt!

Thanks Ev, I love beer. The kegerator usually has 8 gallons of Spaten Optimator on tap at all times.

Ev · « **Reply #18 on:** May 03, 2012, 10:06:42 PM »

Quote from: DarqMan on May 03, 2012, 09:43:01 PM

Thanks Ev, I love beer. The kegerator usually has 8 gallons of Spaten Optimator on tap at all times.

Oooh! Party at your house!

JConk007 · « **Reply #19 on:** May 03, 2012, 11:02:50 PM »

Darq,
If you have not seen the " Flirting With Fire " thread please check it out here http://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php/topic,14533.0.html
there are many pics of My mobile oven there.
Have fun with your new toy !
John