Free Broilermaster


 
I never noticed the misspelling Bruce. BTW no clue what that piece is. Looks like the folks never used the thing. Was it in a garage? That is amazing.
 
I believe it was in a garage or barn. Smells that way. They said it hadn't been used in a "few" years. They even had it in a garage when I picked it up.

I am hoping for some comments on how to get this thing back in usable condition. I didn't see how the burners could be easily removed and they are going to need some cleaning at the least. The flame was intermittent and uneven on both sides.

Oh, and made by Locke Stove Co, Kansas City, MO. Is that significant? I would like to pin down the year of manufacture if possible.
 
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I am sure the burners need cleaning and the venturi tubes may be blocked. That burner may also be brass as well. I think Locke was the original owner of the brand as well
 
OK, then it probably is a Generation one grill. Kinda cool there and I don't think they changed a whole lot. That piece I pulled out did look like brass, but I am sure the burners are cast iron. I didn't really see how to remove them however. Once I do, I can probably see the venturi tubes as well. I just don't really want to pull it apart too much as I won't be able to do much work on it now until next spring. I think it is best to keep it pretty much intact until then......It is one heavy sucker though with the grates in it.

Also, what is the purpose of the "waterfall" style grates? Why didn't they just make them flat like most grills?
 
Bruce,

I can't say for sure about how to remove the burner since yours is much older than the ones I have worked on. It definitely does come out. The cast iron burner is an expensive option vs. the regular 430 stainless one, but I think I have seen Larry comment negatively about the cast iron. I think I would try cleaning and wire brushing first before giving up on it.

The waterfall grates are one of the coolest things about Broilmaster. You can set those at any of THREE different heights by rotating them and front to back and also up and down. Experiment and you will see. Using that feature, you can have an extra-high heat sear level or the other extreme for low and slow BBQ. You can even do separate "zones" by setting each of the grates at a different height. These grills do very good indirect BBQ by turning on one side and putting your food on the other side. Then, there is a separate handle - at least on the newer grills - that allows you to keep the lid open just a crack to maintain a lower temperature.

So, credit goes to Broilmaster with making an innovative design for their grates. You can get 304 stainless ones that will fit that grill, if you want to go all out. You can read about them in my review, although the one I tested was for the smaller size "4" size Broilmaster.
 
Jon: My grill has that lid prop thingy on it and it has three different height settings. I thought that was kind of cool, because I have had to stick a screwdriver, wood chunk or something else in to prop the lid open a bit when I couldn't get the heat inside to get low enough. With these grills putting out 40k BTU's, I am sure they is times when a little ventilation would be needed.

I would like to keep this grill as original as possible. Partly from a miserly standpoint and then just the "stock" aspect like on antique automobiles. I have to say the grates look really good and should be simple to clean up. The stuff seems more like grease than burned on crud and little oven cleaner and some scrubbing will probably have them looking like new. When I saw the design of the grates, I had to think of you. They are designed to come to a pretty sharp ridge and I can imagine that would put down some awesome looking sear marks.

But if I have trouble getting the grates and especially the burners back to good operating and visual condition, I may have to do some upgrading.
 
Check on the underside of the fire box. Most likely you'll find some small nuts (3/8" wrench size). The burner may (though they may be gone as well) have some studs that go through the bottom of the box. Once they're removed the burners and venturi tubes lift right out. EZPZ. IIRC the new burner will come with a straight/flexible and a 90 deg tube to fit either design. You should be able to clean it up and have that beauty working in about 30 min or so. You'll just need a standard sized rock grate and some ceramic briquettes. Both cheap and easily available at any big box store. Looking at the burner btw it looks like it should clean up quite easily with a good wire brushing and checking the ports and maybe opening them up from any corrosion
 
Interesting grill. But why the heck did they move the controls all the way down there? My back would hate this. Not a grill for tall folks for sure.
 
Stefan, I think this might be the first of the Broilmaster grills and likely, that was something they changed in later designs. I agree, it is a bit cumbersome as you have to get your head down there level with the knobs to see what they are set on. I suppose after you get used to them, you can do it mostly by feel.
 
Yeah, I agree with you Bruce. I think it is something that Broilmaster improved over time. They also went to cart base designs that conceal the LP tank from obvious view since many people don't like to see the tank. My crazy Sunbeam "The Judge" project grill has an almost identical design to the Broilmaster you picked up, just much, much smaller:

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Well, I found out that all you have to do is "lift" the burner out. It just sits there via gravity....LOL. Anyway, while it doesn't look too bad, it is. It has some bad corrosion and rust along the slots where the gas comes out. Some parts are closed, some much wider than they should be. The big problem however is that I cannot get the top and bottom separated due to frozen bolts. I tried some PBlaster, but the couple that I could get to move, just twisted off. So, I am down the rabbit hole as far as a burner already. I imagine a new burner would not come with the two venturi tubes, so I will have to get them removed somehow, even if I wind up having to drill them out. I understand there are SS options as well as CI. I will probably go the SS route as they are cheaper, lighter and then there is the "bling" effect. This grill is designed to be used with ceramic briquets or ceramic plates or ceramic disks or a variant of that. I guess, that will put me down that rabbit hole a little further, but I still can see some light coming in.

Another thing I notice was the "square" nuts on the grill. That is a good indicator of the age of this grill. I remember as a kid in the 60's, those were still pretty common, but they were soon gone from the hardware stores and only could be found in collections of nuts and bolts in the garage.

I also found out that that brass clip is designed to be some kind of spacer for the two parts of the grill. I guess the brass helps to prevent rust and corrosion where the two cast iron pieces would otherwise come into contact.





 
Well, Bruce, it is probably true that just like working on old cars, old grills are a whole different animal than just rehabbing your basic Genesis Silver. If you are only wanting to flip this one, you might give pause before you go too far. There is a market, but it is not very big. You might have it on the shelf a long while before selling it at a profit. For your own use, patience and searching - along with overcoming more of the challenges you have already encountered - could eventually yield you a pretty rare and awesome grilling machine.

Broilmaster has consolidated their replacement stainless steel bow-tie burners to just the smaller version that was originally meant only for the “4” grill. You can, however, still find some aftermarket replacements that are the larger “3” size like your cast iron one.

When I can get on my pc instead of this iPad, I will add a couple links for you.
 
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The burner does come with the venturi tubes and gasket. However the venturi have a 90 degree angle on the newer models. I don't recall seeing BM burner with straight venturi. The current P3 BM stainless steel burner version is about $80 to $100.
 
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I just found them on BBQparts.com for $45. Clearance. I sent them a message to ensure they will fit my grill, but I am 90% they will. I would be getting the radiation shield, the rock grate, and ceramic briquettes as well. I can get it all for under $125 shipped. Basically a brand new grill inside except for the CI cooking grates which are in good shape.

Oh, anyone know how to get the lid hinge pins out?
 
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Bruce,

You did very well:cool:! $45 is unbeatable on the burner. I think Chris is right that you will be getting the 90 degree venturi tube, but as long as you can remove the old one it should go on to the new burner, hopefully using the new gasket.

I would say if you can pull it all off for that you have a winner as a keeper, or, I will take back what I said and agree that if you go all out on the wood and paint restore you might find the right buyer willing to shell out a decent price for a true classic...But I would keep it:rolleyes:!
 
LOL, I guess that would be prudent given the price and the fact that these grills will continually lose support as years go on. But, if I do keep it, I probably would not use it a whole lot.
I doubt it is an actual BM burner, but rather an aftermarket brand.
 
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