Another historical curiosity 1987 Kenmore NIB!!!


 
Jon Tofte

Jon Tofte

TVWBB 1-Star Olympian
Here’s a posting I found on South Florida Craigslist: An unused 1987 Kenmore propane grill with the glass window. Brings back memories of grilling in those days before the Weber Genesis changed the gas grill world.

Don’t know about the $500, but it is pretty unusual.

https://miami.craigslist.org/brw/atq/d/fort-lauderdale-bbq-grill-1987-sears/6774308189.html

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I like it, but expensive for $500.
Back then it seems to me ALL gas grills were made of Aluminum.
I have a soft spot for all aluminum grills :)
 
yes those are lava rock grills. in theory lava rock is great but in practice it's awful. It soaks up grease and off odors and tastes rather than shedding them like metal or ceramic. The conflagrations you get in these grills are the stuff legends are made of. My parents' first gas grill was one like this (may have been a Charmglow or other such brand) back then though they were all well made cast aluminum same formula. Either a single control or dual H type burner under a bed of lava rocks.
The one my parents had burned to the ground. Flames were shooting out of every opening, the control panel, the propane hose burned nearly all the way through, the glass exploded, it was almost a 911 call (except 911 didn't exist yet :D)
Once we got the fire out dad put that thing in the trunk of his car went right back to the store and demanded in no uncertain terms his money back. Sure would have hated to have been that clerk LOL. Damn he was MAAAAAAAD.
Anyway they bought a Weber Kettle gas grill. A total hunk of junk as well though not quite as bad as the first one. They kept that until 1992 when the X000 series Weber Genesis models came out. Mom is gone and dad is now 92 but the grill is still there and still operating like new though it's not a 2000 anymore. Dad saw my side burner and wanted one as well so I found one for sale and converted his to a 3000.
I still cook on that grill almost weekly. The wood is pretty weak now and the lift up tray especially is really wobbly. I am hoping to get to it for him and do some more refurb on it
 
Yah, maybe some guy who grew up with one of those will pounce on it. Who knows. Sometimes nostalgia is a strong emotion and if you have money to throw around, what the heck.

We had an old NG grill on our deck and it had lava rocks. That was back in the 70's-80's. My dad manned the grill back then but I do remember them not being an ideal solution. I think he eventually went to those ceramic briquettes at some point. I think they worked good but by that time the grill was nearing its end life and the rack under them was falling apart which caused problems.

I remember someone posted a brand new in box Weber grill (I think Silver B) a couple years ago. I can't remember the asking price though.
 
I had/used several similar grills in the 1980s. I lived in the Chicago area working for a year after graduating from the U of C in 1985. My roommate had one of those on our tiny porch of the condo we lived in. I would brush off the snow and keep on grilling;).

My first married grill was something like that, too, although i honestly don’t remember buying it. I liked grilling a lot but knew almost nothing. When the Weber Genesis grills started appearing in stores I would just look at them wistfully! I never dreamed I would have a yard full of them:rolleyes:!

p.s. Still working on that crazy Sunbeam! Stay tuned...
 
Jon, my early grilling years sound just like yours. I remember putting together those Charxxxxxx grills and using them while going to cookouts at other peoples houses and seeing them grilling on a 6 burner behemoth....probably a Summit.

I had always known about WEBER and coveted them from afar. Kind of like the Corvette at the GM dealer whenever I am there. Now I own a "Classic" Weber which is a lot like those classic cars. But that Kenmore grill is more like a 75 Ford LTD with 125 miles on it that has been stored in a garage for 40 years.
 
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I had a sunbeam pretty similar to that Kenmore. It had the lava rocks which I agree with Larry was a poor design. In fact I had numerous grills with lava rocks.
I remember replacing the lava rocks with ceramic briquettes in one of my grills which was a little better. Quality stainless flavorizors are such a step up from either IMO. The last 3 years with my weber's are the first time in my life i haven't had to deal with crumbling lava rock or rotting cheapo flavorizors on close to an annual basis.
 
What a time capsule. I had a couple of grills like that before I got my first Weber. With the lava rocks you had to stand right next to it with a squirt bottle to put out the inevitable grease fires and the glass window was completely blacked out with grease after about the third cook.
 
Bruce said:
Jon, my early grilling years sound just like yours. I remember putting together those Charxxxxxx grills and using them while going to cookouts at other peoples houses and seeing them grilling on a 6 burner behemoth....probably a Summit.

I had always known about WEBER and coveted them from afar. Kind of like the Corvette at the GM dealer whenever I am there. Now I own a "Classic" Weber which is a lot like those classic cars. But that Kenmore grill is more like a 75 Ford LTD with 125 miles on it that has been stored in a garage for 40 years.
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That's a good description! Even though so amazingly preserved, they weren't anything to get excited about back then, so probably not too many looking for a collectible one now. I posted because I promised to share interesting items that I came across this winter. It did at least bring back some fun memories!
 
Yes, jon and I enjoy some of those "NON- Weber" grill posts from time to time. It provides a bit of perspective.
 
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