Morphing a 2012 Genesis 330 into today's look


 

Jon Tofte

TVWBB 1-Star Olympian
I finally finished my restoration of a Genesis 330 Special Edition that for a number of years was my daily driver. I hauled the hulk remnants of it all the way to Indiana from Florida.

I was greatly inspired by the post by @DanHoo where he showed how he "blackened out" a Genesis of similar vintage.


I decided to take it even further and try to make this 11-year-old grill look as much as possible like the new Genesis currently being sold.

So, starting with a grill that looked just like this:
Regular Genesis 330.jpg

I aimed for a look more like this:
NEW Genesis Grill.png

This is what I came up with:

Diagonal Front View of Grill.jpeg

This was kind of a walk on the wild side. I am in no way saying that the new Genesis is the cat's meow. At the same time, the look of the 300 series grills is perhaps starting to become dated, so I thought this would be a fun thing to try out. I went all out on making this as new as possible with added custom features that you won't find in probably any other 300 series grill (or even any newer Weber being sold today):

Firebox blasted, new stainless burners, Dave Santana "rcplanebuyer" heat deflectors and Qlimetal 304 stainless flavorizer bars

IMG_2250.jpeg


Inside Sand Blasted Firebox with rcplanebuyer stainless deflectors Qlimetal flavorizer bars.jpeg

NEVER USED OEM Hood

Hood inside .jpeg

STAINLESS STEEL replacement bottom and back panels. These were made by a friend of mine who used to own a sheet metal shop in Florida. Adding them addresses the Achilles heel of these otherwise excellent grills:

Inside of Cabinet showing stainless parts.jpeg
Back of Grill.jpeg

NOT new, but not easy to find, I have been holding on to a set of OEM Weber stainless rod grates with the GBS feature. They are pretty stout, feeling thicker than the 7mm they registered on my caliper. I think they cleaned up pretty well, However, the design was stupid in that the GBS removable circle is in the MIDDLE of the grate set, while the "Sear Station" with its extra burner is off to one side. When I was in Germany and got to visit one of the two Weber stores there, I noticed that in Europe, Weber did it right by centering the GBS over the Sear Station:

IMG_2640(1).jpg

I decided I could do the same with the help of a cut-off tool:

GBS Grate with regular insert.jpeg

This resulted in a small 3rd grate off to the right. Turns out it was just perfect to fit a stainless smoker box and provide easy access without bothering the main cooking area:

Smoker Box.jpeg

In an effort to get more of the "minimalist" look the current Genesis has, I opted for non-Weber knobs for the main burners, and I painted the firebox, hood end caps, and the non-stainless side frame and panels black. I also primed and painted the doors black, including covering over the chrome edging. For the shelf end caps I went with silver as used on the new Genesis to make the shelves appear more extended and cohesive with the stainless. I also used silver for the bracket that holds the drip pan. I even updated the thermometer bezel to the new style, and I painted the kettle red on the new style logo badge (a first for me on this type of badge):

Hood with Weber logo and Sear Station.jpeg
Stainless Bottom.jpeg
Front View of Grill.jpeg

This grill also has a sideburner that only needed some cleaning:

Side Burner 2.jpeg

I plan to sell this grill. Not sure of its value yet. Custom stainless cabinetry, Sear Station, GBS stainless grates and essentially an all-new looking grill, I hope will appeal to the right buyer :coolkettle: .

Sear Station.jpeg
GBS Sear Grate Insert.jpeg
Inside grates and hood with Owners Manual.jpeg
Hood with new thermometer bezel & Weber badge logo.jpeg
 
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Yah Jon, that is just great. I am impressed with the modification on the GBS grate. If we find that in the future on Genesis grills here in the US, I think it might wind up needing to be called the TBS: Tofte Grate System. That access to the smoker box is genius.
 
Wow Jon, that is extremely impressive, just beyond first class in every detail. I know I could never use that grill again after it looked like that. If you do plan on selling it, I hope you ask big money for it.
 
What a fantastic job and attention to detail! I am in the middle of rebuilding my 330 and until I opened this was pleased with my plywood replacement floor panel. Now I feel so inadequate LOL
 
Like I said, this was a fun walk on the wild side. Grills are ultimately for grilling, so I agree with Bruce totally. I do wish, though, that I still had my sheet metal friend able to make those stainless panels - especially the bottom - and could get the price to a realistic point for restoring more of these grills. It’s the way Weber should have made them in the first place!
 
I finally finished my restoration of a Genesis 330 Special Edition that for a number of years was my daily driver. I hauled the hulk remnants of it all the way to Indiana from Florida.

I was greatly inspired by the post by @DanHoo where he showed how he "blackened out" a Genesis of similar vintage.


I decided to take it even further and try to make this 11-year-old grill look as much as possible like the new Genesis currently being sold.

So, starting with a grill that looked just like this:
View attachment 72185

I aimed for a look more like this:
View attachment 72186

This is what I came up with:

View attachment 72187

This was kind of a walk on the wild side. I am in no way saying that the new Genesis is the cat's meow. At the same time, the look of the 300 series grills is perhaps starting to become dated, so I thought this would be a fun thing to try out. I went all out on making this as new as possible with added custom features that you won't find in probably any other 300 series grill (or even any newer Weber being sold today):

Firebox blasted, new stainless burners, Dave Santana "rcplanebuyer" heat deflectors and Qlimetal 304 stainless flavorizer bars

View attachment 72204


View attachment 72188

NEVER USED OEM Hood

View attachment 72189

STAINLESS STEEL replacement bottom and back panels. These were made by a friend of mine who used to own a sheet metal shop in Florida. Adding them addresses the Achilles heel of these otherwise excellent grills:

View attachment 72190
View attachment 72191

NOT new, but not easy to find, I have been holding on to a set of OEM Weber stainless rod grates with the GBS feature. They are pretty stout, feeling thicker than the 7mm they registered on my caliper. I think they cleaned up pretty well, However, the design was stupid in that the GBS removable circle is in the MIDDLE of the grate set, while the "Sear Station" with its extra burner is off to one side. When I was in Germany and got to visit one of the two Weber stores there, I noticed that in Europe, Weber did it right by centering the GBS over the Sear Station:

View attachment 72192

I decided I could do the same with the help of a cut-off tool:

View attachment 72193

This resulted in a small 3rd grate off to the right. Turns out it was just perfect to fit a stainless smoker box and provide easy access without bothering the main cooking area:

View attachment 72194

In an effort to get more of the "minimalist" look the current Genesis has, I opted for non-Weber knobs for the main burners, and I painted the firebox, hood end caps, and the non-stainless side frame and panels black. I also primed and painted the doors black, including covering over the chrome edging. For the shelf end caps I went with silver as used on the new Genesis to make the shelves appear more extended and cohesive with the stainless. I also used silver for the bracket that holds the drip pan. I even updated the thermometer bezel to the new style, and I painted the kettle red on the new style logo badge (a first for me on this type of badge):

View attachment 72195
View attachment 72196
View attachment 72197

This grill also has a sideburner that only needed some cleaning:

View attachment 72198

I plan to sell this grill. Not sure of its value yet. Custom stainless cabinetry, Sear Station, GBS stainless grates and essentially an all-new looking grill, I hope will appeal to the right buyer :coolkettle: .

View attachment 72199
View attachment 72200
View attachment 72201
View attachment 72202
I love it. The best way to respect that work is to start cooking on it....
 

 

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