Hi all,
I recently joined here because I picked up this gas grill this past weekend for 50 bucks. From 10 feet it looked like a heck of a deal, but as I and the previous owner lifted it into the back of my truck I could feel the bottom crumbing in my hand. The previous owner smiled and said “Oh yeah, it has a little rust in the bottom
”
I went on Weber’s site and researched the model and got a schematic of the parts. I dated this unit to 2011.It’s not that old....but has a serious rot problem. I need to replace the bottom panel and rear panel. The side panels which are welded to the square tube frame are structurally sound. When I looked for the replacement panels,I found the best price I could find was $235 for the pair. So much for my great deal
. And the real downside of replacing those panels is that it is the same crappy steel that rusted out in the first place.
Planned obsolescence?
That certainly was not the case with Weber Kettles. I have one now that been sitting in my backyard for 22 years and is still going strong.
So, my solution. I have a friend that fabricates out of stainless steel. I took him the two panels and he said he could duplicate from Stainless steel. He hasn’t given me a price yet, but at least this should help solve the longevity issue.
I’ve also disassembled most of the unit and will need to replace the burners, flavorizer bars, heat deflectors and the grates. Based on my research here, i’ve Reached out to RCPlanebuyer to supply all the internals.
What is the consensus on aftermarket burners vs Weber, performance wise?
Wow, I didn’t mean to write a short essay
. While I’m waiting on these parts i’ll Get to cleaning, pressure washing and painting. I’ve taken a lot of pics which I’ll upload when I figure out how.
Looking forward to bringing back to good shape......spring is just around the corner.