Huge Disappointment in Weber Rotisserie

[Steve Whiting]

I posted last week about how I was getting into rotisserie and that I was waiting on delivery of my new Cajun Bandit, my Ribolator and my Weber Rotisserie. Well all came and boy was I excited. That is until I tried to use the Weber Rotisserie. The expansion ring was out of round. I could only get 2 of the 4 tabs to rest on the top edge of the kettle. Not only that but there is also huge gaps between the ring and the kettle leaving uncontrolled air flow. I was shocked to see that the ring did not fit snug inside/atop the kettle. Is this normal? I would have tried to round it out myself but I did not know what to do about the gaps so I called Weber and reported that my ring was out-of-round and now a new one is on its way to me. I am still unsure about the huge gaps though. Is this the way it is going to be or should I expect it to fit snug? Will those of you Weber rotisserie users please set me straight? I cannot believe this thing can be used efficiently with such a flaw. How is a person expected to control the air intake with such a gap around most of the ring?

 

[Clint]

Mine's not as airtight as just the bowl/lid with the ring in use. If you're going for <350F you're going to have to completely close the bottom vents & close the top vent of the kettle a bit too (maybe halfway+ closed). But try >550F rotisserie chicken, I like it better than low/slow & medium/high (I don't brine).

 

[K Kruger]

I don't have a Weber (I have an EZQue) but the ring needs to be round. Still, gaps will allow for drafting - not a good thing if you're trying to target temps.

An easy fix: Fashion a ring out of a 6-foot piece of foil, halved lengthwise first, folding it a few times then wrapping the kettle lip. Cram the ring down on it; good to go.

 

[George Curtis]

don't get bummed out, its all good. the ring should be as round as the kettle, you got that dealt with. yes there is a gap, and far as i can see it really has no effect on the use of the rotiss. i and many others have used it with no problems. if yer really concerned then use the foil trick. i put my coals on just one side, the side that allows the top of the food to go towards the coals. i normally leave the lower air vents about half way open. i leave the top vent open with the top vent opposite the coals. i also foil the lower coal grate up to the coals so the air only goes to the coals and this will get you a nice temp to cook. a chicken is usually done in about a hour and fifteen minutes. this is of course all estimates. you will need to experiment until you find how you like to use it and the results you want. i don't really worry much about the actual temp as long as the coals are burning i just cook till its done. once you get the hang of it you will be very happy with it.

 

[Tom Raveret]

I had two of these and sold one a year or so ago. I love my Weber rotisserie and couldn't live without it. I use it at least once weekly rain, snow or shine.

I have three different 22.5 kettles that it goes on and keeping it airtight has never been a goal of mine.

I never have a hard time getting things hot enough in there with two baskets and even take one out occasionally or use less than the 3/4 full charcoal ring required to fill both baskets. Because the charcoal burns fast in these I ahve to replace charcoal after 45 min to an hour anyways. Thats how I regulate temps when using my rotisserie. Now I don't have a ribolator (looks like a cool toy but with a 22 and 18 in WSM I can't justify the expense) so if you are trying to maintain a 225 in a kettle I can see how that could be challenging. But I've never tried to maintain temps that low in a kettle because anytime you take the lid off you introduce so much oxygen you'd spike. That is what I would think the achilles heel of a product like the ribolator would be because anytime temps get above 275 any sugar in a rub goes black in a hurry.

Maybe Weber customer service will send you another ring if it is that out of round.

 

[K Kruger]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">I never have a hard time getting things hot enough in there </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
With a rotis ring that doesn't seal you wouldn't. I like the ring sealed because I like to set up the coals and such so I do not need to lift the lid much, if at all. And, if I must, I can be confident that the the temp will settle back down in short order. I use the lower vent to control temps. That does not work well if the ring isn't tight.

Different strokes.

 

[Justin W]

The foil trick works great. I did that for a while and then a few months ago I bought a piece of rope insulation that they use around chimneys.

