SS Performer restoration questions

[ClubChapin]

I've got a "DH" SS Performer that I picked up today from CL.  It is the 827996, http://help.weber.com/schematics/browse.aspx?model=827996

This is really a great unit.  I'd like to keep it around for the rest of my days.

I've got a few basic questions about cleaning this up and will post them here.

Thanks in advance for any advice or assistance you offer. 

1  It is missing the quick release adapter for refilling the tank.  Can these be purchased anywhere?

2  The gas assist lighting feature doesn't work well.  The gas flows and the igniter sparks, but no flame come out the end of the tube.  Instead, the gas lights and burns within the tube.  I've poked through the tube with a long skewer and there doesn't seem to be an obstruction, not spiders or anything, just the igniter.  I haven't figured out how to remove the gas line so I can visually inspect the inside of the tube.  Has anyone seen this before and what was the solution?

3  Would the Leg Frame from a pre-2000 on-gas assist Performer be a direct replacement for the Castor Frame on my unit?  I'd prefer to not have the small castors.
http://www.ereplacementparts.com/leg-frame-p-1477473.html?osCsid=hmaqnuraku5utoilj4aeiac907

4  The tubing plugs are very loose.  Is there a trick to get them to stay in place?  Can I glue them?  Is there a reason to not make them permanent?


5  The Top Frame, and maybe others, has some rust on the surface of the inside.  Is this anything to be concerned about?  Is there a simple way to remove or stop it?


6  There is a little rust here and there.  Any tips on the best way to remove and preventing further corrosion?


7 The Bottom Rack has rust.  What is the best way to clean and prevent?


8  Are there recommendations for a paint for the black parts of the grill?


9  What is the best way to clean the Inside of the kettle?  I've heard oven cleaner is good for the inside.  Is there a preferred oven cleaner?


10  What is the best way to clean the outside of the kettle?  My kettle has some non-shiny areas.  Not sure if something is on the surface or if the shine is gone.  On the bottom half (not pictured), there are what appear to be some greasy sticky black drips.  What is the best way to clean these?


11  What is the best way to clean the Stainless and Aluminium?

12  What is the best way to clean the control panel?


13  Is there anything I can do to make it more resistant to rust and wear and tear?

Are there other things I should look for or do to this unit?  Are there recommended modifications?

This is a 2004 "DH" Performer.  What is the latest model year that would share kettle/venting/ash catcher with this unit?

Thanks again for any advice.

Pete

[1buckie]

I don't have perfomers, but i'll give you what I can generally.....

For #10, 0000 grade steel wool, a little soapy water, elbow grease, clear with water & dry

For #9 on the inside of the kettle, use this :


lite pressure will bow the blade a bit & most crud will scrape right off....then a little soapy water & maybe a green Scotchbrite, clear w/ water & dry.....

The outside & quite possibly #8, the frame, again, fine steel wool & dish soap w/ some scrubbing......

#11 might be Barkeeper's friend polish....a paste or dry powder mixed with water form.....some folks will have different ideas on the stainless & aluminum, so wait for a few suggestions on that....

#7 might be best served removing the rack, scraping down the rust & repainting with a rust inhibiting paint...Rustoleum, etc. is made for those situations.....

#2....one possible cause is the order in which it gets turned on & off.....shut off everything, open the main tank, wait a minute or so, open the secondary, try to lite....it needs to have a build up in the feed line or the safety mechanism perceives a leak  & just bleeds out a little bit of gas instead of the normal flow.....

#4, a small dab of silicone caulk will most likely hold them in & you'll still be able to pop them out if need be later.....

Not really sure on the inside of the tube frame, but something might be good for the long haul....

Check into these complete overhauls ~~>

http://weberkettleclub.com/forums/weber-kettles-accessories/just-scored-a-free-red-ss-performer/

http://weberkettleclub.com/forums/weber-kettles-accessories/working-on-ss-performers-gummi-bear-build-log-pic-heavy/

Hope that helps some....others know more about Performer specifics & will chime in.............

