Weber Mastertouch Premium Kettle


 
I found a platypus about two months ago, $50! Small damage to the left side table, “honest wear” it’s going to be my dedicated Vortex unit. I should get started on the Rotisserie carriage pretty soon.
 
You did such a great job on that one Jon, it kind of gives me a thought that I'd rather have that than my drop shelf Performer. Sometimes 2 shelves are better than one.
 
Greg Part said:
I realize this is a 2+ year old thread but, if anyone is interested, I did a little digging and learned Weber still has a few dozen Master-Touch Premium grills sitting in their warehouse. That’s the 2020 / 2021 Premium, with the hinged lid, the sought-after char ring and diffuser plate, and only comes in black.

Although it’s no longer listed on the U.S. Weber site, it is listed on the Canadian Weber site (as well as several European sites with a different model / part # than the U.S. and Canadian one) and, upon inquiry, I was assured it is still for sale for the U.S. market.

The U.S. and Canadian Part # is: 17301001
https://www.weber.com/CA/en/charcoa...touch-premium-charcoal-grill-22/17301001.html

As some of the the smaller pics won’t show up on my computer (perhaps it’s a site issue?), I’ve also included the UK website.
https://www.weber.com/GB/en/barbecu...-e-5770-charcoal-barbecue-57-cm/17301004.html

Owners Manual is here:
https://weber.mizecx.com/retrieve/s3/knowledge/WEBER_OG/52762_040120.pdf?AWSAccessKeyId=AKIAUA2JDF35TDNNDYWX&Expires=1681928482&Signature=e4yhukJBzobFoesOAV0VsuEoNQU=

I was quoted a U.S. price of $379 minus a 20% discount ($75.80) for a total of $303.20. Add 6% VA sales tax ($18.19) for a grand total of $321.39 + free shipping.

As this was the MasterTouch model I really wanted but was unable to find anywhere when I decided to try my hand at charcoal grilling again after a 15+ year hiatus, I decided to grab a new one from Weber this week. Hoping to receive it next week.
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Glad to hear Weber came through for you. Great they helped you get the model you really wanted. Weber has great customer service in my experience.
 
Jon Tofte said:
I really like those MasterTouch Premium kettles, but like the One Touch Platinum “Platypus” that I also really like, it apparently wasn’t a big success for Weber.
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Apparently (from the numerous reviews I’ve read) many buyers were having problems with the lid sealing properly due to poor hinge seat / fit (or not reading the assembly instruction) so as to (hopefully) seat the lid / hinge assembly correctly.

Tom Horsman did a YT video a couple of years ago where he compared the MT Premium to the SNS Kettle and remarked that the MT Premium did not appear to accommodate the Slow ‘N Sear very well due to its front lid handle and thermometer placement and vent placement at the rear hinge side of the lid. IIRCC, he went on to speculate that perhaps Weber did this on purpose so as to make it relatively incompatible with the SNS.

I thought about that and seeing that the lid can be detached from the rear bowl hinge one could simply rotate the lid and put it on and take it off manually for a particular cook / smoking. However, that would take two hands to do as the MT Premium lid lacks a top handle. The lid could be modded by installing a taco handle and a slide aside lid holder, or, one could use / acquire a regular lid and use it with a slide aside lid holder during a smoke. Using a vortex shouldn’t pose an issue, though. IMO, It‘s the MT’s lid vent and thermometer and handle placement that’s a bit goofy. Then again, I usually don’t pay too much attention to the lid thermometer and, instead, rely on surface and food probes for temps.

If there’s ANYTHING I've learned through this forum it’s that when it comes to grills and grilling, ANYTHING is possible!
 
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Greg Part said:
Apparently (from the numerous reviews I’ve read) many buyers were having problems with the lid sealing properly due to poor hinge seat / fit (or not reading the assembly instruction) so as to (hopefully) seat the lid / hinge assembly correctly.

Tom Horsman did a YT video a couple of years ago where he compared the MT Premium to the SNS Kettle and remarked that the MT Premium did not appear to accommodate the Slow ‘N Sear very well due to its front lid handle and thermometer placement and vent placement at the rear hinge side of the lid. IIRCC, he went on to speculate that perhaps Weber did this on purpose so as to make it relatively incompatible with the SNS.

