OT: Grills
- Thread starter Myrtleknight
- Start date
I 1000% disagree with the posters above who say food on grill X tastes much better than food on grill Y (more flavorful, more juicy, etc.).
It's never the grill, it's the griller. You just have to know your grill, and food quality/prep matters most.
Some brands or models may last longer, have useful attachments or more food capacity, but if you know what you are doing you can cook delicious food on an inverted car wheel or wheelbarrow filled with pathmark brand charcoal.
It's never the grill, it's the griller. You just have to know your grill, and food quality/prep matters most.
Some brands or models may last longer, have useful attachments or more food capacity, but if you know what you are doing you can cook delicious food on an inverted car wheel or wheelbarrow filled with pathmark brand charcoal.
Just bought a Weber Genesis II E-325 at Ace in the Memorial Day Sale - should be delivered next week. My old Weber from Fortunoff only made it 22 years! The back burner control valve froze and leaked out a whole tank of propane. I'd repair it, but the frame is rusting out at this point so it's not worth it. Been using my tailgate grill (the original Weber Q bought Xmas 2004) for grilling, but with the summer coming up need more grill space. Also with the purchase got a new full tank free, and they took my old tank which the propane places refused to fill because it was past its "expiration date".
My friend recently purchased a Pit Barrel Smoker for about $350. It's very simple to use and has no moving parts that can break or malfunction. Like you, my friend also purchased the Genesis II which he uses for convenience and quick sears. I also have the Genesis and I will most likely purchase the Pit Barrel Smoker.
Yeah, it’s gonna be next to impossible to find. Kalamazoo I believe is another American manufacturer but will set you back thousands too. Rumor is the Weber top of the range Summit line is USA-manufactured, but not sure. Us Yanks don’t get out of bed for less than 3 grand apparently. I know it’s more complicated than that, but just pissed about the whole situation.
the spirit was always their lower end grill, so one would expect problems sooner than the other
models...
this annoys me..... I have had a weber grill for 25 years of so, still works great except for maybe having to use a match to start sometimes, the
electric igniter hit and miss now..
and with that, I was planning on buying the
genesis when this one is finished...
whenever there were grill threads, poster after poster would sing the weber grill praises....
and they have to go and ruin it, to maximize profit, I guess...
I have one of these. An entry-level Kamado-style. I've just done some of the basics (burgers, dogs, steaks, fish), haven't tried smoking with it yet (need some extra accessories that I haven't yet acquired). It's a fun grill though. Heats up really hot really quickly, holds the heat a long time, easiest grill to clean that I've ever owned.
https://www.chargriller.com/products/akorn-20-kamado-sapphire
https://www.chargriller.com/products/akorn-20-kamado-sapphire
The one we had cost $600 it's the Weber E-330. So your telling me they can't make a grill for $600 bucks that lasts more than 5 yrs.? I could have bought 3 Charbroils for that price. And probably would have just been breaking out the second one a year ago. It goes down as one of the biggest piece of sh*t purchases I've made in my life. And before this last one I was a big on it's either a Weber or it's crap.
Agreed. So annoying. It’s all the companies doing this though. I have a 9-y-o Genesis and a 16-y-o kettle, both of which work flawlessly. The good thing though is it’s easy to get replacement repair parts so maybe your grill will last past its silver anniversary to its golden anniversary.
I’ve had a Weber (natural gas) that lasted 21 years. I grilled all year long, including in blizzards. I replaced the ignition button, burners (twice), flavorizer bars (about 4 times). I purchased a new Weber genesis but The wind blew it over. The only damage occurred to the front panel bracket and the control knobs. I easily repaired it with replacement parts for $55. I have since secured my grill to my deck with a bungee cord.
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Seems awfully expensive for what is essential a steel drum and 2 pieces rebar lol...
It’s American made by a Vet owned company. It’s comparable in price to the Weber Smokey Mountain Cooker. Reviews are mostly excellent.
I am a BGE fan all the way. I’ve had my Egg for 18 years and only had to replace the gasket 2x. I will say first that I am a traditionalist. I like the art and science with the Egg. I have a buddy who is an engineer and his calculations and smoking notebook from the Egg are borderline insane. Takes a little effort vs Traeger but kind of like real fireplace vs gas. Some like one over the other. BGE taste I think is unmatched. Ability to cook at high heats like 700 plus for steaks vs low slow smoking at 225 is great. A steak on the BGE is ummatched. The high heat sear makes a dry aged steak better than most restaurant experiences. Just finished a 14 hr pork shoulder yesterday with oak and apple wood and it was amazing. Followed up with burgers. Something about the egg just gives a taste to meat that is unlike any other grill.
Good luck with your decision will be a fun new adventure no matter what you end up with
Good luck with your decision will be a fun new adventure no matter what you end up with
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I have a Weber Genesis EP330 with a sear station (4th burner). When I heat up the grill with all 4 burners on full blast it gets to 700 degrees and above overall but even hotter over the sear station. Family and friends all say mine are the best steaks they have ever had. It gets so hot it is not for the faint of heart. It has a heat flux of around 95. Eight years old and still looks and performs amazing.
I had it and it's a good grill. My only complaint was that the original and replacement cast iron grate rusted despite my efforts to oil and season it.
My original Weber Genesis is still going strong with almost no issues for 24 years. I used it at home for 15 years before moving it to the shore house to replace the series of “disposable” brands that never lasted more than 3-4 years (with major rebuilds). The shore is a tough environment.
