I will just leave this here


 
TomRc said:
Sure, it’s not a Weber. But what a beauty for it’s age…
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Actually, had this very same grill as my first real gas grill. Only difference was mine had a mechanical timer on it and I did not bother with rotisserie until I got my Genesis. That Sunbeam was a tank. I put heavy duty wheels on it with ball bearings, used it for a number of years (7 IIRC) designed and built a mod I called "heat tubes" that REALLY worked. Actually made it work like a convection unit. Gave it to my buddy when he moved here from the UK, he gave it back when he bought a Genesis, I then brought it up to my father in law's lake house in MN and it stayed there for a few more years until he passed away in 2005 or 2006 IDR which year exactly. I never brought it home but it was still going strong.
 
I had a sunbeam gas grill. I think I got it summer of 1993. Like this but without the side burner. It was replaced with the model year 2000 Genesis Silver B that I still have today.

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Darren Lebner said:
So are Weber kettle diameters based on standard sized 55 gallon metal drums and that's why the lid seems to fit just right?

55 Gallon Steel Drum | Skolnik Industries

www.skolnik.com www.skolnik.com
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It depends on the barrel how tight the fit is I have a UDS which I built myself maybe $110 into it and its at least 10 years old just smoked my 13# turkey for Christmas its a 55 gallon drum it is tapered at the top of the barrel. I bought at the time a cheap Weber kettle knockoff from Walmart for like 25$ which gave me a hinged lid thats big since I don't have to worry about pulling off the lid and putting it down somewhere, also gave me the grate. I just took off the lid from my performer and put it on the UDS it fits a bit of a gap but no issues for a smoker the Wally lid fits like a glove and ironically the Wally lid is actually although much thinner metal wise is porcelain coated also.

There are many in the UDS world who pick up junk kettles just for the lid and they work fine and a tighter fit depending on the barrel. The big thing in the UDS world is finding a clean barrel not something that was used for food they have a coating inside which is a nightmare and you certainly IMO you do not want a used oil drum and attempt to burn it off. In the ATL they had a barrel mfg that was close to work now this was over 10 years ago god might have been 12 or 13 getting old they sold new barrels got mine for $25 dollars I think still did a burnoff to make sure it was clean of any residue they put in barrels to deter rust got rid of some wood that day kept some hot dogs nearby in my county there may be a burn ban except for recreation so if the fire dept shows up your getting ready to cook hot dogs. :)
 
TomRc said:
Sure, it’s not a Weber. But what a beauty for it’s age…
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Nostalgia got the best of me. I went and picked this one up today. It’s all there and it’s in great condition. I don’t think it’s ever spent a full day in the sun and it’s probably never seen a drop of rain. My plan is to sandblast the interior of the cook box and underside of the lid, update the burner, replace the lower grate in the cook box, clean up the glass, and replace all of the hardware with stainless. For now, it’s tucked away comfortably in my shed while I start sourcing parts and hardware.
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Cool! Now somebody else can take the ribbing for trying to restore an old Sunbeam.🤣 I think you can find at least some replacement parts, but remember that even the OEM ones aren’t very high quality. I remember when those glass window grills were popular and Sunbeam was a major player in home grills. So that find is definitely a trip down memory lane.

One suggestion I have is to use the ceramic flat pieces with holes like I did on my crazy Sunbeam “The Judge” as seen in my thread that Bruce kindly reposted above. They will do much better than lava rocks and I think than even the ceramic pyramids.
 
Jon Tofte said:
Cool! Now somebody else can take the ribbing for trying to restore an old Sunbeam.🤣 I think you can find at least some replacement parts, but remember that even the OEM ones aren’t very high quality. I remember when those glass window grills were popular and Sunbeam was a major player in home grills. So that find is definitely a trip down memory lane.

One suggestion I have is to use the ceramic flat pieces with holes like I did on my crazy Sunbeam “The Judge” as seen in my thread that Bruce kindly reposted above. They will do much better than lava rocks and I think than even the ceramic pyramids.
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I’m going to use these honeycomb style 3”X3” ceramic heat blocks for the project. I was so concerned about breakage during shipment when I originally purchased them for my Broilmaster that I wound up with a bunch of leftovers. I’ve been very happy with them on there thus far as they seem to be pretty well self-cleaning.

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You will find that Sunbeam built much like a Broilmaster. Thick aluminum castings, large bowtie burner and that al it basically is.
 
Jon Tofte said:
That’s right by where my wife’s family is from. She would love it if I arranged to get that one!
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That oldie is right up your alley! Looks like it's in good condition too. $325 is a high price, but if it's as nice as it looks...
(let me know if/ when you want me to pick it up for you.)

Gerry
 
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