Assembly Review of WSCG Center (with pictures)

[WB Zipf]

so I just finished getting mine all set up. I was cruising along pretty quick and on pace to finish assembling in about an hour and 1/2, but then I ran into a problem. It took me a while to figure out how the ash catcher ring was supposed to attach to the bowl. In the process one of the rivet fasteners came apart (see picture).

I thought I was dead in the water, so I made a call to Weber and they were eager to make amends for my dilemma, Weber offered to overnight a replacement part to me for free, so I should get it tomorrow.

I then took a break, but got to thinking that this wasn't a "mission critical" part. I tried to see if I could get it serviceable until my replacement arrived. Well, I was able to both get it service able, but proved to myself I could easily replace the broken one when the new one arrived. I then proceeded to put together the remainder of the grill. Again, total assembly time, minus the break for the mishap.

Now, as I was assembling the remainder of the grill I noticed the following items that I would correct (warning I am being a bit nit picky here).

1) Frist, I obviously found issue with the construction of the ash catcher ring. I know its not a mission critical piece, and it doesn't really have a structural requirement, but they shouldn't make it so easy to break. Maybe two more rivets will do the trick

2) Second, as I read somewhere else, the gas line that connects the propane tank to the gas burner has to wrap around a sharp steal edge. Now it shouldn't move so there should be little issue, but to be on the safe side I used some foam that I found in the packing material to separate the line from the sharp edge (see pictures). I suggest that Weber cut out a round notch in the steal so the line can pass through without being in contact with the edge.

3) When the lid opens an closes, the support ring that the bowl rests in deforms very slightly. Now this doesn't provide an issue with functionality, but it does appear a bit less than sturdy. I am wondering if Weber could make the ring more rigid.

4) The charcoal bin, I have a couple issues with this. First, I was hoping it would be a tight seal. When I saw the videos and pictures it looked like it had metal clasps that would seal the container shut. What I found is that what I saw wasn't clasps, but handles (or at least that is what I figure them to be). It would be nice to have this close more securely. Second, and this is the big issue I have with the charcoal bin, is that it scratches the bottom shelf that it rest on. I literally slid the bin in an out twice, and you can see how many scratches in the finish it produced (see picture). I will say that this is the most annoying issue that I came across. Not sure why Weber didn't discover this, because I have read others having the same complaints. I would ask Weber for a replacement part, but I just don't see how this won't happen again. This was disappointing.

5) The basket doesn't slide in and out smoothly, could be better.

Now for what I appreciate about this grill.
1) Directions were straight forward and easy to follow (except the attachment of the ash catcher ring, but that may just be me).

2) All tools necessary to assemble were included, although I did use my own 7/16 socket wrench, which made it go quicker.

3) I like the charcoal bowl, and how Weber included approximate amount of charcoal needed for different cooks in both number of briquette and number of charcoal bowls.

4) I love, love, love, that the internal grates are all thick stainless steal!!! I never liked the need to replace the chrome plated stuff every so often when the chrome wore off and the steal began to corrode.

5) The two tiered charcoal grate placement options is awesome! I can't wait to cook on the different levels

6) I love the markings on the ash catcher ring that indicate closed, smoking, and fully open positions of the vents. That saves me from having to mark the ring with permanent marker, like I did on my performer.

7) I love the port for the ATC. I will be hooking my BBQ Guru DidgiQ Dx 2 and smoke a pork butt later this weekend!

8) The braided SS gasket is a great addition

9) I love the ignition system. I never did like the battery required system on the performer, seams less than elegant. This ignition system is elegant as it doesn't require a battery to start.
10) Last, but certainly not least, I love the Rapid-fire Lid Damper. They really took this to the next level. In my opinion it is a significant evaluation from the age old wheels Weber has used in the past, this offers a greater level of precision and the ability to open wide should prove very valuable.

Well. that is it for my review of the assembly of the WSCG center. I do have a few more pictures for you and I will be sure to post my experiences with my cooks.

 

[Pat G]

Congrats and thanks for the in depth review. I can't wait for the cook photos.

