Looking for some reviews here.
Do you prefer new lid 2015 model with heat shield or the decades old standard welded handle lid design
I like the old design. But then again, in the music thread, I was accused of being a fossil.
Quote from: Erich on June 02, 2015, 06:03:39 PM
I like the old design. But then again, in the music thread, I was accused of being a fossil.
Right there with ya man......music & old handles, even if they chip around the connections sometimes....
Old. The new one you have to worry about tightening the handle too much and scratching or chipping the porcelain. Mine has come loose and needed retightening. I don't mind the looks of the heat shield.
But the placement of the vent is certainly annoying. Cooking indirect and want the vent over the food? Therms over the fire. Cooking direct? Opposite problem.
Annnnd the lid hook issue. I much prefered the hook being parallel to the handle rather than perpendicular.
Quote from: Saugust on June 02, 2015, 06:52:44 PM
Old. The new one you have to worry about tightening the handle too much and scratching or chipping the porcelain. Mine has come loose and needed retightening. I don't mind the looks of the heat shield.
But the placement of the vent and s certainly annoying. Cooking indirect and want the vent over the food? Therms over the fire. Cooking direct? Opposite problem.
Annnnd the lid hook issue. I much prefered the hook being parallel to the handle rather than perpendicular.
^^^^^ This one single post needs to be sent to Weber.......many times until they understand the folly of this change......
a lot of things are really good about the new models.....a few things are not....... :o
I like the heat shield on my master touch. Much easier on my hands compared to my OTG. I don't mind bolt on handles either. I hated the rust that would always form around the welds on the old lids. But I agree that there needs to be a better bolt/washer mechanism to attach the new handle to the lid. I was very careful about how tight I screwed on the handle, because I didn't want to scratch the lid, but I can already feel it start to loosen.
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Obviously the vent and therefore the hook were already oriented this way on 18s and it doesn't bother me at all. But the lid is so much bigger on the 22s that you have reach too far down, for me anyway, to get the hook to the bowl.
On top of this, the lid feels much more secure in my hands when hanging on the hook with the old orientation. I think of it like pouring a pitcher of beer. Can you imagine trying to hit your mark if the handle was turned the other way?
Yeah, the new lid lay out is all wrong. Hope they get it right next year.
I don't like the new bolt-on handle aethetics but the bolt on/off factor is certainly convenient. The welded handle is certainly a classic but lets be honest, the weld/joint area cracks anyway so both will look the same after a while. Attaching fireplace handles would be a good interim for maintaining the old style look and bolt on convenience.
Quote from: minnesotaman82 on June 02, 2015, 07:28:41 PM
I like the heat shield on my master touch. Much easier on my hands compared to my OTG. I don't mind bolt on handles either. I hated the rust that would always form around the welds on the old lids. But I agree that there needs to be a better bolt/washer mechanism to attach the new handle to the lid. I was very careful about how tight I screwed on the handle, because I didn't want to scratch the lid, but I can already feel it start to loosen.
locknut or wave washer may help?
Try the washer with outside teeth...that provides same fastener help as locknut withoutbhavung tobtorque down lock washer which sounds like a concern with porcelain or ss nut with built in teeth/grips..
Some genius at Weber probably thought it looked better having the lid damper and thermometer on opposite sides of the lid. That person has never used a Weber charcoal grill. It's a regrettable blunder in my opinion, for the reasons mentioned above.
Out w/ the new; the old is in.
I didn't see the need for the change in the first place. The therm/vent placement adds to the fiasco.
Ive seen em innthe stores and for some reason...doesnt look great in person.....looks better online images.
It may be on of those design changes that "grows on you"...?
Forget about looks. It's the functionality that stinks. Use one and you'll see what I mean.
Quote from: Saugust on June 03, 2015, 11:11:38 AM
Forget about looks. It's the functionality that stinks. Use one and you'll see what I mean.
I have a hard time remembering how 18's work & I have 7 or 8 of them......not likely I'll be buying new.... :o
Quote from: toolhead on June 03, 2015, 11:00:08 AM
It may be on of those design changes that "grows on you"...?
Personally, won't like it or use it for the same general reason I don't use temp gauge things with wires running all over.....I'm kinda klutzy & I tend to get tangled up in that kind of stuff....either me or the kettle (or something near) goes over.....
Using something that's become second nature over 30+ years, I can go down the line of 8 cookers & pop lids for a sec & know all of what's going on.....to stop......and.......think.......each.......time........before........removing & replacing, it would be just too much interference to the flow............
old rocks
Quote from: 1buckie on June 02, 2015, 07:01:39 PM
Quote from: Saugust on June 02, 2015, 06:52:44 PM
Old. The new one you have to worry about tightening the handle too much and scratching or chipping the porcelain. Mine has come loose and needed retightening. I don't mind the looks of the heat shield.
