Unfortunately not..... you have to be damn quick -and lucky- when grills in that condition pop up on CL...

So --- I did a deep clean on the grill yesterday.... the cross over burner was getting plugged and the slave burner was not lighting correctly --- takes ~25 seconds from turning on and ignites with a 'WHOOOOMF' --- not good. Usually you can just run a brass brush along the crossover tube to clean out the ports, but I could tell they were really plugged and decided to pull the burner tubes and give them a thorough cleaning. I keep forgetting that this is pretty much an annual maintenance need....

For those of you with older model Webers with a crossover burner --- you may want to do this.... I was pretty surprised to see how much rust had built up in the crossover holes --- no way a brush was going to deal with that. I've found that the original Weber burners have slits instead of holes and that a tiny flat blade screwdriver works perfectly to punch the rust out of the slit. Its kinda a pain in the ass to go down the whole tube for each and every slit, but its needed on an annual basis. I could tell the crossover tube is starting to get on the brittle side --- thats how they always fail - they will eventually snap - so I was being careful not to pry/scrape/twist too much. Got it all cleaned and ready for the next meat fest - happiness is a clean grill!!! I was surprised to see comments in Amazon listings for burner tubes that people ordered new burners instead of taking the time to properly clean the old one.

On a side note - I had picked up a set of SS flavor bars for this grill --- I think about 3+years ago --- just picked a cheap set off of Amazon - $13 at the time - just to try out. They have been holding up pretty well, but they ARE rusting... I'm always scraping sheets of rust off them. They were pretty heavy when I bought them, but are losing mass - the center one without a burner is much heavier than the two covering the burners. They still have plenty of life left in them, but I started searching out some new ones anyways.... they are all running ~$25 for a set now. It got me thinking 'maybe' it would be 'smart' to buy two sets and just replace the bars over the burners --- I would basically get three sets out of the two since the center bar doesn't degrade at all.....

Scored this today off Facebook marketplace. Listed at $100, picked up for $80. They run $459 new. Overall pretty good condition. Small rust on the edges of the lid and a little rust on the lower cart grates. Might need a few new grates and a good scrubbing. Bonus was the rusty chimney starter and the ash catcher filled to the brim...

Noice! I have always liked these models - having a side table on a grill is so killer. Doesn't look like it has the gas assist start, but thats not really needed when you have a chimney.

Its hard to stop once you start --- isn't it?

Originally I looked at the performer when I was shopping for the new kettle, but couldn't justify the cost. We have a semi table next to the one we use now, but it is still a little awkward. It will be nice to have 2 grills now for when we do larger cooks or I want more than 2 rib racks.

Yea, now I'm looking for a cheap WSM just cuz....

You are all in now. Nice score on the Weber.

You're gonna have to start getting the 'serious' accessories now Damon.....

Speaking of accessories. Picked up one of these cast iron bitches for my kettle awhile back:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004BRNUIC?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_dt_b_product_details

It's expensive, heavy as all get out, and needs to be seasoned after every cook to keep the rust at bay. The main benefit is it delivers restaurant level char marks on chicken, fish, steak, what have you with shocking regularity. Puts the standard Weber grates to shame in this regard.

I most frequently create a two level fire with briquets piled fairly high under the grill on one side and just a single layer of briquettes on the lower heat side. I then sear everything on the portion of the grill above the high side of the fire for a minute or two per side then off to the lower heat to finish cooking under a closed lid.

Voila amazing grill/sear marks.

This was a great addition for my Weber.
https://snsgrills.com/collections/slow-n-sear

^^^ Thanks Jaime that looks like an awesome product!!! One of the challenges of the kettle has always been establishing a good two zone fire because you have to build a ramp of briguettes and inevitably you either lose real estate on the low heat portion of the grill or have only a small portion of the grill with high heat/briquettes right under the grill. Damn the angle of repose!!!

This looks like a very simple and ingenious solution to that problem.

Man.... I really WANT a kettle.... but damn... I would not be happy without all these pricey accessories. I'm already too deep into charcoal and wood chunks for the WSM and bags of pellets for the smoke tube for the gasser.... I know it would be fun and good grilling, but I just don't need that now....

I just cracked into my third propane tank of the year last week... I feel like I have been slacking compared to last year --- but I'm really just cooking more at once and enjoying the leftovers. Propane really is the cheap way to go --- two FULL tanks for $25 is just unbeatable --- I can't really fathom how much charcoal I would go thru in that time.

I just watched those 2 videos recently.. Watch lots of his videos actually......





I've been eyeing one of those setups from SnS. The Poor and Sear I use is just 2 of the standard baskets sort of screwed together to make a similar shaped container. I think it must let in more air than theirs does, and also doesn't have the water tank. Any time I've followed instructions my temps tend to run about 50deg more, even ones that instruct not to use the water trough.

Any thoughts on the older Weber Genesis Silver C three burner with a side burner and mounted on the rolling cabinet for $50 seems to be in decent shape. Temp is in the middle of the lid.

Also looking at an older Verrmont Castings (Canadian made) that’s mostly cast iron and very nice for $100

I would say go with the weber since there are ample after market part available for cheap on amazon that will keep it in tip top shape forever. I've always been impressed with the castings of the VCs - but I'm not really that familiar with them and have no idea about weaknesses or parts availability.

There is a reason why the black genesis grills were - and still are - the standard for 30+ years. And the old square tube frames are by far superior to any of the cabinet models or newer sheet metal frames. Nothing wrong with a side thermometer, but the center ones are the 'newer' models and just look cooler --- no real difference.
Burners ~$35
Flavor bars ~$35
Grates are the most expensive replacement $50 on up depending what style you go with
Past that, the only other part needing replacement most of the time is the $15 igniter and sometimes a thermometer.

I pulled a bit of a dumb move with my Weber grill that might help some folks out. Every once in a while my grill would not get hot, like a 150 maybe. Ruined a few steak nights. I figured it was my regulator sticking so I pulled it off, cut the low pressure hose off and attached it to another one I had off an older grill. That one leaked, so I bought an aftermarket replacement off Amazon. That mother fucker made my grill way too damn hot. Like 500 degrees on low with 2 of the three burners going. Damn, 20 bucks down the drain, too late to return it. Lots of reviews on Amazon with the same complaint, always read the reviews. Buy a new factory replacement from Weber for 37 bucks. Turns out there is a check valve in the damn tank connector that trips if you turn on the burners before you turn on the tank. My wife would turn the tank off sometimes, when I would go out to warm up the grill, I would turn the burners on, and get no gas, instead of turning the burners off then open the tank, I would just open the tank, that would trip that damn check valve. Only way to reset it was to turn everything off and disconnect the tank and bleed the pressure off the line. Then start all over in the right order. There was nothing wrong with the original regulator! What a waste of time. All because of some damn safety feature, and not reading the instructions. hopefully this helps someone out.