Refurbishing and Upgrading my Char-Griller Grill and Smoker Stage two gryniewski home :: stage one
Making modifications and painting the Smokin Pro by Chargriller

The old backyard Char-Griller has been around for about 3 years now and put to heavy use. It has been over temperature a number of times - not taken care of quite like it should have been and ended up with a good portion of the powder coat peeling off.

After the powder coat gave way the rust came in and started gobbling up everything amazingly fast - it was time to step in and save my old friend from complete destruction!

This is stage two of the refurbishing - the final assembly, tweaks and firing it up to season the Char-Griller!

Ok, we are nearing the end of the Char-Griller project. This one is a little dark but this is the final assembly.
Still in the garage and tweaking some things at this point. We blew the keg so it's off the get canned beverages.

Nice shot of the sanded shelves and the new handle from 1 1/4" dowel stock from Home Depot ($3.69): top

I decided to use the leftover aluminum vent from the smokestack mod to extend and curve the outer smokestack - looks pretty nifty.
I didn't use a clamp on this - it fits nicely and stays on by itself. : top

Nice view of paint job. I used Rustoleum High Heat Ultra from Wal-Mart - ($6.74/can) : top

Just a peek under the hood after a short time with a 250 degree fire to start the seasoning process. I rubbed the inside
surfaces down with vegetable oil, pure lard and bacon fat. The grates got bacon fat and lard only. This thing was dripping with grease! : top

The wheels mod was probably the most difficult on this project. I got the axle from a local hardware store (Johnson's Hardware) for
around $14.00 for two 1/2" round stock. They cut it to 26" for me and 1/4" on each end drilled a 1/8" hole for the pin.

I used a 1/2" bit to enlarge the existing axle hole and drilled new holes on the other two legs for their axle. We then lopped off
the legs on the side that had no wheels originally so that the legs were the same length - looked better that way. : top

The Char-Griller finally sees the backyard again after 5 weeks in recovery. Nice day eh? : top

Ok from here down I am leaving the pictures in the large size to show off a little more....: top

I know - I went overboard on the pics! I'm just proud of how it turned out. Here it sits at the start of the seasoning adventure.
I will be adding a brace to straighten up the SFB - it needs more support but the spacers they send with the SFB
do not work on older Char-Grillers with the old leg design. I will make something custom soon. Time for a beer. : top

The first load of fuel for the seasoning. I used the cheap charcoal briquettes from Wal-Mart for this part.

Man I love that custom basket!

Thanks again to JP, Ron S, Bill G., Randy S. and the infamous Charlie S. for fabricating the uber-basket for free.
You guys rock! Great job... (now can I get a dozen made up to sell??)

Also, thanks to my buddy Al W. for setting this up.

: top

I replaced the stock thermometer with a new one from eBay and also added the grate level thermometer from River Country. : top

Now its looking good inside finally. This is after hours of oil/fat application and adding charcoal, wood chips and chunks of hickory.
Almost looks like it is painted. : top

It's hard to see but there is a cast iron wood chip box on the ash pan right above the opening for the SFB and it is full of hickory chips. : top

Gotta get a food pic in here! This is preparation for making Smoked Jerk Chicken after the grill seasoning is complete. I thought it would be
an excellent way to break in the newly refurbished smoker.

Here I am soaking 3 chickens (parts) in Sunny D and cracked pepper.. Yep, I said Sunny D - it works, believe me... Soak for about an hour. : top

After a good soak in the Sunny D I rubbed on a good amount of Reggae Kati's famous Jamaican Jerk Seasoning - Ya Mon - it's good!
If you want some to try I can get you the purchase info. Use the form at the bottom of the page to contact me. : top

Jerk Chicken on the grill - spicy mon! : top

: top

Look at her go! She's a beauty... : top

Now if you look real hard in this picture - in the background, in the neighbors back yard sits a little whiny gas (eeeek!) grill.
You can see it looking over in envy and mumbling obscenities at the Char-Griller. Calm down there my gassy brethren. This is real grillin!

: top

Took most of the chicken off and into the house for the hungry masses. I left a few on to smoke/cook a bit more and for the grill master to nibble on.
You can see I just laid a piece of foil over the ash pan for easy cleanup and also as a makeshift baffle to help distribute the heat better. : top

: top

Andy likes that chicken! Eat that bird McNasty! : top

Gorgeous day to smoke a chicken. Ohio is finally having good weather and no rain for once. : top

And there you have it. Five weeks and around $400.00 I have a working, modified, fully refurbished Char-Griller in my backyard.

Boy, that was easy............... : top

stay tuned for more food and smoking pics! : top

Ski-BBQ

Parts List so far:

: top - gryniewski home