Fed up with cheap imported gas grills

[Michael_P]

Okay. I've had it with big box store grills. These so called stainless steel grills which are made of the thinnest mild steel underneath which rust out in a few years are junk. They look good on the outside, but they rust so badly on the inside that there is nothing to attach the stainless burners and diverters to the grill. I'm debating to whip out the metal brake and fab a new stainless bottom or get the highest quality longest lasting American made grill I can find. I don't need fancy features found on the big box store grills, just a grill that will last a super long time.

Any suggestions? Cost no object, but I don't want to go overboard.

 

[Pop_Rivit]

Our Weber Genesis has been outstanding. I bought it-6 or 7 years ago to replace our old Weber red top that now does duty at our vacation house.

 

[Quattro Pete]

Are the higher end Weber grills still made in USA? If so, that's what i would look into. Not cheap though.

FYI, i have a low end Weber made in china and after 7 years, it's still working ok.

 

[Cardenio327]

Weber Q-series are made in USA and are dirt cheap and ugly to boot. They grill steaks perfectly, though. I've had a Q1000 for almost 3 years, cost $180 new. I used it yesterday to grill a t-bone and about 11 skirt steaks [4 loads, it is tiny].

 

[Donald]

I agree there are a lot of cheap stainless steel looking grills out there. Stainless steel by definition has 10.5% chromium but could have more. Typically you see some of the mixture numbers when you by "silverware" for your kitchen table.

But for most other things they do not tell you the grade of stainless steel.

Buy a quality grill and then buy new burners as needed.

 

[HTSS_TR]

Originally Posted By: Pop_Rivit
Our Weber Genesis has been outstanding. I bought it-6 or 7 years ago to replace our old Weber red top that now does duty at our vacation house.


Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
Are the higher end Weber grills still made in USA? If so, that's what i would look into. Not cheap though.

FYI, i have a low end Weber made in china and after 7 years, it's still working ok.

I bought made in USA Weber Genesis with 4 burners around 2003-2004 for about $1k(may be $1.2k). I don't know if current Weber grills are made in USA or not.

My 10-12 years old grill is still working very good, nothing failed yet. I didn't do any maintenance other than cleaning the cook grades.

 

[JHZR2]

Originally Posted By: Cardenio327
Weber Q-series are made in USA and are dirt cheap and ugly to boot. They grill steaks perfectly, though. I've had a Q1000 for almost 3 years, cost $180 new. I used it yesterday to grill a t-bone and about 11 skirt steaks [4 loads, it is tiny].


Thats what I bought. It folds up unlike the bigger Weber grills, so I can put it away or take it indoors in the winter weather. It strikes me that taking it in through the winter helps with longevity. Plus, in the winter I like the heat from cooking to stay indoors. If we really want to grill, we have a charcoal grill that we can use any time too...it's by far my preference, though gas is just so easy...

Grills wonderfully, though Ill admit that the grates are starting to show rust...

 

[Lyman]

I own a stainless five burner that I bought at Sears 14 years ago. It still looks new and has been outside all its life. I caught it 50% off for $600 and it was well worth every penny. The only thing it has needed was a set of castors last year.

 

[racer12306]

I agree. I got so fed up with Char Broil I welded up my own grates. Long story short, the original grates rusted after one season. Bought replacements and they rusted in a couple months, warrantied them and they rusted too, so I ordered a bunch of quarter inch stainless rod and went to town. Now three years later, they are still great.

My inspection of the grates show poor porcelain coating and the exposed steel rusted. I told Char Broil this and they didn't care.

 

[MNgopher]

Have a 10 year old Weber Genesis Silver B. Guessing it's on its last year - the frame is starting to significantly deteriorate to the point one door is permanently off.

Looking at the Weber in the store, it appears these would suffer the same fate...

Not sure spending the cash is worth it on another big weber.

 

[OSUFan86]

I know you've stated not to go overboard but I've thought a suggestion of a BBQ pit might be worth the time. You can see many ideas on YouTube that can help you build your own. It depends if you have the time & patience, however, it's well worth the effort for good BBQ.

 

[MrHorspwer]

Cost is no object you say?

