Graybeard Outdoors banner

Char broil grills

3K views 32 replies 16 participants last post by  Bob Riebe 
#1 ·
Anyone here have one of these? They seem sort of cheap and flimsy to me.
 
#2 ·
some of the best food i've ever had was cooked
on b.s. cheapie grills or some home rigged something.
at one point when a bunch of us were racing roundy-rounds,
we had a few wheels that were too beat up to use on the
track, so we made some rigged up bbq grills out of them
since they were deep and wide enough to use for that.

i'm using some small grills now that i got for $4.00 on clearance.
the one i'm using now is somewhat rusted out in the bottom, and
i bought a pie pan at the dollar store and set down in the bottom so
i could get some more use from it even though i still have one new
in the box i've yet to put together and use.
 
#3 ·
I was looking at the char broil grills at lowes and you are correct some of them are kinda flimsy and they are not cheap. I was thinking about replacing my weber charcoal (I don't do gas grills) and was giving it some thought. I decided to make do with my old weber.


cr
 
#5 ·
. . . . I decided to make do with my old weber.


cr
an old grill (full of smoke) cooks better anyway.

the only reason i would discard one is that it would
be too rusted out to re-do economically or easily,
or if the support structure was too rickety.

before they got so expensive, i used to use those
ole smoky grills that look like one washtub on top
of another. after one got burnt out, i'd save the top
and use it for a bottom after the next one got burnt
out since you could just re-drill the holes and put
the legs on the old top to use as a bottom.
 
#4 ·
My last gas grill was a Char Broil, and I do men last, was replaced with a Green Mountain pellet grill 9yrs ago when the CB burner rusted away again for the 3rd time in just a few years, I don't plan on using any gas grill ever again. The only part that I've replaced on the GM is the low pellet sensor which was covered under warranty.

Tim
 
#24 ·
My last gas grill was a Char Broil, and I do men last, was replaced with a Green Mountain pellet grill 9yrs ago when the CB burner rusted away again for the 3rd time in just a few years, I don't plan on using any gas grill ever again. The only part that I've replaced on the GM is the low pellet sensor which was covered under warranty.

Tim
Same happened to mine but kept it kicking for only 2yrs, did not make the leap to pellets yet(wife don't like the taste) Bought a higher end (Weber) no issues for over 3 yrs
 
#7 ·
We have one that we got at Walmart about three years ago, just before my surgery and chemo. One year it barely got used. I do have an old fairly heavy cookie sheet that I put the charcoal on, and it makes the bottom tray last almost forever.

The better part of last year and a lot of this year it's been used. Probably two or three days a week. I've learned not to put the meat on the heavy bottom rack, but to use the top rack and adjust the coals up or down as needed.

I do want to get another grill that will support making a beer butted chicken. We tried it last Saturday or Sunday. The chicken fell over shortly after we closed the top, but we let it cool for the prescribed time. I'd never made one before. Lori had me to drink half of the can and I dunno what brand of beer it was, but it was awful. She said we only needed one half of a can for such a small chicken.

Yesterday we were in Auburn Alabama and I saw a device made by Charbroil that is designed for the chicken. We left it in the store......

But I like my grill, I just need a bigger one.
 
#11 ·
I do want to get another grill that will support making a beer butted chicken. We tried it last Saturday or Sunday. The chicken fell over shortly after we closed the top. . .

Yesterday we were in Auburn Alabama and I saw a device made by Charbroil that is designed for the chicken. We left it in the store......
i have some of those doo-dads that are stands for cooking like that. they were on
sale/clearance at academy or wallyworld or somewhere for $1.00- $3.00 or so.
i try to buy stuff like that when they "need" to get rid of it instead of when i
"need" it and have to pay their bend over price. makes for a steady rest for the bird

FYI i use 7up or store brand mountain dew/lemon lime for the chicken enema
instead of beer. it gets anointed with black pepper or lemon pepper or garlic
pepper season in and out before getting the heat
 
#9 ·
I just tossed my old Char Broil as the item that catches the ashes rusted out, other than that it could have gone on for long time yet.

Now I burn with wood so the grills get very hot before I get to coals.
My cousin bought me a new, smaller, one for Christmas about five or so years ago, so that shows how tough even these cheaper ones are if you are patient.
Now the same year he gave me that new one, he gave me his old char coal gril, one of those square ones that look like a square hamburger bun. The legs are going to give pretty soon but I have been using it, along with my defunct Char Broil for those five years.
They both sat outside and were rained and snowed on but those old square ones, do not know if they still make those, do just plain rust out where they bolt together if you keep them outside as I knew a few people with them, I think Fleet Farm used to sell them, and just as with mine the legs rusted out.


I had one, small size, Weber and it burnt out just as quick as the cheaper ones.
I still have three or four smaller, good for two large Porterhouse or three medium sized Porter house steak I got over a decade ago when I used to grill a lot and did a lot of camping.

They are all different brands, at least near twenty years old and sat in the shed without rusting out after being used a few times, so I have found how long a char coal grill last depends near entirely how well you take care of it after using.
IF I grilled as much as I did twenty years ago, I probably would not still have so many old ones sitting in the sheds.
 
#10 ·
I have a Char Grill but mine is the Commercial series has the heavy stainless grates, heavy brass burners and a extra single burner on the end, I bought it at Lowe's several years ago on special at the time for 450.00. It has been a great grill but I really have not used it much, mine uses the LP Gas. I may have tossed at least 2 of the ones that use charcoal that burned out or rusted through the bottom before I ran on to this one.