[Jason]

Elbow Grease!   

I just went through this, very recently, and came up with my plan by reading a bunch of posts on this forum. This is how I handled some of the questions you have.

First, I took the grill completely apart.

My main tools, for the inside and outside of the bowl and lid, were a razor blade, 0000 steel wool, a Scotch Brite pad and dish detergent.

For the rust on the cart, I used a Dremel tool to grind out the rust. After I removed all of the rust, I washed the parts to get any dust, etc. off and used a small can of gloss black Rustoleum, and a brush, to paint the exposed metal. Looks good to me and is barely noticable.

Before putting it all back together, I polished all of the painted surfaces with rubbing compound, and finally a coat of car wax.

It took some effort, but was well worth the time! 

[pbe gummi bear]

1- I think those quick connects are available at RV/camping stores, or welding/propane supply stores.

2- Are you sure there isn't anything in the tube? In general cobwebs don't come out with waterpressure. You might not even see them if they are past the venturi and you don't shine a flashlight through the other end. You'll need to dislodge cobwebs with a wire or something. If not, it sounds like a bum regulator or a semiclogged orifice. I would try to troubleshoot and fix this as it kinda sounds like a hazard.

3- I'm not sure what you are trying to do here. Is your frame a non-gas assist with no castors? You can always chop it and add your own wheels. It would be alot cheaper than a brand new legframe set, and custom . IMO the oem casters are lame and wouldn't go through the trouble to install them. I installed 5" urethan casters and 10" inflatable wheels so not my ss will roll away on any incline if I don't set the brake. It was important to me that mine rolled without have to lift one side as my unit is heavy. I have the bin packed with accessories, an 11lb propane tank, and cast iron grates.

4- Bend each side out with pliers to flare out the insert portion. Bend them farrrr- They are just plastic. This will created more tension to keep them in the frame. You can also run to the hardware store and purchase 1 1/4 square tube ends. Last time I checked they were $1.50/each but ymmv

5/6/7/8- I wouldn't really worry about it too much. You can use a rust converter or wire wheel and paint to curb the exterior rust. I think @Harbormaster welded a donor piece on and @AZ_MIKEY (maybe?) fabbed their own piece to weld in. If it were me, I'd wire brush the rust as best as possible and spray paint it. Touch it up once or twice a year as needed- or less if you live in CA. For the inner tube you can try pushing some scotch brite or steel wool to remove some of the surface rust and shoot some spray paint in. I used normal black gloss paint for the frame after prepping the surface with 320 grit sandpaper.

9 Razor, soap and water is best.

10  0000 steel wool, sponge, and soap water cleans the exterior quite well. If you have baked on grease you can use a razor to scrape it off or the rough side of a sponge.

11 Depends on what you mean by clean. A polish like mothers mag polish knorrostol, flitz, etc. will remove oxidation but won't remove pitting. For removing pitting, scratches or corrosion you'll need to go with an abrasive. The milder the better.

12  0000 steel wool and soapy water. You won't scratch the text off.

13  The biggest thing you can do is keep it covered from the elements. You'll need the #8071 cover and not the current one. There's actually one on amazon for $47 which is a decent price: http://www.amazon.com/Weber-8701-Performer-Discontinued-Manufacturer/dp/B00004RBE7

14- A 2004 should have the clip-in style ashcatcher and not the ash catcher bar. Check these threads to see which one you have:

Old Style Ash catcher bar replacements by Zavod44 and pbe gummi bear http://weberkettleclub.com/forums/weber-kettles-accessories/okay-who-is-really-interested-one-one-of-these/

DIY 7409 Ash Catcher Bar by pbe gummi bear: http://weberkettleclub.com/forums/weber-kettles-accessories/diy-old-style-one-touch-gold-ash-catcher-bar/

http://weberkettleclub.com/blog/2014/03/03/converting-a-weber-ots-to-otg/

The technical reference library has alot of perfomer information: http://weberkettleclub.com/forums/weber-kettles-accessories/weber-kettle-technical-reference-library/ For performers these are the best threads:

