1998 Weber Summit 4-Page Print Ad


 
Chris Allingham

Chris Allingham

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Staff member

"After testing our $3,000 gas grill, we detected one major flaw. Suddenly the word grill seems inadequate."

1998 was Year 2 for the Weber Summit gas grill lineup. Weber was big on text-heavy ads during this time period...no meat in sight, no close-ups of Flavorizer bars, thick stainless steel rod cooking grates, or control knobs. A far cry from the ads of 30 years earlier in which charcoal kettles were shown loaded to the hilt with turkeys, hams, and other savory goodies.

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Chris,

What a great addition! I just finished doing a complete frame-off disassembly of my 1st generation Summit 450 - the infamous Summit previously owned by Larry @LMichaels. This old brochure is some inspiration to forge ahead :coolkettle:. I will be printing out to add to my collection.

Man, does this grill have a lot of parts! It also does reflect the quality that the brochure talks about. There are at least 30 or more bolts that hold the side aluminum pieces of the firebox to the troublesome porcelain plated steel front, back and shroud. On mine some are speed nuts, but most are star bolts. Larry is certainly right in saying both that this part is very unfortunate but also saying many times how solidly built the 1st generation Summit is. Of course, you know that, since you own and use one:). In addition to the heavy frame, REAL 304 stainless cabinet doors, sides, back and both sets of shelves and condiment trays, I was amazed and impressed to find that Weber used black RTV high heat silicone to seal the joints in the firebox assembly. Other evidence of going the extra mile was obvious as I took this strong beast apart. It has been an outside grill and dates back to 1998 and yet shows little signs of any serious deterioration. Try that with a current 3rd generation Summit!

It is a formidable task to now have to restore various parts, find a sheet metal shop that can help me with some kind of fix for the firebox front, and then try to re-assemble all this stuff. I have been swamped with my October 15 tax deadlines, but I have taken time to assemble hardware and some other stuff that I need. I was able to find stainless replacements for the start bolts from Bolt Depot. Forget about Weber replacement parts. This grill is almost 100% an orphan :cry: . I hope I can restore it to its original glory, find out for myself what it is like to use a REAL Weber Summit and enjoy it for as long as I am able to grill.

I will try to photograph my progress and start a restore thread. I don't think we have one for this classic old Weber grill model.
 
I wonder if there is an upload of this “comprehensive video” out there anywhere. I tried calling the 1888 number and it does still redirect to Weber (impressively enough). I’ll ask them tomorrow for my complimentary copy of the VHS
 
Tim Noce said:
I wonder if there is an upload of this “comprehensive video” out there anywhere. I tried calling the 1888 number and it does still redirect to Weber (impressively enough). I’ll ask them tomorrow for my complimentary copy of the VHS
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Tim,
I can't help you with a VHS tape, but I had a few nice copies printed as a fold-out spread of this old advertisement. If you would like to buy one, PM me.

Jon
 
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