2011 Sneak Peek - In Case You're Interested...


 
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R L Bagwell

R L Bagwell

TVWBB Pro
I subscribe to Weber-Stephen Product Updates - Here's a link that was sent to me today:

http://weber.com/sneakpeek/

AND, my new 26.75 OTG arrived about 30 minutes ago - looking forward to assembling it tomorrow!

AND, wouldn't you know it, the link does NOT work all the time....
 
hey.. i see the summit has the little fuel "gauge" i invented.

it just lets you know at quarter increments how much fuel is left in the tank and is still based on the old standard tank mount.

jsut some sensors mounted in the old tank scale and press a button. depending on the combination of sensors lets you know if you're between full/quarters and near empty.
 
lemme know how you like my 26.75... i worked and pushed HARD on that. I think they changed a few things.. like the wheels. ha.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Mike Durso:
lemme know how you like my 26.75... i worked and pushed HARD on that. I think they changed a few things.. like the wheels. ha. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Mike,
I gather from your posts that you used to work for Weber? Did you design the 26.75?
 
Speaking of Summits, my Holland gasser, like me, is beginning to exhibit signs of old age (the "gasser" reference is likewise an appropriate descriptive term, but that's another story for another time), and due to its rusting out at the bottom, despite being maintained in an enclosed screened-in porch with a vinyl cover, within a year, at most, I will be in the market for a suitable replacement.

I had originally purchased it for the "guaranteed-not-to-flare up" feature - if you're familiar with the brand, it has an aluminum baffle covering the single burner - not wanting to stand over it during an entire cook process armed with a spray bottle. The downside is, it has but two cooking temps - on and off - which means it cooks either in the 400º - 450º range, or not at all.

Stainless steel construction and natural gas operation are musts, with 3 burners and relative ease to clean and maintain being close seconds.

I want to stick with the Weber name brand, but that's not a compelling option.
 
Rooster:

Although they look nice, I think that units with stainless exteriors are usually over-rated (stainless innards is another whole situation, though)

Any of the Weber Genesis or Summit gassers are really nice. I expecially like the idea of the front-to-back burner arrangement on their newer summits. (It works better for creating different heat-zones than the old E-W arrangement.) Webers are expensive, but you get what you pay for (up to a point, at least).

If you have some time on your hands - I would scour your area Craigslist or other classifieds, and look for a good used Weber or one of the others below. IMHO, a used Weber is considerably better than many other grills when they are brand-spanking-new - plus, you can upgrade some of the more wear and corrosion-prone parts relatively inexpensively.

If you're looking anywhere other than Weber, I would recommend MHP or Broil-King. Before I bought my used Weber, I did a lot of research, and these were the others at the top of my list.

If you can manage it, I would give serious consideration to a Natural Gas conversion with a quick-connect hose & valve connected to your homes gas piping, if it is accessible to your patio and/or garage areas.

My dad has a large Dukane - which I think is a big piece of crap (sorry to anyone who has one and thinks otherwise). Maybe he never got the right regulator for his Natural Gas conversion, but the thing never flares-up, but also cannot put a decent sear on anything.
 
Thanks for the reply, Ron - you are right about the SS - it's just a personal preference with me; as far as used GAS grills are concerned, unless it was a REAL good deal, was in pristine condition, and I could tell that it was in excellent mechanical shape, I would probably shy away from other folks' hand-me-downs. It's like buying a used car, you have to wonder why the person is trying to get rid of it.

Never thought of the N/S vs E/W burner configuration, but now that you mention it, it does seem to be a valid choice for consideration.

My Holland LP gasser was modified for natural gas a number of years ago; I have a brick masonry fireplace in my great room that was outfitted for natural gas logs - the room opens out to a large screened-in porch, so the brick back of the fireplace makes a great backstop for the gasser - no melted vinyl siding like I've done at least once at a prior residence. The hookup was a simple matter of doing exactly as you suggested. I sure enjoy being able to walk out the door to the grills - my WSM is out there as well - and not having to contend with inclement weather during cooks.

