Brownie Restore

[crowderjd]

So, back in September, a brownie came up on CL in St. Louis for $20 about two miles from my parents.  My sister and dad picked it up.  The ad made it look pretty good, but once they got it home, we quickly realized it was ROUGH.  Anyway, I arrived in STL from Vegas last night, and I got a chance to take a look at the grill today. It's an H code (1986).  As I mentioned on another post, the One Touch system had two sweeps broken, and was welded solidly into place.  The leg sockets were loose, one leg was FILLED with dirt, and the legs would not come out.  After a little over two hours of work, I'll show you where I'm at right now.

Pics from this summer:

The Craigslist ad:



Pic my sister sent me once she picked it up:



Other pic she sent:



So today, here is what I saw:

First off, my dad is an AWESOME trim carpenter and of course made homemade handles for me sometime this fall.  I'll show some close up pics later.  He just took off the old broken handle, made a sketch, then made and varnished all new handles.  They are very nice, and make this old grill that much more special. 



(It was raining when I brought it from my dad's shed into the basement.)

Legs



Triangle



Interior of grill before clean-up.  Notice only one sweep still in tact.



After the razor scraper and steel wool:



Legs cleaned and polished:



My dad and I finally used a hacksaw to cut off the handle of the old One Touch system...you can see what the bottom looks like here.  I'm curious as to what others have done to shore up the bottom of their kettles. 



And with all that said, here's where we are right now...



I also cleaned up the triangle, but I didn't get a pic.  I have to say, I just cannot get the knack of getting those to a shiny new state. 

The vent:



NOW...the next step is getting this back to Las Vegas.  I'm going to pack it in TWO boxes, and try taking it as free checked baggage on Southwest.  By my measurements, It will just work.  We will see how that all works, and I'll keep you all updated.  Happy Thanksgiving!

[weldboy]

Great write up! You did a great job cleaning it up, looks very nice.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Bob BQ]

Welcome home! How long are you in town for? Good job on the clean up... coming along quite nicely! Those handles are very nice. What type of wood did he use?  Can't wait to hear how the return trip goes.

[crowderjd]

We are in STL til Sunday.  Had a great day so far.  Stocked up on Schlafly Pumpkin Ale  (for me) and Fitz's Root beer (the kids) for tomorrow. 

[JDD]

Looking good!

[WNC]

Nice work on the restore!

As for the bottom, it does look pretty rough, I'd just clean it up with that steel wool to get the rust off, and then wipe some bacon grease on all the exposed steel to keep it from rusting more. Replace the the one touch system and call it done.

I also have a rough time with the triangles. They don't seem to clean up as easily as the vents. I've had a good amount of success with a wire brush attached to my drill, and then going back over it with steel wool. But I can never getting them looking perfect again.The good news is they photograph better then they look.

One other thing, use the finest grade of steel wool for your top vent to prevent scratches. It might be necessary to use a rougher grit to get rid of serious built up grease, but then go over it with the finer grit to remove the scratches. As you clean it try to keep all your strokes going in the same direction. It might take a couple of times going over it, but you'll be able to get a near mirror shine.

Again, nice job! RRR

[GregS]

keep up the good work! 

[Bob BQ]

NOW...the next step is getting this back to Las Vegas.  I'm going to pack it in TWO boxes, and try taking it as free checked baggage on Southwest.  By my measurements, It will just work.  We will see how that all works, and I'll keep you all updated.  Happy Thanksgiving!

@crowderjd , How'd it go? Were you able to travel with the kettle?

[crowderjd]

@Bob BQ I just posted about it tonight!