When I moved the original Weber to LBI, I replaced it with a top of the line Charbroil stainless steel model (25 year Service Anniversary gift from my employer). I sold that piece of crap to a neighbor for $25 after 3 years (it was a $650 Charbroil!!!). Fortunately it was a gift that I didn’t pay for.
So for home I now have a new 4-burner Weber Genesis (Chinese made?). So I’ll see if it can last 20+ years like my first Weber. I’m in year 6 now with zero issues and a lot of use. I also bought my son a 2 burner Genesis Spirit for his First townhome 3 years ago... fingers crossed.
When I moved the original Weber to LBI, I replaced it with a top of the line Charbroil stainless steel model (25 year Service Anniversary gift from my employer). I sold that piece of crap to a neighbor for $25 after 3 years (it was a $650 Charbroil!!!). Fortunately it was a gift that I didn’t pay for.
So for home I now have a new 4-burner Weber Genesis (Chinese made?). So I’ll see if it can last 20+ years like my first Weber. I’m in year 6 now with zero issues and a lot of use. I also bought my son a 2 burner Genesis Spirit for his First townhome 3 years ago... fingers crossed.
I knew a guy in prison that used to make a mean grilled cheese off the radiators.
I've had a Saffire Grill (https://saffiregrills.com/) Kamado style grill for about 3 years now. It is fantastic. Can do everything from searing steaks at 600 degrees to smoking pork butts low and slow at 225 for 12 hours. Saffire is a family owned company.
Wife and kids got me an early fathers day gift, a Pit Boss pellet grill. Starting off slow and grilling 2 bacon wrapped tenderloins. They should be ready in 20 min
I inherited my father's Lazy-Man Country Club 4 burner about 22 years ago. The grill itself is probably about 35 years old. Once every decade or so I buy a refurb kit from Lazy-Man for about $200 and it's as good as new. All stainless steel. Runs on propane. My kid will have it in his yard one day. My dad used to deliver the steel to the fabrication yard in Belvidere and became very friendly with the guys on site. My grill is most likely a factory reject he got *** cheap through his connections because there is no way he'd have paid full price for it. Makes no difference. It is eternal.
My charcoal rig is a run of the mill Weber 22" Kettle. The reason I bought a Weber is the ease and availability of replacement parts. Maybe spent $120 on the original investment and another $200 or so on replacement parts and improvements in the 7 or 8 years I've owned it. Best thing I ever did was get a rotisserie ring and motor.
I'm intrigued by the Kamados and BGEs but I'm really, really skilled on the instruments I have and just can't justify the cost to myself and most certainly not my boss. LOL!
My charcoal rig is a run of the mill Weber 22" Kettle. The reason I bought a Weber is the ease and availability of replacement parts. Maybe spent $120 on the original investment and another $200 or so on replacement parts and improvements in the 7 or 8 years I've owned it. Best thing I ever did was get a rotisserie ring and motor.
I'm intrigued by the Kamados and BGEs but I'm really, really skilled on the instruments I have and just can't justify the cost to myself and most certainly not my boss. LOL!
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I scored a Weber spirit from my neighbor's grandmother. She no longer needed it, all I had to do is drive down the shore and pick it up. I used to do a lot of grilling and smoking, but sadly the wife and kids aren't into it so I've largely given it up, didn't even have a grill as I reluctant to drop a few hundred on something I never use. So super thankful this came around, it's in great shape, perfect size, and didn't cost a thing.
Since this thread is about grills I will throw this related question in here. Has anybody used those nonstick grill mats? I have never used one but was always intrigued by them especially when grilling veggies. I would also assume that they would prevent any kind of flare ups......
My new grill arrived yesterday:
Best of luck. Would appreciate your thoughts as time goes on if you are satisfied or dissatisfied. As I mentioned before, I was going to buy this down the road
Someone fave me a roll of 10 from Amazon. Black in color. Used a few times for veggies, but they’re limited to 350 degrees...at least the ones I have. I find that rather impractical to get a sear on veggies.
I grill veggies all the time directly on the grates and never have a problem with them sticking. What veggies do you grill and how do you prep them?
I think it's not just the sticking issue, but it's also the falling between the grates thing. You've then gotta skewer them which can be time consuming.
I forgot to mention that certain high-moisture veggies like zucchini sometimes releases all those juices at the lower temps and it kinda steams on those sheets, rather than caramelizes. Tastes okay, but kinda defeats the purpose of grilling.
Not really - we grill peppers, onions and portabella mushroom caps all the time (and, yes, @BigWill that's along with the meat I'm charring on the grill!) and never have an issue with that. Maybe it has to do with the type of grates, but I don't have an issue with that on my home and portable Weber grills. We do skewer them at times, but that's when we're doing veggie and mushroom kabobs (and, yes, @BigWill that's along with the chicken and beef kabobs).
Haha, when're you scheduling your coronary bypasses and colonoscopy? Besides, veggies are a good accompaniment and sometimes you grill for (Heaven forbid) a guest who's vegetarian.
Agreed - I just adjust the cut size of the veggies and it virtually eliminates that problem. I will say though that I have to pay attention to that more with the grates on my Weber kettle than on the Genesis.
Hey @RU Golfer, I've never tried it, but may I suggest trying veggies in those stainless mesh grill baskets as an alternative to the sheets?
I grill them all the time never had a sticking problem.....once in a while you get a rogue asparagus that likes to fall through. It was move of a curiosity thing, I see a fair amount of people using the at tailgates especially at Giant games. My tailgate grill is a camp chef with a grill box and griddle. My buddy has the pizza oven as well is I ever need I have access to that as well. At home I have a SS propane and a charcoal kettle grill too.