As far as an NG conversion kit is concerned, I was informed by Weber support a while back that they don't make them for their LP grills - one must purchase an NG grill, which I really don't have a concern over.

I am curious, though, as some folks (including a couple of gas contractors I've spoken with) say that even if you buy an NG unit, you need to have a qualified contractor or other knowledgeable individual come to your house to measure the gas flow and make the necessary corrections. I thought the purpose of the regulator that comes with the grill was just that: to regulate the amount of gas flow from the connection to the burner(s).

Any thoughts on that, by chance?
 
Rooster.. there are several different grades of stainless -and some rust very well. 300 series is one of the best at corrosion resistance. the 400s not as much. Plus there are also certain processess that a manufacturer can do on the stainless to make it better (or worse).

If i remember correctly, not only do you need a natural gas regulator, but also the jets inside the burner have to be swapped out.
 
I believe the standard test for the quality of stainless steel is to bring a magnet with you, and see how well it "sticks" to the item.

When I converted from LP to NG, there's was a special drill bit the gas contractor used to bore out the orifice in my burner to a pre-determined size.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by R L Bagwell:

I am curious, though, as some folks (including a couple of gas contractors I've spoken with) say that even if you buy an NG unit, you need to have a qualified contractor or other knowledgeable individual come to your house to measure the gas flow and make the necessary corrections. I thought the purpose of the regulator that comes with the grill was just that: to regulate the amount of gas flow from the connection to the burner(s).

Any thoughts on that, by chance? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

It depends on the diameter of your supply line and the amount of BTU's that your gasser puts out.
1/2" black pipe is the norm out here for stub outs for fireplaces and gassers. But IIRC big guys like the Summit require more like a 3/4" supply.
Best to call a qualified plumbing contractor to check your lines for the proper sizing.
HTH

Tim
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by R L Bagwell:
... no melted vinyl siding like I've done at least once at a prior residence... </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Sounds like our first Apt when we were married:

I had a small, portable gas grill, that I used on our elevated patio. The patio had indoor/outdoor carpeting, with a rubber membrane underneath.

After a particularly hot cook, about a month before we were moving-out, I noticed that I had melted a large hole or two in the carpeting - necessitating a "midnight replacement" of the carpeting -- I carefully measured and pre-cut, then, after dark, peeled-up the old stuff and glued-down the new.

Saved myself a boatload on what the landlord would've charged me and got all of our security deposit back - which we needed for our new place.

As for the gas line size - I do not know what other gas appliances your place has: furnace, dryer, range? Depending on this stuff, your home will probably have a larger-diameter main pipe coming in from the gas meter, which narrows-down where "drops" are made off of this main line to each connected piece of gas equipment. The concern here would be to insure that the pipe you have is larger than the minimum that would be needed, between the Main Line and your Gas Grill.

Around here, they use plain steel "black pipe" for gas. I would think that if your line is at least 3/4-inch diameter, you should be OK, as long as you're not running your fireplace and ALL grill burners at the same time.

A 1/2-inch or smaller line is probably too "wimpy" for either a big gas grill or a gas fireplace. Some places require galvanized.

So, investigate what you have, if you can. If it looks like a half-incher - see how far an installer would need to go in order to intercept the main line in your house. If you need to have work done, I would contact your local gas utility. Sometimes, for small jobs or for checking stuff like this, they are surprisingly inexpensive - or they could probably recommend local contractors who are certified to do such work.

Hope this helps
 
Ron, I'm running 3/4" black pipe throughout for natural gas heat and water - all appliances in the kitchen/laundry room are electric...I'm thinking I'll just get the NG grill - and retain the services of a qualified gas contractor for hookup.

Thanks for the reply!
 
Saw the thread title and hoped to see a 26.5 Performer available this year. Oh well...wife would kill me if I bought another grill.
 
i believe the 26 perf would be a little more costly to produce and sell. Less buyers and less common parts with the 22.5.. at least it was a few years ago.

New axle, new table, lower rack, etc...you get into weird proportions too because not only would the table need to be wider, it would need to be longer, otherwise it'd appear to be stubby in the length direction.. thus new tubing.. it's a vicious circle...
 
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