Summit S-650 Thoughts


 
John-NY

John-NY

TVWBB Super Fan
I have a chance to score a Summit S-650 for $300

Is this a no brainier?
It looks to be in very good condition.

Anything I should definitely check or look out for?

Any most importantly, any advice how to transport it? I’m very familiar with dissembling the new Genesis II and Spirit II and old Silver models, but not this.

Does the lid come off easily with pins?
Do the arms come off easily with a ratchet?
Usually I fit things in the back of my SUV but I think I might need a truck for this.

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I don't think there is such a thing as a "no brainer" when it comes to those things, but that one does seem very nice. I can tell from the pictures that the front of the cookbox hasn't totally deteriorated yet, but you can't tell if it has started yet without an in person examination. As far as taking it apart, I can't comment.
 
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Steve Hoch said:
I don't think there is such a thing as a "no brainer" when it comes to those things, but that one does seem very nice. I can tell from the pictures that the front of the cookbox hasn't totally deteriorated yet, but you can't tell if it has started yet without an in person examination. As far as taking it apart, I can't comment.
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Where’s the best way to view the potentially damaged cookbox?
From underneath the grates?

Where will the rust be present? Enlarged burner tube holes? Rust holes where the grates sit? Thanks for the heads up
 
Yep, take the grates out and look at the inside of the cookbox. The rot starts by enlarging the holes for the burner tubes, and travels up to the lip where the grates sit. The flavorizer bars for those seem to be very expensive too, so I would take note note of the condition of all the internals. You may even be able to use all this knowledge to get the price down if you find something bad in there. The rest of the grill does look very nice.
 
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There’s no lower boxrot at the grate level. That could be promising. It’s propane. If you want and like propane, then sure. Note, that grill can blow some BTUs so idk how long a tank will last you on runtime. My S670 is NG. So I’ve never run out of fuel.
 
My opinion and experience with Summits.

That grill is worth about $30 to $100 as it sits.

It’s not restored by a knowledgeable person.

It’s not in excellent unrestored condition.

You have to move it.

It needs about 20 hours of labor and $300 in parts to get all the systems working properly barring any unforeseen firebo

It’s complex for a Weber0
 
BPratt said:
My opinion and experience with Summits.

That grill is worth about $30 to $100 as it sits.

It’s not restored by a knowledgeable person.

It’s not in excellent unrestored condition.

You have to move it.

It needs about 20 hours of labor and $300 in parts to get all the systems working properly barring any unforeseen firebo

It’s complex for a Weber0
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We’ll I have about 8 hours from now to potentially waste $300 so I have to ask if you’re seeing something specific that makes it worth $30?

I know and have read on these forums that some people loathe the Summit due to its end game fatal flaws, but if this one lights up all burners, IR works, etc, why would it need 20 hours of labor?

And couldn’t I just flip it as-is in the spring for a profit?
Thanks for any heads up!
 
Honestly while a grill like that is tempting it's like Eve in the Garden. Internal rust buckets and VERY expensive to maintain and repair let alone run being an LP version. Better off with 2 Genesis than 1 of those
 
It looks in nice shape. Check under that board that the tank is resting on as that is not stock and it may be rusted under there. If the insides of the firebox, the burners, and flavorizers are in decent shape it looks like it could be a good flip. The lid does come off with two pins but make sure they spin freely as if they are seized it may be hard not to damage the firebox or lid. Let us know how it goes. Also check out the rotisserie burner. If it does not light you may bargain some more. Can always disable the thermocoupler later as I always do.
 
Joe Anshien said:
It looks in nice shape. Check under that board that the tank is resting on as that is not stock and it may be rusted under there. If the insides of the firebox, the burners, and flavorizers are in decent shape it looks like it could be a good flip. The lid does come off with two pins but make sure they spin freely as if they are seized it may be hard not to damage the firebox or lid. Let us know how it goes. Also check out the rotisserie burner. If it does not light you may bargain some more. Can always disable the thermocoupler later as I always do.
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What’s the benefit of disabling the Thermocoupler?

Also, I took your advice and got some of those aluminum ramp kits with some two by eights so I should be able to get it into the truck no problem now.
 
John-NY said:
What’s the benefit of disabling the Thermocoupler?

