I know, cheesy title. But I really enjoyed this one. I recently got my hands on a C-Code (1981) Smokey Joe off eBay. Many of you may have seen it. It was up for sale for about a month with the price lowering gradually each time. It went from $75 including shipping to an eventual $49. After not selling after a couple more weeks I made the seller an offer which he was nice enough to accept.
This is what it looked like when I received it. As you can see from the pics, it needed a little help but it definitely had potential.
(http://i876.photobucket.com/albums/ab326/mcgolden67/Front_zps6c352da1.jpg) (http://s876.photobucket.com/user/mcgolden67/media/Front_zps6c352da1.jpg.html)
(http://i876.photobucket.com/albums/ab326/mcgolden67/Legs2_zpsbe1d52e0.jpg) (http://s876.photobucket.com/user/mcgolden67/media/Legs2_zpsbe1d52e0.jpg.html)
(http://i876.photobucket.com/albums/ab326/mcgolden67/HandleBig_zpsd8310a30.jpg) (http://s876.photobucket.com/user/mcgolden67/media/HandleBig_zpsd8310a30.jpg.html)
(http://i876.photobucket.com/albums/ab326/mcgolden67/CCodeVent_zpse552b07a.jpg) (http://s876.photobucket.com/user/mcgolden67/media/CCodeVent_zpse552b07a.jpg.html)
(http://i876.photobucket.com/albums/ab326/mcgolden67/Inside_zps53d1fc11.jpg) (http://s876.photobucket.com/user/mcgolden67/media/Inside_zps53d1fc11.jpg.html)
(http://i876.photobucket.com/albums/ab326/mcgolden67/379B5A9D-9C36-4E7D-80D5-E231AA238023_zpspjusprti.jpg) (http://s876.photobucket.com/user/mcgolden67/media/379B5A9D-9C36-4E7D-80D5-E231AA238023_zpspjusprti.jpg.html)
So I spent quite a bit of time cleaning it up. Was able to get the legs off and soaked in EvapoRust. This stuff is amazing. After soaking it in a diluted mixture (diluted just so I had enough to fully submerge) for a day, all the rust was completely gone. Just rinsed and wiped. Unreal!
I also soaked the lid and bowl in warm soapy water and then scraped with razor blade and buffed with 0000 steel wool. Then I used some tung oil on the previously dry handle and presto, it looked fantastic. It totally breathed life into the old handle and darkened the logo like I was hoping. Before fixing up the handle I put one of Brian's wood handles on but then when I saw how nice the old handle restored, I put it back on.
So here's a bunch of pictures of the finished product.
(http://i876.photobucket.com/albums/ab326/mcgolden67/FAAC57BD-F6A5-4A73-952D-015B744F52A3_zpskqwsqmlh.jpg) (http://s876.photobucket.com/user/mcgolden67/media/FAAC57BD-F6A5-4A73-952D-015B744F52A3_zpskqwsqmlh.jpg.html)
(http://i876.photobucket.com/albums/ab326/mcgolden67/A14E2039-89E5-4404-A404-FD928AB51699_zpsowlhsz7w.jpg) (http://s876.photobucket.com/user/mcgolden67/media/A14E2039-89E5-4404-A404-FD928AB51699_zpsowlhsz7w.jpg.html)
(http://i876.photobucket.com/albums/ab326/mcgolden67/7C9E119C-C277-472F-8F97-6871163583B0_zpsmeax41gy.jpg) (http://s876.photobucket.com/user/mcgolden67/media/7C9E119C-C277-472F-8F97-6871163583B0_zpsmeax41gy.jpg.html)
(http://i876.photobucket.com/albums/ab326/mcgolden67/259ef09b-0e82-488f-9280-d6008aeb76c5_zps3c376c7f.jpg) (http://s876.photobucket.com/user/mcgolden67/media/259ef09b-0e82-488f-9280-d6008aeb76c5_zps3c376c7f.jpg.html)
(http://i876.photobucket.com/albums/ab326/mcgolden67/C1AD965F-1739-4A96-88EB-EFDD86CB835D_zpsfzemzm6b.jpg) (http://s876.photobucket.com/user/mcgolden67/media/C1AD965F-1739-4A96-88EB-EFDD86CB835D_zpsfzemzm6b.jpg.html)
(http://i876.photobucket.com/albums/ab326/mcgolden67/2A2B8D2E-7AFF-4121-8619-C79748809956_zps1pyfpzph.jpg) (http://s876.photobucket.com/user/mcgolden67/media/2A2B8D2E-7AFF-4121-8619-C79748809956_zps1pyfpzph.jpg.html)
(http://i876.photobucket.com/albums/ab326/mcgolden67/F3692ABE-48B2-4F4E-A546-6A005676F4DC_zpskwrc7nfz.jpg) (http://s876.photobucket.com/user/mcgolden67/media/F3692ABE-48B2-4F4E-A546-6A005676F4DC_zpskwrc7nfz.jpg.html)
(http://i876.photobucket.com/albums/ab326/mcgolden67/E5F71441-232B-48EE-B1B2-629F6C72B64E_zps6vneofay.jpg) (http://s876.photobucket.com/user/mcgolden67/media/E5F71441-232B-48EE-B1B2-629F6C72B64E_zps6vneofay.jpg.html)
(http://i876.photobucket.com/albums/ab326/mcgolden67/CABF6395-12B9-4033-A1FF-6CCF4107AF62_zps9eltrh8q.jpg) (http://s876.photobucket.com/user/mcgolden67/media/CABF6395-12B9-4033-A1FF-6CCF4107AF62_zps9eltrh8q.jpg.html)
Quite a bit of effort for a little Smokey Joe but well worth it.
Turned out nicely! Congratulations!
That is a kettle to be proud of! Excellent resto, it looks new.
Great job.
Winz
Thanks guys. It rally was fun to do. I am so amazed by how well the Weber porcelain holds up over time.
Looks great! I'd been eyeballing that listing for over a month. Glad it went to someone who is giving it the proper Respect it deserves... Congratulations!
Fantastic job! Time to break down and try the evaporust - those legs came out really nice!! As did the handle 8)
Great job. It looks minty fresh now. I've always thought those SJ's looked super classy.
Great score and awesome cleanup. She looks like new.
Nice score and great job on the restore!
very nice job on the resto! it's worth the time and effort to save these guys!
i've had great luck with evapo as well. grab a can of "nevr dull" if you see it, that works wonders too.