Potential Summit S-450 Project


 
M

Mike M in PRM

New member
Hi all. Wanted to hear some opinions about taking on this project.

Just rescued this Summit 450 that my neighbor left at the curb for trash pickup. At first glance, it looked great. ID labels reads 2006.



As I'm tearing it apart, I am becoming discouraged at the level of corrosion throughout. Not impressed with the amount of sheet metal used to construct the firebox. Contrasted with my Silver B has the nice cast firebox that seems sturdier and longer lived. The lid of the firebox rattles a bit from stuff inside the sheetmetal. Haven't disassembled this yet.


Grates are filthy but salvageable.


Burners need a good wire brush treatment and may still work. Planning to see if I can get it lit before I spend a dime and make a decision whether to go for it.




Braces that hold the burner tubes should work but significant corrosion.



Stand/base components are really rough, and expensive to replace. If the key components of the grill are good, I might consider building a wooden cart with real wheels to support the box and controls.




Sheetmetal dissolving before your eyes.

What would you do?

Thanks for your input.

Mike
 
I hate to say it but I would put it back on the curb. To restore that grill even if you could get all the parts would be so expensive you could buy one in good shape off of CL for a lot less money.
That's way most folks go after the early Genesis gassers with the aluminum fireboxes. A solid grill with relatively inexpensive parts and great cookers.
 
Ouch...that last photo of yours is why I'm not a fan of the enclosed cabinets. I've never worked on a Summit with the cabinet on the bottom, but is there supposed to be a piece of square tube running across the bottom front of the cabinet, behind the doors?

If that's the case, and you really wanted this grill (and got the rest of it cleaned up and working) you could try the fix I used on my SS Performer cart. Buy a piece of 1" square bar from the hardware store and a piece of 1/4" threaded rod (plus 2 nuts and washers). Cut the bar stock to fit the space in the front, run the threaded rod through the new bar and the panels on either side, cut the long end off and put on the nuts and washers. You wouldn't have the floor pan, but it looks like the propane tank hangs on the scale anyway.

That grill is new enough that some parts may still be under warranty, so it's definitely worth looking into. The SS lids have a 25 year on them, the burners should have 10 years, and I want to say the firebox has one too. If it's an 06 like you said, you may be in luck!
 
KevinG said:
Ouch...that last photo of yours is why I'm not a fan of the enclosed cabinets. I've never worked on a Summit with the cabinet on the bottom, but is there supposed to be a piece of square tube running across the bottom front of the cabinet, behind the doors?

If that's the case, and you really wanted this grill (and got the rest of it cleaned up and working) you could try the fix I used on my SS Performer cart. Buy a piece of 1" square bar from the hardware store and a piece of 1/4" threaded rod (plus 2 nuts and washers). Cut the bar stock to fit the space in the front, run the threaded rod through the new bar and the panels on either side, cut the long end off and put on the nuts and washers. You wouldn't have the floor pan, but it looks like the propane tank hangs on the scale anyway.

That grill is new enough that some parts may still be under warranty, so it's definitely worth looking into. The SS lids have a 25 year on them, the burners should have 10 years, and I want to say the firebox has one too. If it's an 06 like you said, you may be in luck!
Click to expand...

There was not originally a square tube across the lower front, but that could work.

Good point on the warranty, I may inquire with Weber w/ the serial number just for giggles.
 
Rich Dahl said:
I hate to say it but I would put it back on the curb. To restore that grill even if you could get all the parts would be so expensive you could buy one in good shape off of CL for a lot less money.
That's way most folks go after the early Genesis gassers with the aluminum fireboxes. A solid grill with relatively inexpensive parts and great cookers.
Click to expand...

That's what I was afraid of. I added the obvious parts to a shopping cart on ereplacements dot com, and it was close to $500. Good advice on the aluminum firebox models. My Silver B is over 14 years old, I have refreshed the grates, flavorizer bars, and burners, and it still looks and runs great.
 
One of the things truly beginning to disappoint me about weber. They have cheapened the product over the years yet the retail pricing is still in the stratosphere. That was most likely a $1500 to $1700 grill. It's not that old. They could do so much better
 
That is why I found a Genesis 1000 on Craigslist and rehabbed it. Not as big but for a 20 year old gasser, you can't beat it. It's a redhead and looks great and cooks great. Weber know how to make them back then. I think if I needed more gasser space, I would find another Genesis of this vintage and rehab it. With 2 I would have all the gasser space I would need. I was at HD two days ago and looking at the new Genesis and when I tap on the lid it is still better than the other brands but it does not come close to the Genesis with the cast aluminum bodies. These old ones just keep working.

