Making a Fire Pit from a 55 Gallon Oil Drum

Today in the shop we are making a new Fire Pit for my back yard, out of a 55 gallon oil drum. I have been wanting to make a fir pit out of oil drum for several years, but wasn't sure what design I wanted to create, until now. I reached out to my Father, who had an extra one on his property. After emptying the 4-5 quarts of oil that were left in it, and cleaning the inside with soap and water throughly, I was in business. I wanted to paint it with some type of design, so after removing the old paint from the outside, I cut it in half, and repainted it with the first coat of high temp grill paint. I repurposed the second half for the lid, and after removing several sections from the top, I used metal lathe to put screen back onto it. I repurposed the cut outs from the top for tabs, and a handle for the lid, as well as brackets to hold the 16 gauge plate in place, that was used as the fire base. I also repurposed an old steel bed frame headboard for the scroll legs, which were bolted on.
The lid will only be used when the fire is dying down, and I don’t want to leave the pit open before going inside, so don’t worry about the handle getting hot. In the event that it does get hot, I’ll remove the lid like I would with any fire pit lid, I’ll use a poker stick.
I originally though that I might do some welding on this project, but I realized that I could use pop rivets, and hardware instead. I was able to complete it with just as much strength and durability, and figured it would be a good tutorial for everyone, including those who do not have access to a welder.
If you are interested, please follow us on Instagram @theartofcraftsmanship to see what’s happening in the shop on a daily basis, and catch sneak peeks of our up coming videos.
To those of you who feel like you got something special from our videos and want to know how you can support us further, we have launched our Patreon page here... / theartofcraftsmanship

[@joelflores7479]

Amazing thank you for the video, May God Bless all that you do. Thanks again.

[@Weisswurstesser]

Nice. All that paint now forever in that grass.

[@jaybird4812]

This guy really knows what he is doing...... if you have 10,000 dollars of shop equipment... maybe more.....but he is good...

[@adrianalexandrino7938]

UNBELIEVABLE patience

[@joereese9473]

Dudes intro was classic...

[@TheArtofCraftsmanship]

Thanks Joe

[@carlosenriqueacunafonola4003]

Fantastic!!

[@frankierfloressr5016]

That fire 🔥 barrel is bad ass

[@HammerandNeil]

That washer and pop rivet trick is money in the bank!!!!

[@TheArtofCraftsmanship]

Thanks H&N. That was an “aha” moment when I figured it out as well.

[@JJLandscaping]

Wow that looks great

[@TheArtofCraftsmanship]

Thanks J&J!

[@philipbuerkle]

Dude above and beyond. Awesome!

[@fikussel]

Good work

[@nazimgokcezade1651]

Fantastic

[@yaboikd100]

Just When I Thought He Was Done @32:54...But Wait, There’s More!!...Now That’s Dedication!! Great Project

[@TheArtofCraftsmanship]

Thank you!

[@scondecachao]

Congrats

[@CrazyPalidin57]

Looks fantastic, only recommendation I can give is to cut a half moon shape opening on the ends and use the mesh material on the top to give it a 360 degree perspective to those gathering around the fire.

[@TheArtofCraftsmanship]

That’s a great suggestion. Thanks.

[@marlena1jb]

Very cool

[@jerryjohnsonii4181]

Awesome Fire Pit made out of a 55 gallon Oil Drum !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@TheArtofCraftsmanship]

Thanks JJ!

[@benready2903]

great job

[@davondd]

Why is it so satisfying to watch the grinding of the paint

[@dmj1170]

Thanks for sharing this video. I have 4 burn barrels I now have an idea of what to do with some of them.

[@TheArtofCraftsmanship]

This was a fun project. If you’re not worried about making a screen lid, you could make two pits out of one.

[@MrJoda588]

Man brought out the leather apron, signs of a true craftsman.

[@Good2Go313]

Awesome job! Hope you and your family are enjoying it. It's one of the nicer burn pits with class.

[@TheArtofCraftsmanship]

Thank you for the kind words. It’s still going strong after a few years.

[@tinfoilskullcap7034]

Very cool. Gather up the firewood & enjoy...

[@daddyjohn2131950]

GREAT JOB!

