Petroni North
TVWBB Member
Assembly advice WSM 57cm/22” with photos & tips
Box is not so much heavy as big and awkward. You may welcome a hand moving it.
Mine arrived undamaged. On opening, all parts were present.
Laid out the parts (photo soon)
Tip – empty all parts out of the box. Close the lid of the box and use it as a workbench. The leg assembly is very awkward at floor level, much easier at waist/chest height.
Tip – despite what the assembly instruction images show, you will need a short (3” or so) stubby slotted screwdriver. Each of the three legs is shaped in such a way that you cannot get a regular screwdriver to fit into the space and to try would risk nasty scratches as you inevitably slip and slide trying.
Base assembly. This is the only other bit (apart from carrying the box) where a second pair of hands are really useful. If you position the heat reflector plate in its place under the bottom bowl while at the same time trying to attach/position the three legs, its gets a bit lively.
Tip – attach the lower leg bolts first. You need to place an anti vibration washed between the leg and the smoker. If you attach the top part of the leg first it becomes much harder to then attach the bottom (I learned the hard way).
Struggled a bit with the legs as the holes did not align well and some elbow grease was needed to get the bolt through while holding the fibre washer in place. Time 18 minutes
Tip – when you place the burning shelf into the base bowl, position it so that the two lengths of metal on one side are uppermost. This allows the burning grate to sit more securely than when the shelf is the other way as the two metal length keep the grate from moving to the side of the smoker’s body.
Adding attachments to the middle section. Attaching the cooking shelf supports was very easy and took 9 minutes. Fitting the rubber grommet/bung (which allows wire leads/sensors probes to pass through) – Time 1 minute.
Tip – you will need a small to medium sized cross head screwdriver to fit the two handles.
Time to fit the handles 2 minutes
Negatives
I tested the thermostat for accuracy and was disappointed to find it read 88C when it should have been reading at 100C. I know its only an indicator and that I will in practice use more sensitive probes but it seemed a long way out for such a basic reading and therefore serves very limited purpose.
The major disappointment was the removable door panel (for adding water/extra briquettes etc). This is a shocking poor piece of design and fabrication. Its lightweight metal, misformed and a poor piece of kit. Mine had two x 3 mm gaps along the top of the door, one x 3 mm gap down the right side and a massive 8mm gap down the left side. The amount of air that this will let in worries me as logic suggests that a cool updraft on the gate door side of the smoker will interfere with the consistency of heating at both cooking shelves.
I called the guy who sold it to me and he said
- It’s a well known problem
- It won’t make as much difference as you think
- Try reworking the shape and bend it into a better fit
- A firm in USA is fabricating a stainless steel alternative that will cost about £40 (approx $60) and will cost a lot to ship to UK
I may try adding a thin bead of high temperature mastic about 3mm thick all around the area left, right and top of the door to see if this will help even out the irregular air gaps. Alternatively I thought of using a 3/4mm string/line that can be poked into the gaps each time the door is shut but neither option appeal to me.
Anyone found a fix for this? Does it affect cooking evenness/times in any significant way?
The small tool images in the manual assembly section are not inclusive
Final negative was Weber registration online (www.weber.com) . It requires you to add your serial number but from the packing labels there is no way to figure out which of the four numbers is the serial number. Easy fix by adding the words ‘serial number’ above the correct one next time the label design is updated (in case anyone from Weber ever reads this). Edit : I learned that the serial number is stamped on the top vent (thanks Darren)
Positives
- excellent piece of kit, well constructed, heavy duty and nice finish
- easy to assemble (other than the small issues above)
- all parts present
- no unnecessary packaging and about 99% of it recyclable
- assembly time almost exactly 30 minutes (even with the leg mistake)
That’s my lot. My second post will be a list of kit that I have assembled in readiness for using the smoker which may help other new users think through stuff they might otherwise forget (and make fewer trips to the shops!).
Now I just need the lousy UK weather forecast which predicts 6 days rain to be wrong as I have two shoulders and a brisket sitting in the fridge sucking up some rub
Edit : I have tried to upload a few photos but failed, too old and dumb it seems
Peter (PeterFromSandhurst)
Box is not so much heavy as big and awkward. You may welcome a hand moving it.
