got a line on a new weber grill to go for 40 bucks. i havent really done alot of charcoal grilling but looking to maybe get my feet wet a bit.
the question is to i get the well know but small weber or a no name home depot special to try it?:-)
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Go with the Weber.
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I have the Char-Broil model 11301672 that I picked up from Home Hardware last year and I love it. It gives you the ability to grill nice steaks & chops, as well as offset smoke, Great pork shoulder and ribs:-)
I think they are around $200. on sale
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Is the $40 a regular price or a special deal?

$40 at regular price is a Weber Smokey Joe or the rectangular weber (can't remember the name of it right now), both of which are tabletop grills that, due to their small size, are rather limited in what they can do. At that price point, unless you need the compact grill, I'm inclined to say go with the larger Home Depot grill so you have some cooking space to work with.

If the $40 price is some deal and you are getting a larger weber, like the 18" or 21" then yes, get the weber.
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Which model of Weber are you looking at?
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there is one of the small portable grill and go charcoal ones online
like i said i am not ready to get rid of the propane beast just lookin to wet my toes a bit in the charcoal world
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This one?

http://www.weber.com/explore/grills/...-go-anywhere-2
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that exact one
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Unless you need to strap it to the bike or take it camping, that thing is gonna be too small.:-)
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See my second paragraph:
http://www.cigarasylum.com/vb/showpo...37&postcount=4

That grill will only hold 2-3 burgers or half a dozen hot dogs.
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This is the portable charcoal I use for tailgating...works well and lots of grilling room.
http://www.amazon.com/Aussie-Walk-A-.../dp/B000G16RB4
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i have found some weber full 18 or 22's for around 100 bucks but if it is just gonna sit in the corner of my yard and never get used then i would prefer to keep the 100 in my jeans. the table top is a cheap way to test the waters i thought and i could use it if i needed it somewhere else
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Hey Shaggy, wish I could talk you into a Weber One Touch 22.5" Grill. You'll turn into a "grillin fool" once you get one...

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That's just it, it's really not.

Cooking on those tabletops is nothing like the larger grills - they lack the control and the surface area to cook multiple things or adjust positions for heat distribution, they heat unevenly because of the short distance from the coals to the cooking grate, they also have a tendency to burn food because of that short distance between the heat source and the food, they don't hold much fuel so they can't run for long cooks without reloading, there isn't enough room in them for a decent indirect cook.
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Buy a Weber on craigslist in your area. I bought a Performer in perfect condition for $100 a couple months ago. Regular price over $300.
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I had a split barrel grill for a while..propane on one side and charcoal on the other...i hardly ever used the propane side because i could do it all on the charcoal side..

from there I built an Ugly Drum Smoker and got a new Charbroil Grill and i cook on it all the time.

I guess its like cigar storage...go as big as you can...

With a bigger grill you can do all the lil things with it and truely enjoy cooking with charcoal.


The Troll
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I see some bits and pieces in your logic that make me think maybe you ought not mess with it.
If you are going to test the waters and start with a grill too small to do half of what you want to
do on a good charcoal grill, you will end up with skewed results. I DO understand that
you have a gas grill to do the things your tiny charcoal grill CAN'T, and I also see that your phrase
was 'test the waters'. But a large scale Weber, while it may be 100 bucks, is a great and versatile
grill and SHOULDN'T sit in a corner of your yard unused. But would you just shun it in the end
anyway once you have to start buying charcoal, a starting chimney (fluid bad) and have to
clean up the ashes? If you are testing the waters with a tiny grill, I don't think you will learn
much more than whether or not you like messing with charcoal, not how great a good charcoal grill
can be. :-)

I see Adam already basically said all this. He is right. This is really only a means to an end, and
that end being a decision based on all the wrong data. I have a three foot long Char-Griller unit
with no fire box, and yet I can still smoke meat REALLY successfully using indirect heat, plus I have
a charcoal tray that can go from 8-9 inches below the meat to touching the grate and blasting the
meat with heat. Super great unit. I would never use gas again. I hate it. If you use that Tiny Tim
beach grill, you will end up going back to gas out of necessity, not choice.

And you know, by the time I say all that, if I had NO grill, and you gave me your gas grill, I could STILL
do everything i wanted to on it, I would MAKE it smoke and MAKE it slow cook and MAKE it sear a steak.
But it would be a compromise, and also one that would have me hassling with LP gas bottles.
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I would recommend a Char-broiler or Weber.

Charcoal is a MUST... Just my 2 penny's. :-)
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Say hello to me leetle fren............I think it was $139 on sale. Money well spent.
Wishing now I had bought it THIS YEAR.....$119 at Lowe*s...It's the only thing I
have that will distract my dogs from food. I can feed em, and THEN pull the tarp
off of this thing, and they will NOT LOOK at that food bowl. Usually they scarf their
meal down like a race.

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Great grill! Had one of those for years. Recently replaced it with this.
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