But the placement of the vent and s certainly annoying. Cooking indirect and want the vent over the food? Therms over the fire. Cooking direct? Opposite problem.
Annnnd the lid hook issue. I much prefered the hook being parallel to the handle rather than perpendicular.
^^^^^ This one single post needs to be sent to Weber.......many times until they understand the folly of this change......
a lot of things are really good about the new models.....a few things are not....... :o
I get that, but orienting the handle this way guarantees that neither the vent nor the therm get stuck in the lid bale.
I hate that metal taco shell. Give me the old classic Weber Kettle look and feel. "Thermo, thermo, I don't need no stink'n Thermo on my lid ...".
Quote from: addicted-to-smoke on June 03, 2015, 08:30:37 AM
Some genius at Weber probably thought it looked better having the lid damper and thermometer on opposite sides of the lid. That person has never used a Weber charcoal grill. It's a regrettable blunder in my opinion, for the reasons mentioned above.
& moving the lid hook... I can
deal w/ on my 18 OTS but don't want to buy any of these features "new"
Quote from: pbe gummi bear on June 03, 2015, 09:50:37 PM
Quote from: 1buckie on June 02, 2015, 07:01:39 PM
Quote from: Saugust on June 02, 2015, 06:52:44 PM
Old. The new one you have to worry about tightening the handle too much and scratching or chipping the porcelain. Mine has come loose and needed retightening. I don't mind the looks of the heat shield.
But the placement of the vent and s certainly annoying. Cooking indirect and want the vent over the food? Therms over the fire. Cooking direct? Opposite problem.
Annnnd the lid hook issue. I much prefered the hook being parallel to the handle rather than perpendicular.
^^^^^ This one single post needs to be sent to Weber.......many times until they understand the folly of this change......
a lot of things are really good about the new models.....a few things are not....... :o
I get that, but orienting the handle this way guarantees that neither the vent nor the therm get stuck in the lid bale.
Couldn't they just leave the vent where it was?
I can tell it was a "balanced aesthetic thing" .......decision made by design folks, not the testing dept>
Aside from the potential performance letdown, I'm almost not believing they really moved the Original Kettle's lid hook 90 degrees from the handle orientation? Holding the lid vertically, as when hooking onto the side of the bowl, damn near demands a vertical handle. If it's horizontal you'd need to grasp the end of the lid, wouldn't you, to balance?
Hell, the lid damper always served as a visual for knowing how close you were with the hook you couldn't see. On a 22, just "above" the damper and on an older 26, just "below" it.
Quote from: pbe gummi bear on June 03, 2015, 09:50:37 PM
... orienting the [2015] handle this way guarantees that neither the vent nor the therm get stuck in the lid bale.
I can see why that would be fine for MasterTouch and Performer, but didn't realize it was an issue in the first place. I think Weber missed the boat by not simply putting lid damper and thermometer on the same end of the lid, inline with the handle. (Meaning, lid damper and thermometer still offset from each other but on the same end of the lid, "ahead" of the handle pointing to them,)
Doing that would reinforce both exhaust and temp readings work better on the indirect side because oh-by-the-way you'll probably be wanting to cook indirect and hey, what's all this "indirect" about ... I'm a firm believer in educating the customer. Makes them insanely loyal and satisfied and that's dollars to stockholders. I'm getting' agitated here. :)
I'm almost thinking that the 2015 lids would have to sit "diagonally" to get a somewhat better temp gauge reading while still having the vent near/over the food? Haven't cooked on the new style kettles yet. Is the lid hook still under the vent? Seems like that would be awkward to hang a OTS lid with the handle turned away from the vent, like the really old (pre 1963) kettles would have been..
Awkward indeed. And yes, the hook's still under the vent.
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Looks like 2014 lids just went up in value..
Yup. Old all the way. Orientation is all wrong on the new ones.
Those bolt on handles and heat shield are a straight up rip off of Happy Cooker and I'm dam pissed about it !
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Ya know, there's a workable solution to this for 2015 lids.
1) remove handle
2) plug holes with SS bolt/nut
3) drill correct set of new holes
But I'm still not clear on if the kid hook moved for the regular model?
Quote from: addicted-to-smoke on June 06, 2015, 10:17:27 AM
But I'm still not clear on if the kid hook moved for the regular model?
The lid hook didn't move per se. The vent moved. Meaning that the lid hook, while still under the vent, is now in in a different orientation to the handle. I hope that made sense.