[@888johnmac]

nice .. nothing better than a decent sized fire - pit

[@murphymmc]

I'll pass along a tip for using a cut-off wheel in sheet metal that I got from a veteran metal fabricator. Cut going forward with the rotation of the wheel. You get a clear view of the line, when it does bind, it'll jump away from you ( a good thing) cuz you're not pulling against the blade. Blades with teeth, yep go into the rotation, friction cut wheels, follow the spin.

[@peter-radiantpipes2800]

Well, if I ever want one, I’ll be buying it now. Lol

[@michaelcanning2815]

Great idea & nice work!

[@TheCypherBlu]

Cool design!

[@TheeGamer]

I just watched James Gandolfini build a sweet fire pit. 'Sopranos' meets 'This Old House.' Who knew...?

[@TheArtofCraftsmanship]

Lol 😂

[@gabrielfernandez566]

Awesome bro👍

[@TheArtofCraftsmanship]

Thank you

[@ViperSharp]

Very Cool!

[@troyfletcher2619]

Great job on the screw head width! That's a cool hack and looks much better.

[@Donlewis4683]

Philadelphia checking in. Greatwork Dustin. I enjoy your craftsmanship.. perfect cure for my insomnia 😂👍🏼

[@allanbrown747]

I can't believe you drilled on the wrong side of the line! that's got to be the first time in history anybody has done something like that. LOL . Always heard if your not goofing up every now and then it means your goofing off! Great project, got me wanting to do one now. Love the way it turned out. YOU SIR, put the craftman in craftmanship well done!!!!!!!

[@TheArtofCraftsmanship]

Haha happens to us all. Thanks for the kind words.

[@carlhelmick8104]

Cool 😀👍

[@randomrob3889]

Thats awesome mate I've just started planning the back yard on my property

[@richc47us]

Great Job!

[@stephantremblay8718]

Awesome video and results. 👌👍 I will make one next summer

[@derFleder]

Thank you for this. Really beautiful and inspiring!

[@juantransportador]

Hello from Chihuahua Mexico, I don't know what you do for a living I know you are good for this and you put so many details, thank you for sharing this video and GOD BLESS YOU AND YOUR FAMILY.

[@lucasbarber3412]

What an awesome idea

[@jamesgreszczuk1670]

That's really awesome sir

[@SuperHyee]

Thanks ! Hurrah ! Hurrah !

[@davidmaldonado9936]

Great video and Great project !!!

[@heatherrose2462]

Brilliant!

[@TheArtofCraftsmanship]

Cheers Heather!

[@ferhadattamimi6085]

you are an artist

[@NigelMarston]

Lovely attention to detail and really calm delivery. I feel educated and chilled having watched this.

[@jamiesmith1343]

What a great project! Thank you for sharing your project

[@joycepillay2995]

Love it.

[@TheArtofCraftsmanship]

Thanks Joyce!

[@SULLYtheSojourner]

Great video! Great project! Great workshop! You do fine work and I appreciate you leaving in your mistakes which helps me not feel so dumb.

[@TheArtofCraftsmanship]

Thank Keith. I always like seeing mistakes in others vids as well. That the reality of being a maker. So much is edited down on YT, so might as well leave in some of the stuff that feels real.

[@flyinggyros9745]

Nice piece of metal workmanship. You might consider hinges on one side so you can add wood during the evening. Alan

[@RedBeardOps]

You're one step away from legendary sir! As always thinks for sharing your projects.... It spawns so many ideas!

[@TheArtofCraftsmanship]

Thanks brother. I appreciate the feedback from another great content creator!

[@RedBeardOps]

@@TheArtofCraftsmanship I'm flattered sir! Thank you!

[@TheBozzy74]

Great job, also love that there is no welding involved.

[@troythompson5699]

Thanks for sharing. Cool project! I’m envious of your shop! Keep up the good projects!

[@Waxxumus]

craftsmanship is a valuable and important skill set. It really opens the world up to you and allows you to achieve so much more.

[@IvoryS2012]

You did a great job. The put is wonderful. Thanks for the video.

[@1averageamerican]

Cool project. Smart drilling and bending the tabs before cutting them out. Nicely done.

[@anastasiahopkinson5676]

Great planning and execution! Well done and inspiring!

