Lid Hinge for the WSM in action


 
M Schneider

M Schneider

TVWBB Member
Today's cook is two nice pork butts smoked over apple wood. This is only the second cook since installing the new lid hinge and so far I love it. It is so much easier than having to sit the dome on the ground every time. The only drawback, albeit a very minor one, is that you have to use 2 hands to lower the lid back into position. Overall I am very pleased with it and just can't see myself doing without it.





 
Tommy B said:
Why does it take two hands to operate the lid with the hinge?
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When you open the lid all the way, it locks into position so it will hold itself open. In order to unlock it you have to lift up the lid using both of the Weber handles to pull it out of the locking-notch in the hinge. You have to pull it straight up and just pulling up with the front handle won't work. You can open and close it with one hand all day long if you never open it fully so that it locks all the way in the upright position. I hope you get what I'm doing a terrible job of saying.
 
M Schneider said:
When you open the lid all the way, it locks into position so it will hold itself open. In order to unlock it you have to lift up the lid using both of the Weber handles to pull it out of the locking-notch in the hinge. You have to pull it straight up and just pulling up with the front handle won't work. You can open and close it with one hand all day long if you never open it fully so that it locks all the way in the upright position. I hope you get what I'm doing a terrible job of saying.
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I got it. Thanks for your answer. I have been thinking about pulling the trigger on one for awhile. They need to make one that is spring loaded similar to the big green egg hinge.
 
Charles H. said:
You explained it well.
Does the WSM still feel like it is balanced and stable with the lid raised?
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Yes, but...............per the instructions you must position the bottom section so that one of the legs is on the hinge side. In other words 1 leg directly below the hinge. It can tip over otherwise. Once that's done she's rock-solid with no wobbling or tendency to move around or tip over.

Edit: Check out the pics I posted above. The legs must be in that position. Disregard the sanding block shown propping up the back leg. I use that to level the smoker because of the slope in my driveway.
 
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Tommy B said:
I got it. Thanks for your answer. I have been thinking about pulling the trigger on one for awhile. They need to make one that is spring loaded similar to the big green egg hinge.
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That would be nice, but........I'm pretty sure it would rocket into another price range if they made one like that. Might be worth it though.
 
james n said:
The hinge does look like a real nice option
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The hinge is an absolutely invaluable upgrade, just make sure to take your time when installing one. I highly recommend using a silver sharpie when installing it (follow directions! -- you install the top first, then the middle), and then drilling 1/8" pilot holes in the middle of each sharpie-circle VERY carefully. Then use a step bit to enlarge the hole. There's very little room for error in this installation as you're lining up a pattern of 4 holes on the middle and 2 on top. The results are totally worth it though.

Also, re: M Schneider's comment about it requiring 2 hands to use --- that's only on 22" WSMs. I had one on my 18" before I sold it, and I only had to use 1 hand to unlock it. It's just a side effect of the larger size, weight, and strain of the 22" on the hinge. Oh well....
 
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NickMV said:
The hinge is an absolutely invaluable upgrade, just make sure to take your time when installing one. I highly recommend using a silver sharpie when installing it (follow directions! -- you install the top first, then the middle), and then drilling 1/8" pilot holes in the middle of each sharpie-circle VERY carefully. Then use a step bit to enlarge the hole. There's very little room for error in this installation as you're lining up a pattern of 4 holes on the middle and 2 on top. The results are totally worth it though.

Also, re: M Schneider's comment about it requiring 2 hands to use --- that's only on 22" WSMs. I had one on my 18" before I sold it, and I only had to use 1 hand to unlock it. It's just a side effect of the larger size, weight, and strain of the 22" on the hinge. Oh well....
Click to expand...

If you don't have a silver sharpie, put a strip of masking tape on the grill where the hinge will lay, it will be much easier to see the marks.

And use a center punch before drilling, it guarantees that the bit won't drift.
 
I tried using a center punch and had no luck. That black enamel/whatever coating on the outside is incredibly tough. The punch slipped twice on me so I just gave up and used the drill straight-up. A 1/8" pilot hole leaves a lot of room for correcting any alignment errors before using a step-bit, luckily.
 
So what company makes this hinge?
I saw that unknownbbq.com has as does BBQgaskets.com.

Which one is better? (or are they exactly the same?)
 
I just installed one on the 22.5". Another tip if a hole isn't perfectly aligned, don't drill the 1/4" hole bigger, use a 3/16" chainsaw file and you can tweek the hole for perfect alignment. Chainsaw files cut mild steel like this very easily.
 
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