Also, I took your advice and got some of those aluminum ramp kits with some two by eights so I should be able to get it into the truck no problem now.
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If the rotisserie burner will not stay lit it is almost always the thermocoupler. It has to get hot from the pilot then allows the gas to flow without holding the knob. I would guess 95% of all patio heater problems will be or have been from this. Plus having to hold down the knob while getting the thermocoupler hot enough to stay on is a PITA. It is a 5 minute "fix" if you want to disable it. I show how in the thread on restoring a Genesis 5 that had one. BTW it is supposed to be a "safety feature" and some will argue to not disable it but why do non of the other burners have or need one?
 
John-NY said:
We’ll I have about 8 hours from now to potentially waste $300 so I have to ask if you’re seeing something specific that makes it worth $30?

I know and have read on these forums that some people loathe the Summit due to its end game fatal flaws, but if this one lights up all burners, IR works, etc, why would it need 20 hours of labor?

And couldn’t I just flip it as-is in the spring for a profit?
Thanks for any heads up!
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Hi John, 20 hours including looking, negotiating, transport, assessing, parts purchasing, cleaning, head scratching, assembly, etc. If you enjoy fooling around with the grill not a problem. I use $10 per hour hobby projects

I look at what the parts are worth to figure out what I can recoup if things go south.

The cooking grids and propane manifold could be resold for probably $50 to $100. The rotisserie has some value too.

So I would only want to be in the grill as is for $100 or less assuming it will need work to get all systems working. Your tolerance for risk may be greater.

So I calculate
Labor $200
Purchase price $100 or less
Parts $300

Total $500 to $600

So all restored the grill would probably fetch between $600 and $900 if you have a decent market in your area

The homeowners always say the grill works just needs a …
 
Joe Anshien said:
It looks in nice shape. Check under that board that the tank is resting on as that is not stock and it may be rusted under there
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Good eye Joe, I didn't notice that before. There is a real good chance that it's rusty under there and I'm sure that piece is not inexpensive to replace.
 
Well, I snagged it. Didn't want to fuss with negotiation while I was there. $300
There's only a small spot near the grates that's rusted through on the cookbox, and I didn't have any way that I knew of to see inside the cookbox itself. There's big grease shields (?) blocking the view of the rest of the cookbox. Unless That IS the cookbox? If so, no rust that I could see.

The flames, when you light them, the starter flame doesn't seem to "go out". It just keeps flamethrowering itself after the burner is lit.
So I'm not sure what's causing that.
One of the knobs is very difficult to turn to light, but it does actually light, so not sure how to get that back to a smooth operation.

Either way, it was a fun haul with my father-in-law getting it up and down the ramps into and out of his truck, so at least we made another memory lol
 
John-NY said:
Well, I snagged it. Didn't want to fuss with negotiation while I was there. $300
There's only a small spot near the grates that's rusted through on the cookbox, and I didn't have any way that I knew of to see inside the cookbox itself. There's big grease shields (?) blocking the view of the rest of the cookbox. Unless That IS the cookbox? If so, no rust that I could see.

The flames, when you light them, the starter flame doesn't seem to "go out". It just keeps flamethrowering itself after the burner is lit.
So I'm not sure what's causing that.
One of the knobs is very difficult to turn to light, but it does actually light, so not sure how to get that back to a smooth operation.

Either way, it was a fun haul with my father-in-law getting it up and down the ramps into and out of his truck, so at least we made another memory lol
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These are lower boxrot pics. If you see these types of holes/pitting/rust/burn through, then you’ll need a new lower cook box.

1667954514946.png


1667954536712.png
 
BPratt said:
Hi John, 20 hours including looking, negotiating, transport, assessing, parts purchasing, cleaning, head scratching, assembly, etc. If you enjoy fooling around with the grill not a problem. I use $10 per hour hobby projects

I look at what the parts are worth to figure out what I can recoup if things go south.

The cooking grids and propane manifold could be resold for probably $50 to $100. The rotisserie has some value too.

So I would only want to be in the grill as is for $100 or less assuming it will need work to get all systems working. Your tolerance for risk may be greater.

So I calculate
Labor $200
Purchase price $100 or less
Parts $300

Total $500 to $600

So all restored the grill would probably fetch between $600 and $900 if you have a decent market in your area

The homeowners always say the grill works just needs a …
Click to expand...
You better not ever pick up one of the older models with the wood to refinish or you can throw your labor price out the window. I did a Genesis 5 and I will hopefully never deal with a grill with wood again as it was very, very time consuming, not to mention the spar urethane.
 
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