LMichaels said:
One of the things truly beginning to disappoint me about weber. They have cheapened the product over the years yet the retail pricing is still in the stratosphere. That was most likely a $1500 to $1700 grill. It's not that old. They could do so much better
Click to expand...
 
Mike, if you go to weber's web site you can punch in the serial # and download a copy of the owners manual specific to that grill which will have the warranty information.
 
LMichaels said:
One of the things truly beginning to disappoint me about weber. They have cheapened the product over the years yet the retail pricing is still in the stratosphere. That was most likely a $1500 to $1700 grill. It's not that old. They could do so much better
Click to expand...
I think this BBQ is an exception. Portland area is a harsh environment and that guy looks he's seen neglect / borderline abuse. There's plenty of stuff that could be harvested off it and saved for another one that comes around. If you have a place to store the harvested items
 
LMichaels said:
One of the things truly beginning to disappoint me about weber. They have cheapened the product over the years yet the retail pricing is still in the stratosphere. That was most likely a $1500 to $1700 grill. It's not that old. They could do so much better
Click to expand...

I'm sure someone will correct me if I'm wrong but I think the fireboxes on the new genesis models are cast aluminium just like the older models and therefore won't rust through like this. I believe it is just the higher priced summit model that is prone to this type of premature corrosion.

I have an older genesis that was my father's that I love but I wouldn't hesitate to buy a newer model weber genesis.
 
1st post,, I could be way out of line here, but most of the damage seems to be in the cart area. If the burner/firebox/manifold/regulator work,there are many things that I would do to savage this. Since I love to fabricate things and not try to turn things into their original form , I would cut /grindaway any rust spots that are deeper than surface, if I had to rebuild the cart I would use materials that would last the next 20years so the effort would be worth while. I would check to see if the firebox/lid is still straight. I would replace any grates that look like that just for piece of mind. I would set a budget and see if it could be done within the budget. Remember after your done its gona be your grill,( I wouldn't skimp ).If you can fire the grill up and all things work well I would proceed with the project. that's my take, it looks like a great grill that needs some elbow grease and love.
 
If u foresee/calculate a diamond piece out of a briquette, Get 'er done! Sometimes the return is greater than the investment a wise man once (at a bar, I was buzzing hard) told me.
 
I had a Summit S670 that was heading in the same direction. I patched it and used it for a while but it just was not worth it to fully rebuild it. The parts cost much more than what it would have been worth.
I finally gave it to a guy who sells scrap metal after finding a nice Genesis to replace it.
 
Your concept is what I was thinking, and I still look over the carcass every few days. Looks like I need to move the one good burner around to test the manifold, and haven't had the time to dedicate to reassembling and experimenting. I'd still be $250-350 in parts at a minimum plus effort to construct a worthy custom cart.
 
Rich Dahl said:
I hate to say it but I would put it back on the curb. To restore that grill even if you could get all the parts would be so expensive you could buy one in good shape off of CL for a lot less money.
That's way most folks go after the early Genesis gassers with the aluminum fireboxes. A solid grill with relatively inexpensive parts and great cookers.
Click to expand...

What Rich said. I recently rebuilt a Genesis Gold B that I purchased for $75 off of CL. I spent another $250 getting it where I wanted it but it will last me a long time. It is a beast and heats up to 600 in 5 minutes.
 
Taking a second look at it, if you are mechanically inclined (i.e. can build stuff), that's a whole different ball game. The thing to look at is the grill box, manifold, etc. Thoe grates are 3/8th steel rod and just need some cleaning up. They are high end and high dollar. To me, it would come down to how the inside wall of the lower firebox looks. Is it rusting through ? Or is it solid ? WRT the burner brackets, will they still do the job ? Are they rusted and falling apart ? Or is it just surface rust?

Something else to keep in mind when running the numbers is that this wasn't a $550 Weber Genesis and won't be when you finish it. It's a freaking $1500 Weber Summit. If the main workings of the grill can be fixed up for a couple of hundred and you can make a nice frame for it, or fix it using some metal working skills, it might be a great candidate for restoration.

I had to go through some similar calculations when deciding to restore a 20yr old Summit 650. I put much more into than I ever would have put into a Genny, but then again, I got a lot more grill out of it.
 
Check the firebox CLOSELY, especially where the burners go through. These porcelain coated carbon steel fireboxes tend to rust through.
 
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