Deaconllb
 
#13 · (Edited)
I have a small Char Broil gas grill that I bought at Lowe's three years ago. It's certainly not as heavy duty as one of the welder built charcoal grills made from 1/4" wall pipe but it's sturdy enough for it's intended use. The whole thing is stainless so rust isn't going to be a problem. It's big enough for my needs. Turn on the propane bottle, push the button while opening the burner valve and you are in business. No waiting on charcoal to burn down, no ashes to mess with, and it cleans up just as easily as the old pipe grill. We don't grill a lot, maybe twice a month. Steaks, hamburgers, weinies, brats, and sausages. Usually it's combination of two or three items, never all five at once, and if it's just the wife and I it's a couple of steaks is all. Little CB is great for the job. I keep a cover over it and under the patio cover to boot so it has an easy life.


Cooking is not anywhere close to the top of my list of favorite things to do and my wife has to prod me into firing the thing up. I retaliate by making her tell me when the meat is done. :tango_face_angel:
I forgot. Once in a while some peppers, corn on the cob, or stuffed jalapenos make it on the grill with the meat.
 
#17 ·
My previous grill was a cheap ($138?) black painted Char Broil with ceramic coated grates and lasted 12 years out on the back patio uncovered for the last half of its life. Used it for deer steaks, pork chops, brats, chicken breasts, marinated turkey, ... about 5 days a week. It went through 2 sets of burner tubes and was on its second set of burner tents; it was going to be due for another set of burners before this winter. However, the bottom bucket of the grill was rusting out so bad that you could see through a few places in the back of it.

I replaced it with a new Char Broil stainless infrared grill and I love it so far! Cooking time has decreased about 5 minutes per side with the infrared and much better grill marks.
 
#21 ·
I replaced it with a new Char Broil stainless infrared grill and I love it so far! Cooking time has decreased about 5 minutes per side with the infrared and much better grill marks.

We've used a "commercial series" charbroil the last 6-7 years at the house. Put new burners in it this past winter when the ss burners burned out. Works great, no complaints as we use it a lot all year long. For camping we bought one of their portable infrared grills "x200 gas grill to go" https://www.charbroil.com/portable-grill2go-reg-x200-gas-grill and so far have resisted using it as a target, but that day is fast approaching. It has two heat levels, Blow torch and surface of the sun. On low you have to keep the lid open and your hotdogs or brats moving or they'll get deep divots burned into them by the grate. Hamburgers are worse as you're forced into flipping them a bunch of times and making them thin or else the surface gets burnt and the insides are still uncooked. I had thought it was a regulator issue but when checking out the reviews I'm not alone.
 
#18 ·
Im old fashioned, i like a combo of wood and charcoal, i have an offset smoker/grill. I use it for slow cooked stuff, pork shoulders, ribs, roasts, whole chickens, turkeys ect. For direct heat cooked stuff steaks, pork chops, chicken pieces, burger, brats, i have a gas grill that i use grudgingly
 
#22 ·
Now that's char grillng.
Any thing that runs with gas is not much different from using a natural gas range in the kitchen especially that you can no longer get the ones that use lava rock which when soaked with meet juices after while at least gave it a bit of true char grilling flavor.:cool:
 
#19 ·
A couple months back I bought a CharBroil stainless steel gas grill. I've used it quite a bit this summer and so far I've been pleased with it.



I still plan to pick up a small charcoal grill for the time I just have to have charcoal grilled flavor... I went with gas for this grill for the times I want convenience...


Tony
 
#25 ·
Still use a charcoal/wood Brinkmann Cimarron smoker/grill I bought back in 2005 and its held up well over the years. Had to replace the charcoal grates and cooking grates a couple of times but that's it and use it for family and friends cookouts, smoking a turkey for the holidays, briskets and ribs. The kids are all grown and moved off years ago so when it's just the two of us I use a small charcoal fired char-griller. It has cast iron grates for cooking and as long as you keep them seasoned they'll last a long time. It was a fairly inexpensive grill but works good.
 
#29 · (Edited)
Well in the past week I have twice grilled steaks over wood coals.
Went to the local Cashwise and saw rib steaks on sale for 7.98 a pound; I decided that was good price but like Porterhouse and got four rib steaks and one T-bone that was bigger than some of the Porterhouse they had for a buck a pound less.
Well I knew what I wanted but found out the T-bone cost me dollars more than two of the on sale rib steaks combined.

Heavily seasoned it with dry rub and let it sit out over night; for grilling I put broken up old branches I had saved for the grill, including some ever green branches.
Let them burn down to still some flame but mostly char coal.
Grilled them to approx. med.-med. well. My cousin was over and he likes his more rare than I do but even with hardly any pink he said they were cooked perfectly.
They had the heavy grill smoked flavor I love and thank God, my taste buds worked most of the way through the steak.
I put MSG heavily on them and they were nice and tender, no extra salt needed with the seasoning I put on.

Cooked two more a few days later at my sigs. house using Catalpa, Arbor Vitae and Lilac wood . They came out great also.
Using heavy amounts of meat tenderizer, pre-seasoning and letting they marinade at room temp. for a long time has worked well.
 
#30 ·
Love my new charbroil!



Bob, as yummy as that sounds, MSG ought not be in our bodies ... increases estrogen and progesterone. Its an excitotoxin that makes your brain think the food tastes better than it does. Its also an inflammatory. Based on what you describe, I'd gladly try one of your steaks with everything but the MSG! :tango_face_grin:
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top