Brickout- Got a SS performer for free http://weberkettleclub.com/forums/weber-kettles-accessories/just-scored-a-free-red-ss-performer/
mikeinctown: http://weberkettleclub.com/forums/weber-kettles-accessories/cheap-find-but-need-help-with-parts/
mike.stavlund: http://weberkettleclub.com/forums/weber-kettles-accessories/the-reward-at-the-end-of-the-rainbow/
pbe gummi bear: http://weberkettleclub.com/forums/weber-kettles-accessories/working-on-ss-performers-gummi-bear-build-log-pic-heavy/
Star nuts and support tube info: http://weberkettleclub.com/forums/weber-kettles-accessories/performer-frame-question/ (the short version, go to a friendly bike shop.)

Good luck, welcome to the performer club. 

[Heyjude]

I might add this.
The insides of the tubes will get rusty.. If you really want to treat it, maybe pour some paint with a rust inhibitor inside and swirl it around.  Should slow the rust down form the inside out.

Sand the outside and paint with a good quality paint. I like a nice gloss black, but really, its up to you.
Change any hardware to stainless steel.

Those caps are 1" plastic tube caps. Square.. They probably are just dried out. Don't glue them.. Moisture will get in, it needs to get out..

Performers rule.. Enjoy!

[Taz]

Congrats on the score and thanks for posting all the questions and detailed pics.  I got a similar one a couple of weeks ago.  Mine seems to be in better shape than yours, but I have some similar issues I may want/need to address. 

And thanks to all for providing the answers and links!

[AZ_MIKEY]

Here are some pics of how I solved my bottom cross tube with star nut.



Cut out a square piece that fit inside the tube. Drilled a hole in the center of it bigger than the bolts. Welded a nut to one side of square piece centered over the drilled hole. The. Slid the square piece down inside the tube about an 1/8th of an inch and welded it in. It really makes the cross tubes very sturdy.

Then if you have the skills to do that you can go crazy and build yourself an add on table like this one.


Sent from my SM-N900V using Tapatalk

[Winz]

Cut out a square piece that fit inside the tube. Drilled a hole in the center of it bigger than the bolts. Welded a nut to one side of square piece centered over the drilled hole. The. Slid the square piece down inside the tube about an 1/8th of an inch and welded it in. It really makes the cross tubes very sturdy.

Even better than OEM - that is how it should be done at the factory.  Nice repair!

Winz

[Easy]

Por-15 can be ordered from Amazon and it will stop all rust from froming . You can get a small kit with a degreaser and cleaner and it will do this grill all your black surfaces.
Others have given good points of the cleaning other repairs .

[ClubChapin]

Thanks all for the great replies.  I think the next weekend or two will be cleaning this thing up.  This week is about using it.  What a joy.

I did get the gas assist to work.  The front of the brass nozzle was gummed up.  Now sure how that happened.  At any rate, scrapped it off and poked it out with a pin and it both lights really well and the flame is much better.  I'm using it with a Weber chimney on it.  I flipped the bottom cone grate over in the chimney so that it goes closer to the flame.  Works like a champ.

I do have one other question, regarding the charcoal bucket:
It doesn't seem to fit very well.  It stays in ok.  I have a medium size ice scoop that I tried to use.  As I applied a little downward pressure it just pushed through.  Is there a way to beef this up?  How do you extract coal from it, pick up with hands?  It would be nice to use my ice scoop.  Maybe a little angle iron along the sides would create a lip that would prevent this?

At any rate, I am really enjoying this grill.  Fun to cook on and I like the stainless and the gas assist.

I know I am preaching to the choir, but this is a fantastic grill.  (I'm sure the current model is nice too, but I prefer the differences on the older unit.)

Pete