Turkey pan configuration

[John Fitzpatrick]

I'm laying out a turkey pan and have seen several styles used on the sides. I'm not sure what would work best and I'd appreciate some recommendations. Would it be better to have the sides stepped (right) or come directly out (left), and should the back panel be stepped to clear the exhaust in either case? Second, how is the pan usually configured around the distributor? If possible, I'd like to create a cold air plenum as well as a heat shield.
Thanks

 

[Chris Duncan]

The single bend straight side would be easier to build, less bends, easier to fit the corners.

There's usually just a hole cut for the distributor, for a easy to seal cold air box I'm running distributorless.