You can pick up a small Kalamazoo grill for a little under $13,000. Oh wait, you said don't go overboard. Is $13,000 overboard?

Seriously though... look at a Genesis. I've had my E310SE (SE had stainless grates and "flavorizer" bars instead of porcelain coated) for 5 years now and it's a tank. It looks like the day I bought it. My only regret is I didn't get the E330, which has a sear burner that's totally worth the extra $100.

 

[Wolf359]

Yeah, if you want it to last, get a Weber, even though they may not be made in the US anymore, they're still good. I have one that has lasted 8 years. Most people get at least 10+ years out of them so on a per year basis, it's cheaper than those sub $200 grills that rust out in 2-3 years.

 

[74DartSport]

My three burner Weber is 21 years old and still going. Original burners, second replacement set of Flavorizer bars I went stainless, and 3rd set of grates (now also stainless).

 

[Rolla07]

Sears one i got a few years ago is falling apart too.. The place where the burner tubes attach to have broken off from the heat it appears.. Cheapy stainless was rusting a season after i got it... Granted it was a gift and rated well.. My next one will be something better.. And to think this grill costed 400$+/-..what a joke.. I hear vermont castings is a good brand but have no experience with it. Also Louisiana Grills is made in Canada if im not mistaken (their CS models) and maybe some others. Their pellet smoker seems solid but it will set you back about 1000$ canadian (lot less in usa i gather). Check http://www.louisiana-grills.com

 

[expat]

I have t rant about Weber.

We bought a Q series 3 years ago it was faulty, after a 10 minute warm up I could put my hand on the grill!
I called the 1 800 customer service line, and the guy was unbelievably argumentitive and even rude (calling me an idiot)
To this day I wonder if the guy was drunk?

Anyway, to cut a long story short, we went through 3 regulators before we could get the grill to heat satialsfactraly. But even now, the grill will not burn off, and has to be manually cleaned.

Needless to say, I have not been impressed with Weber.

 

[Duffyjr]

I've had a Huntington for few years I got at Menards and I really like it, it gets hotter faster than any other grill I've owned. I think I have the Rebel with four burners and one on the back for the rotisserie with cast iron grates. Leaves some nice grill lines

They are made in the US and in Canada but under Broil King.

 

[sleddriver]

Op: If you have a metal brake and know how to use it, I'd go that route. You get to chose the metal, custom fit it and do it the right way, the first time. Slam dunk......

 

[TMoto]

Originally Posted By: Duffyjr
I've had a Huntington for few years I got at Menards and I really like it, it gets hotter faster than any other grill I've owned. I think I have the Rebel with four burners and one on the back for the rotisserie with cast iron grates. Leaves some nice grill lines

They are made in the US and in Canada but under Broil King.

I bought a Broil King Baron 4-burner about 2 years ago to replace a Char-Broil and am very happy with it.

To OP, I was looking for something around $500 and was trying to find made in US if possible. The US made 4-burner Weber Genesis I liked was $700 and the smaller 3-burner Spirit was $500 but I found out the Spirit is made in China. I don't know if that's still true today but I did read good reviews about the Spirit at the time.

At any rate, I almost bought the Spirit when I came across the Broil King which is similar in size to the 4-burner Genesis and they advertise made in North America. I believe they have manufacturing in both US and Canada. Good enough for me and it looked like a good grill so that's what I got. It has cast iron grates, stainless burners, and what they call the Flav-R-Wav stainless flavor system similar to the Weber Flavorizer bars.

Good luck with your search.

 

[Wolf359]

Originally Posted By: expat
I have t rant about Weber.

We bought a Q series 3 years ago it was faulty, after a 10 minute warm up I could put my hand on the grill!
I called the 1 800 customer service line, and the guy was unbelievably argumentitive and even rude (calling me an idiot)
To this day I wonder if the guy was drunk?

Anyway, to cut a long story short, we went through 3 regulators before we could get the grill to heat satialsfactraly. But even now, the grill will not burn off, and has to be manually cleaned.

Needless to say, I have not been impressed with Weber.


You still ended up buying their cheap series. Try the Spirit/Genesis/Summit series. Those are the ones that are known to last. The one I mentioned earlier was a Genesis. Yeah, they range from $600-$900, but that's why they last.