[@Lucashsh]

Nice work. Looks class

Wow absolutely inspired! That is awesome I like doing the projects and tinkering. Wow absolutely amazing thank you

[@zak8895]

I've just discovered your channel. Amazing work...my son who is 15 who never watches stuff like this decided to watch...now hooked on videos like this. I think he has plans for our garden now 🤣🤣. Thanks for the inspiration.

[@ianstradian]

That is an awesome example of use what you have and how to get stuff done. Beautiful fire pit sir!

[@stuartodell1709]

Your an Artist for sure. Nice touch with paint job.

[@hciii7419]

I like it. Not one weld, pretty cool.

[@winstonbrooks6254]

Way Kool, should last a long time, if repainted every now and then. Enjoy the hell outta it.

[@TheArtofCraftsmanship]

Thanks! We will Winston.

[@flukytuberr4193]

Dude…..BRILLIANT!!

[@TheArtofCraftsmanship]

Thank you!

[@TCKIDD]

Absolutely genius!

[@donnakawana]

So enjoyed learning an watching you make that fire pit .. nice!!

[@arronosborn9682]

When you walked into your shop, at first it looked like a10x10 shed, I thought WTF your workshop is the TARDIS 😂

[@nolanpeter2748]

Looked great nicely detailed.

[@Youplatecouk]

What a refreshing, honest video! Good stuff!

[@shaka1377]

Awesome

[@devinthomas4866]

Awesome fire pit!

[@Melicoy]

Thank you nice video

[@louie8202]

I WANT ONE !! That’s so awesome

[@winstonjones7519]

That is great! Would like to see the next one you build to see your thought on improving it. Beautifully done,

[@johnkristoff2341]

Meticulously done. Bravo!

[@frostygeek]

Looks awesome!

[@mikeyoung6347]

The electrical taped worked better than I thought. When masking, spray the edges with the same paint that is being covered by the masking, let it tack up a bit, and then spray alternate color. This will ensure no edge bleed through.

[@amys.8740]

Brilliant!

[@mikeyoung6347]

@@amys.8740 I never get tired of hearing ladies reply to me in a similar fashion

[@dantindell8143]

Fantastic video . Keep up the great work

[@philipknaubiv5423]

That's beautiful man!! Great work!

[@gmoutdoorsandmore7731]

Nice design and great work!

[@floydreiske7799]

very nice and love the step by step showing how it all goes..

[@PhilThompson-zq8zn]

I gotta say, I don't ever like or comment on anybody's videos but on this one I'll make an acception. This freaking guy is good! I love these kinda DIY projects like this. Alot of these guys that make these videos are often extremely inexperienced themselves & very poor instructors. Skilled instructors w mechanical inclination & hands on experience is honestly not something we see alot of on KZbin. Somebody should hire this freaking guy! I'm so tired of watching amateurs who are more interested in "grand standing" or pretending that there on TV, than they are actually showing you how to complete a DIY project!

[@halvtan]

Great build.

[@ChristopherSalisburySalz]

Love the build. You are an artist! Big box is most expensive place to buy metal. Go to a metal supply it will be more responsible.

[@ajshropshire9068]

Very impressive, lot of good ideas.

[@1blondied]

WOW that's beautiful X

[@TheArtofCraftsmanship]

Thanks Jax

[@frikkiesmit2695]

Its a work of art!!

[@kianavuu4981]

Beautiful!! I love how much thought u put into this and I definitely will be making one myself thank you for the great video

[@TheArtofCraftsmanship]

Thanks Vuu!

[@50FTY]

very nicely done,,,, Enjoy

[@chavisflowers1779]

amazing

[@robinalexander5772]

Really nice! Cheers from Tasmania

[@justmeagain7259]

Dude I’m actually envious of your Workshop! Lol and Free time haha love it thanks for sharing

[@TheArtofCraftsmanship]

Thanks for spending some of your free time with us!

[@moosescrapper5928]

beautiful piece! I want to try the same thing with an old heating oil tank.

[@danielmacdonald5779]

awesome job ! I especially liked that you did it all without a welder

[@louislarose6613]

A lot of work and it turned out Great !

[@sutonholloway6910]

That's good work

[@Jamie2Starr]

Dope!