I thought about that and seeing that the lid can be detached from the rear bowl hinge one could simply rotate the lid and put it on and take it off manually for a particular cook / smoking. However, that would take two hands to do as the MT Premium lid lacks a top handle. The lid could be modded by installing a taco handle and a slide aside lid holder, or, one could use / acquire a regular lid and use it with a slide aside lid holder during a smoke. Using a vortex shouldn’t pose an issue, though. IMO, It‘s the MT’s lid vent and thermometer and handle placement that’s a bit goofy. Then again, I usually don’t pay too much attention to the lid thermometer and, instead, rely on surface and food probes for temps.

If there’s ANYTHING I've learned through this forum it’s that when it comes to grills and grilling, ANYTHING is possible!
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Most of the "lid-to-bowl" fit issues could be resolved with hardware adjustments. I wrote up a few FAQ's about the Master-Touch Premium that you can find below.

 
I think that @John Burns is totally correct. Tom Horsman, I think, had to tinker with his but got it working fine. Hadn't thought about the Slow-N-Sear challenge. It might be a better grill to go with the conventional Weber dual side fold-ups and their charcoal holders. Or, might try the diffuser method.
 
Jon Tofte said:
I think that @John Burns is totally correct. Tom Horsman, I think, had to tinker with his but got it working fine. Hadn't thought about the Slow-N-Sear challenge. It might be a better grill to go with the conventional Weber dual side fold-ups and their charcoal holders. Or, might try the diffuser method.
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The MTP comes with the diffuser plate and char-ring, so that lead more into the overall grill design than any consideration for 3rd party products. The Summit Charcoal/Kamado uses the same lid damper location and no one seems to complain about that when it comes to indirect cooking, but I can appreciate the Summit is an entirely different animal.
 
John Burns said:
Most of the "lid-to-bowl" fit issues could be resolved with hardware adjustments. I wrote up a few FAQ's about the Master-Touch Premium that you can find below.

Click to expand...
Thanks for the info, John. That’s good stuff! It certainly confirms my suspicion that some of the owners complaints re; poor lid seating didn’t take the time to read the assembly instructions or watch the BILT instructional video.
 
John Burns said:
The MTP comes with the diffuser plate and char-ring, so that lead more into the overall grill design than any consideration for 3rd party products. The Summit Charcoal/Kamado uses the same lid damper location and no one seems to complain about that when it comes to indirect cooking, but I can appreciate the Summit is an entirely different animal.
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I had forgotten to mention the char ring and diffuser plate, as that provides the primary ”stock” intended method for smoking on the MTP.

I intend to smoke for the very first time this summer and am considering a brisket flat as that may be a good entry for a beef-loving beginning smoker.
 
Jon Tofte said:
I think that @John Burns is totally correct. Tom Horsman, I think, had to tinker with his but got it working fine. Hadn't thought about the Slow-N-Sear challenge. It might be a better grill to go with the conventional Weber dual side fold-ups and their charcoal holders. Or, might try the diffuser method.
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I saw that Tom also affixed a Spider Grills Venom to his MTP and smoked a pork butt for 7 hours using the char ring and diffuser. It looked pretty darned good!

Do you think the Spider Grills Venom would be best used on the regular MT or MTP???
 
Greg Part said:
I saw that Tom also affixed a Spider Grills Venom to his MTP and smoked a pork butt for 7 hours using the char ring and diffuser. It looked pretty darned good!

Do you think the Spider Grills Venom would be best used on the regular MT or MTP???
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I don't have any direct data to provide concerning the compatibility of the Spider Grills Venom on a regular MT vs an MTP, but overall I'd suspect the performance (if the charcoal setup was the same) between the two to be pretty similar. There are so many variables when it comes to brand/type of charcoal, amount used, how it's lit, ambient conditions, accessories being used, etc. that the data can easily become so nuanced as to be overly specific for providing a generalized guideline.
 
John Burns said:
I don't have any direct data to provide concerning the compatibility of the Spider Grills Venom on a regular MT vs an MTP, but overall I'd suspect the performance (if the charcoal setup was the same) between the two to be pretty similar. There are so many variables when it comes to brand/type of charcoal, amount used, how it's lit, ambient conditions, accessories being used, etc. that the data can easily become so nuanced as to be overly specific for providing a generalized guideline.
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I’m gonna give the various scenarios some thought.
 
Timothy F. Lewis said:
I found a platypus about two months ago, $50! Small damage to the left side table, “honest wear” it’s going to be my dedicated Vortex unit. I should get started on the Rotisserie carriage pretty soon.
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I just picked up one of these for $50 too! I hadn’t heard of them before but couldn’t resist. Vortex unit?!
 
Tim, after a couple of trials, it’s “OK” I’m not convinced that it’s either superior or inferior yet. I need to do more testing.
 
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