Probably a dumb question but can one still get the charcoal rack for a charQ?


 
Stefan H

Stefan H

TVWBB Guru
As I understand, the charcoal racks for the CharQ have been discontinued. I reached out to Weber but have not heard back yet.
Have people come up with alternatives? Mine is bit rusty but still soli. However if I could get my hand on a second one I would stash it away.
 
There is an outfit in Canada that I found by Googling that had them in stock, but they said they could not sell them to me in the US. Maybe you can find a source up there to buy it and then ship to you. It would be pricey, off course. I doubt even they have many left.

I don't think it would be out of the question for a sheet metal guy to fabricate a workable replacement. Weber used "alumnized steel" but it would be really cool to get one made from stainless.
 
I also found a company in Canada. Nit sure it is the same.
canadianbbqboys.com

Weber OEM Aluminum Steel Charcoal Basket

Canadian BBQ Boys - BBQ cleaning service - barbecue replacement parts and accessories - Weber Grill replacement parts
canadianbbqboys.com canadianbbqboys.com
I did not ask them about shipping but I emailed them about the item being in stock. They responded: We order our inventory from the manufacturer and believe that we have it in stock still.
He "believes". That did not sound ensuring. I don't want to pay for something up front which they "believe" they can ship.

And yes I guess a metal guy should be able to do it. Basically laser cutting a SS sheet and bending the edges.
 
If you are interested in one, you could contact RCPlanebuyer about it. He may be willing to fab one up if you sent him a stock one to use as a guide. Or, he may already have made several of them for other people and be able to whip one up for you. A nice 16 gauge 304 stainless one would be awful nice.
 
Bruce 16 gauge would be freaking awesome and probably survive me and that grill. I might actually do that.
 
Ok. I may have another dumb idea. After looking at my smaller Q1200 I noticed that the grill grate of the Q1200 has very similar measurements than the charcoal grate of the charQ. So played a bit.
1. Use rods between the notches and place the grate on top. However there is a wide gap in each side. And the grate gets too high
2. Place the grate directly into the bowl. The problem is that the Q1200 grates are two parts. So one would need to have some support underneath. Or get a 1 piece grate from the Q100/120/140.
What do you guys think? Would that work?
 

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I would say that is a pretty creative solution and a good use for worn out Q100 grates. I just finished restoring a 1960's "Duchess Cooker" made by PK. It is a very small kettle type grill made entirely of cast aluminum, a distant cousin of the CharQ! Anyway, as it was originally sold, the charcoal grate was made out of cast iron even though the cooking grate was typical nickel plated steel. I wonder if the PK designer felt that the cast iron would help radiate heat.

I used a medium Big Green Egg cast iron top grate as a charcoal grate replacement for my Duchess since the original was gone and the BGE medium top grate was the same size. (I got that idea from the PK group on FaceBook.) The cast iron coaster/trivets you see are to protect the bottom vents. The original cast iron charcoal grate had those built in.

Cast iron grate & trivets.jpg
 
Bruce said:
Interesting idea. But, if I was going to go that route, this is probably the solution I would choose. Probably a lifetime solution at that and one peice. and since they are only 4mm thick, they won't raise the coals up as much as CI grates.

https://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B07GJD5XY4/tvwb-20
Click to expand...
Yes I have seen these. Plus it looks like these are the only "one piece" grates which are still available. Looks like all the Weber ones have been discontinued as well.
 
That stainless grate would be a cool solution. I don't like the price, though, whereas re-purposing an old rusted out Q 100 cast iron grate is a nice cheap fix;). No doubt, though, it would eventually not be usable even just as a charcoal grate. Hadn't thought about the height. It could be an issue, although with the CharQ you are pretty much limited to a single layer of charcoal anyway.
 
Stefan H said:
Ok. I may have another dumb idea. After looking at my smaller Q1200 I noticed that the grill grate of the Q1200 has very similar measurements than the charcoal grate of the charQ. So played a bit.
1. Use rods between the notches and place the grate on top. However there is a wide gap in each side. And the grate gets too high
2. Place the grate directly into the bowl. The problem is that the Q1200 grates are two parts. So one would need to have some support underneath. Or get a 1 piece grate from the Q100/120/140.
What do you guys think? Would that work?
Click to expand...

Stefan,

I had failed to notice your direct question. I do think that placing the cast iron directly in the bowl eliminates most of the height concern Bruce raised. Best fix (besides those cool stainless grates Bruce linked) would be to find a worn-out Q100 with a single grate. But, lacking that, I wonder if you couldn't wire or clip the two halves together so that it would hold itself up without a support. You can't put anything underneath in the middle, obviously, because that is where the CharQ's only below grate ventilation is.
 
Stefan H said:
I think I keep an eye out for a cheap older Q with a single grate. I have seen a few Q but all too expensive to harvest parts.
Click to expand...
Which older models have a grate that would work? What would be a good price for a Q to harvest parts? I see a lot of Qs available in my area.
 
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