Mine arrived undamaged. On opening, all parts were present.
Laid out the parts (photo soon)
Tip – empty all parts out of the box. Close the lid of the box and use it as a workbench. The leg assembly is very awkward at floor level, much easier at waist/chest height.
Tip – despite what the assembly instruction images show, you will need a short (3” or so) stubby slotted screwdriver. Each of the three legs is shaped in such a way that you cannot get a regular screwdriver to fit into the space and to try would risk nasty scratches as you inevitably slip and slide trying.
Base assembly. This is the only other bit (apart from carrying the box) where a second pair of hands are really useful. If you position the heat reflector plate in its place under the bottom bowl while at the same time trying to attach/position the three legs, its gets a bit lively.
Tip – attach the lower leg bolts first. You need to place an anti vibration washed between the leg and the smoker. If you attach the top part of the leg first it becomes much harder to then attach the bottom (I learned the hard way).
Struggled a bit with the legs as the holes did not align well and some elbow grease was needed to get the bolt through while holding the fibre washer in place. Time 18 minutes
Tip – when you place the burning shelf into the base bowl, position it so that the two lengths of metal on one side are uppermost. This allows the burning grate to sit more securely than when the shelf is the other way as the two metal length keep the grate from moving to the side of the smoker’s body.
Adding attachments to the middle section. Attaching the cooking shelf supports was very easy and took 9 minutes. Fitting the rubber grommet/bung (which allows wire leads/sensors probes to pass through) – Time 1 minute.
Tip – you will need a small to medium sized cross head screwdriver to fit the two handles.
Time to fit the handles 2 minutes
Negatives
I tested the thermostat for accuracy and was disappointed to find it read 88C when it should have been reading at 100C. I know its only an indicator and that I will in practice use more sensitive probes but it seemed a long way out for such a basic reading and therefore serves very limited purpose.
The major disappointment was the removable door panel (for adding water/extra briquettes etc). This is a shocking poor piece of design and fabrication. Its lightweight metal, misformed and a poor piece of kit. Mine had two x 3 mm gaps along the top of the door, one x 3 mm gap down the right side and a massive 8mm gap down the left side. The amount of air that this will let in worries me as logic suggests that a cool updraft on the gate door side of the smoker will interfere with the consistency of heating at both cooking shelves.
I called the guy who sold it to me and he said
- It’s a well known problem
- It won’t make as much difference as you think
- Try reworking the shape and bend it into a better fit
- A firm in USA is fabricating a stainless steel alternative that will cost about £40 (approx $60) and will cost a lot to ship to UK
I may try adding a thin bead of high temperature mastic about 3mm thick all around the area left, right and top of the door to see if this will help even out the irregular air gaps. Alternatively I thought of using a 3/4mm string/line that can be poked into the gaps each time the door is shut but neither option appeal to me.
Anyone found a fix for this? Does it affect cooking evenness/times in any significant way?
The small tool images in the manual assembly section are not inclusive
Final negative was Weber registration online (www.weber.com) . It requires you to add your serial number but from the packing labels there is no way to figure out which of the four numbers is the serial number. Easy fix by adding the words ‘serial number’ above the correct one next time the label design is updated (in case anyone from Weber ever reads this). Edit : I learned that the serial number is stamped on the top vent (thanks Darren)
Positives
- excellent piece of kit, well constructed, heavy duty and nice finish
- easy to assemble (other than the small issues above)
- all parts present
- no unnecessary packaging and about 99% of it recyclable
- assembly time almost exactly 30 minutes (even with the leg mistake)
That’s my lot. My second post will be a list of kit that I have assembled in readiness for using the smoker which may help other new users think through stuff they might otherwise forget (and make fewer trips to the shops!).
Now I just need the lousy UK weather forecast which predicts 6 days rain to be wrong as I have two shoulders and a brisket sitting in the fridge sucking up some rub
Edit : I have tried to upload a few photos but failed, too old and dumb it seems
Peter (PeterFromSandhurst)
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