I use to lay jerky flat on the racks, but now hang. I think the drying is more even, and I can get more in that way.
I got some 14 in stainless steel skewers from Amazon (get the ones with a twist towards one end, they are easier to pick up). I can get 7# of strips on one rack in my #3. And if I needed to, could do a second rack. The pic shows some laying on rack, those were from a small test batch.