A couple weeks ago, my 15 year old Weber Spirit grill gave up the ghost again and I was facing another burner replacement exercise. As much as I loved old Red, I decided it was time to upgrade. I searched and searched through the piles of private label grills offered up for purchase at the local hardware mega-mart. Unfamiliar and unresearchable names came up. Charmglow (turns out to be privately manufactured by Brinkmann), Perfect Touch, etc. All of these too-large, stamped stainless steel grills left me cold. They had no mass and felt like they were made of the cheapest materials possible. I knew that their trashy little burner tubes would die in just a couple short years and I'd be struggling to find replacement parts. So, I choked back the formidable price point on the Weber E310 and swallowed. I am very happy I did. This is a solid grill. It's got a nice, heavy lid with substantial hinges and a handle you can trust. Up0n initial firing, I was able to get it up to 700 degrees in just about 10 minutes. The heat is distributed very evenly across the grill surface. I've cooked steaks and rotisseried a chicken at this point. Both turned out very well - better than they would of on old Red (bless his dearly departed spirit).
So, lessons learned? Don't be impressed by 6 foot long grills made out of thin stainless steel. Stick with a tried and true product. You'll be glad you did when you need parts in 5 years.
Thanks you made up my mind to buy the weber!
Posted by: Chip | June 15, 2008 at 01:25 PM