Faulty Damper Rivets


 
B

Bob E

TVWBB Member
I just unpacked my 18.5 WSM cooker and immediately noticed the quality packing job, but that's where it ended. It was all too good to be true. Right away I noticed that one of the dampers on the charcoal bowl was not working properly. Instead of a nice snug fit, the damper spun freely. The other two dampers were snug enough maintaining their position. I called Weber and they informed me that the bowl would need to be replaced. They were not apologetic as I suspect this could be a common quality control issue. Has anyone else experienced similar issues with faulty damper rivets?
Thanks,
Bob
 
Yes, as you use the WSM the rivets will loosen over time. You can drill them out and replace with stainless steel 7mm bolts/screws, lock washers and nuts.
 
I had that problem when I first got mine, and I called CS to complain. Subsquently, they sent me 3 new vents with stainless hardware.
 
Yeah, the damper on my lid was really loose. Like Gary, I called CS and they sent me a new damper and hardware. No muss, no fuss.
 
This is an easy fix. Just use a hammer and a backing block (or a second hammer). Brace the block behind the rivet and a sharp blow to the front should snug it right up. Repeat if needed.
 
One would think Weber could solve this by designing a more substantial damper. Just think of how many free replacement bowls and lids they send out to customers. The cost of beefing up their design using bolts and nuts would surely decrease the amount of replacement parts they replace. If we could figure this out then why couldn't the Weber engineers figure this out. It's so obvious.
 
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