I TIED it (not glued it) around the bottom of the rotiserie directly below the support hinges. Each time I set the rotisserie on the kettle I tuck the rope into the gap (the need to tuck is the reason for not glueing). This takes all of about 7 seconds.

This fix cost me about 7 dollars and works GREAT.

I also got a self adhering gasket gape to put around the top where the rotis meets the lid. This works fine, but was more expensive and doesn't help as much as the rope around the bottom.

Hope this helps.

 

[Andy Erickson]

When using the ribolator and my Weber Rotisserie, I let the temps come up to 200 degrees with a mini minion start. I then completely shut off the bottom vent. This usually keeps me in the 225-250 lid temp range for about 5 hours.

 

[Tom Raveret]

[/QUOTE]
With a rotis ring that doesn't seal you wouldn't. [/QUOTE]

With either of the rings I had of the newer rotisserie design (or even the one I found in a neighbors garbage six months ago that was an older weber design) none sealed tightly.

I've never tried to cook food in the rotisserie that required a low and slow approach. If you could get a good seal off the weber ring you still have uncontrolled airflow from both sides where the spit goes into ring and to a lesser extent where the spit goes into the motor.

One rib recipe I do directly on the spit is a high temp ribs skewered on the spit and its more like roasted pork that bbq ribs with a spicy pepper and salt based rub (I really like the flavor of Hot Rocks rub from Harry and david on Pork Ribs)

I just never thought the Weber rotisserie ring (or the kettle for that matter) as designed to run at a temp that was much less than 350 but I can see why that might be desirable with a ribolator. For low ans slow I use old faithful!! WSM

 

[K Kruger]

There are several things that benefit from moderate cook temps in the rotis, if not low/slow (225-325) - lamb leg, pork or lamb shanks, beef rib roasts, et al. With excess air intake one must not have too much lit going at once, lest the temps climb too high, and one must refuel periodically. With a sealed ring it's possible to load in unlit, top with a few lit, then moderate and arrest the rise by using the vents. Refueling is rarely needed at all so the lid can be left alone.

 

[Lou Tarnay]

I've had mine for 5 years now. The seal is not perfect at all, but I have no problem regulating temp's from 300 to 425 degrees. I love the dog gone thing. People who are not knowledgeable about the capability to run a roti on a charcoal q are often stunned when they see it in operation for the first time! The prime rib it turns out is beyond belief.

The motor on my unit developed a new and disturbing whine last year. It has see literally hundreds of hours of hard use often in non-ideal weather conditions (Rube Goldberg weather protection not withstanding), so I won't begrudge it a little whine!

Cheers

 

[Steve Whiting]

My problem is not with the lack of a tight fit when using the Weber Rotisserie ring on my One-Touch Platinum or any other kettle but rather when using it on my Cajun Bandit conversion. Here I want to go low-n- slow so additional air intake is not a good thing. I have decided to use the ring exclusively on my OT Platinum for high heat Rotisserie grilling and drill out the necessary holes on my Cajun Bandit to insert the Spit/Ribolator without the use of the ring. I have viewed pictures of this very mod on a 22” WSM so I don’t see why it would not work with the Cajun Bandit. If anyone has any opinion on this I am all ears.

 

[Brian Moriarty]

I had to bend my Weber ring inward with a pair of pliers just a hair all the way around for all the tabs to fit securely on my Cajun Bandit. My EZ-Que ring fit perfectly. I've never had any issues with air gaps on the ring and temp control, it almost naturally settles into grilling temps on its own.
If I were you Steve, I'd play around with the ring on the Cajun Bandit and get the feel of your vent settings/temp control before cutting into the Cajun Bandit center section.

I say this because, I really like the control I have using the ring and if I need to speed things up at a comp, I can remove the center section and place the rotis on the kettle bowl and closer to the coals. I can't do that with my 22" WSM mod.

My experience with the rotis rings on my Drum Smokers, Cajun Bandit, and WSM have all been fairly positive, I prefer the 275-350* temps they naturally settle into. Give it a shot!