Weber Genesis Red 1999 Restoration

I recently acquired a 1999 Weber Genesis 1000 Red that in very good working order. The previous owner had replaced the flavorizor bars and burner within the last couple years. The frame and wood components are sound, and all parts are original minus the internal components. The black parts on the hood, however, appear to have rust under the black paint, as the black paint is bubbled and raised. My question is, what is the best way to fix this cosmetic issue, just hit with different grades of sandpaper until I get to bare metal and repaint with high temp paint? This, besides a good cleaning of the red hood and refinish of the wood slats, will be done along with a sanding and repaint of the frame.

Thanks in advance, John

If you are talking about the side panels of the lid, those are cast aluminum so they shouldn't be rusting. Perhaps it's just the paint bubbling for whatever reason. Sand lightly and hit with high heat paint.

You are correct. I was just reading through the numerous restoration threads and aluminum should not rust! I believe the previous owner must have painted it and did not properly clean it. What grit would you recommend starting with?

I'd try to physically remove as much of it as possible before sanding. If possible, get all the paint to chip off that you can, then scrub and clean the surfaces and repaint. If you sand down to bare metal, you end up with an imperfect texture after painting.