 

[Dennis Y]

Congrats I just ordered mine today and hope to get it before Memorial weekend. I have a question though, does it come with the 2 charcoal baskets? I watched some unboxing video on Youtube and I did not see them.

 

[Tony R]

Congrats I just ordered mine today and hope to get it before Memorial weekend. I have a question though, does it come with the 2 charcoal baskets? I watched some unboxing video on Youtube and I did not see them.

It does come with 2 baskets.

 

[Tony R]

Congrats!
Had mine since day of release and its a great cooker. I didn't have any issue with assembly or noticed any scratches on mine due to use.

 

[WB Zipf]

Thanks, yeah the assembly problem was largely due to mine own confusion. With regards to the scratches, there must have been some grit/ sand stuck to the bottom of the bin.

 

[Dennis Y]

I assembled mine yesterday and noticed the same issue with the gas line/hose touching the sharp edge. However, if you look at the assembly instruction they show the hose being on the other side of the heat shield.

 

[WB Zipf]

Yeah, now that you mention it, I see in the diagram. When I looked at mine, I didn't see how to make this happen without having it tight over the sharp end of the deflector's top edge.

Could you get it to work as depicted in the diagram?

 

[Dennis Y]

No, I played with it a bit and gave up. I didn't want to damage the hose like you mentioned with the sharp end on the top edge. I am thinking the diagram is wrong in the first place. For example, the cable connector points up on the actual unit, not left.

 

[Chris Allingham]

WB, if it's alright with you, I thought I'd add my comments about assembling my WSCG Center to yours.

• Very well packaged, but boy is there a lot of material to recycle, including a wooden pallet! I was interested in the "structural" cardboard pieces used across the top and sides of the package...super-thick corrugated cardboard. I've seen it used as a backing for display signs.
• Super impressed with the quality and heft of all the component parts.
• The instructions were easy to follow. Heed the warnings about certain steps requiring two people to lift/move certain pieces. I tried doing some of those steps by myself and I'm still nursing a sore back.
• Like WB said, a 7/16 socket wrench was the tool of choice over the provided wrench, except for one spot where the provided wrench fit into a tight space better. Darned if I can't remember where that was as I write this.
• I had the same issue as described above about the routing of the gas line. I also used the white foam piece from the packaging to cushion the line where it passes over the metal housing for the gas bottle.
• I was briefly confused by the igniter connector for the white wire...as noted by Dennis above, the orientation on the grill is different than shown in the diagram.
• I saw a video somewhere where a guy complained that the yellow & black caution sticker on the spring-loaded lid hinge did not come off cleanly, leaving behind shredded paper and adhesive. I assembled my grill on a warm day and had no such problem, but I can see how it might happen if assembling on a cold day. Warming the sticker with a blow dryer would do the trick.
• After removing the wing nuts from the two safety bolts on the lid hinge, I had a hard time removing the bolts. I found that by pulling the protective plastic hinge cover away from the bolts slightly, I was able to pop them out by hand. They don't really screw in and you can't get the provided tool or a wrench in there, anyway.
• The protective plastic on the work surface comes off most easily if you pull it back at a sharp angle, close to the surface. Pulling it off at a 90* angle to the surface is harder work.
• There were some thin lines of adhesive left behind after removing the protective plastic. I wadded up a piece of the plastic and used the sticky side to dab at those adhesive lines to remove them.
• The thing about scratches on the painted metal surface under the charcoal bin absolutely drives me crazy! So before mine could get scratched, I went to TAP Plastics and had them fabricate a piece of black textured ABS plastic to protect the surface. You'll find measurements and photos in this thread.

 

[MickS]

I found the assembly of my WSCG Center went pretty smooth 9 days ago thanks to a lot of posts
Like this. I was forwarned about looping the electrical wires up top to keep them out of harms way.
I was going to lay something down on the bottom shelf so it wouldn't get scratched but I was afraid
of moisture getting underneath it. I ended up putting a large clear plastic box underneath on the shelf
area to store my grill tools. I decided to keep the charcoal container outside of the grill center. I am going
to look for some sort of rubber with an adhesive back to put down on the bottom shelf area to protect it
and to keep moisture out. I'm open for suggestions