Advice On Repairing Weber Kettle Lid Support

[kevinc]

The lid support on my old style Weber Platinum has broken. There are two issues:

One of the nuts holding the lid wire to the kettle rusted off
The bolt attaching the lid bale to the kettle appears to have sheared off (item #11 in the schematic)

The second item is whats giving me trouble. Since the bolt itself appears to have been sheared, I'm not sure how to get it out. The nut & washer is still secured to the remainder of the bolt inside the kettle and its pretty rusted / deformed (it looks pointed, wtf?).

In the attached photos, the first picture is a close of of the nut & washer on the bolt. The second photo is from slightly further away. The third pic is a pic of the outside of the kettle where the bolt sheared off.

First, any thoughts on getting that rusted bolt assembly out of the kettle? I tried greasing it with WD-40 and turning it with every socket wrench I had but nothing worked. As I mentioned above, the tip of the bolt/nut seems deformed/pointed so I couldn't really even find purchase with a wrench

Second, the lid wire itself was originally secured with Keps nuts (according to the schematic linked above). Do I need to keep using those or can I replace it with a regular nut and flat washer?

Finally, any thoughts on the material itself for the hardware? Is regular galvanized OK or does it need to be a something different to withstand the environment of the grill?

Thanks!

 

[Adjg04]

For the 2nd item the bolt isn't threaded into the bowl so it is just rusted into the hole. Take a punch and knock it out of the hole. I would use stainless but any bolt would work.

 

[markdtn]

I would not use galvanized on any cooking item. I would use a good quality stainless.

 

[1buckie]

For the 2nd item the bolt isn't threaded into the bowl so it is just rusted into the hole. Take a punch and knock it out of the hole. I would use stainless but any bolt would work.

This looks to be the case.......

Spend a little time cleaning off the rust after you tap it out or the same thing may happen more quickly.....Keps nut is for a reason, so it doesn't wiggle loose from use & stainless might be best / last longest....

Nice Cooker....keep it runnin' !!!!

 

[Bludawg]

Looks to me like you could put a drift punch on that bolt and give it a good bash with a proper sized hammer, it should pop free. Then replace with SS hardware

 

[kevinc]

For the 2nd item the bolt isn't threaded into the bowl so it is just rusted into the hole. Take a punch and knock it out of the hole. I would use stainless but any bolt would work.

That did it, thanks! Didn't take much effort either, I could have sneezed and the thing would have came right out

I gave myself a dope slap for not thinking of that.

 

[kevinc]

This looks to be the case.......

Spend a little time cleaning off the rust after you tap it out or the same thing may happen more quickly.....Keps nut is for a reason, so it doesn't wiggle loose from use & stainless might be best / last longest....

Nice Cooker....keep it runnin' !!!!

Would some WD40 do the trick to clean up the rust?

WRT the Keps nut, how does it work different than a regular flat washer and nut?

 

[kls44]

The Keps nut just has a captive lock washer. A regular nut and lock washer should work ok.

 

[pbj]

I don't think i would use WD-40. That is a petroleum product and could cause off flavors. Try CLR and some fine sand paper.

 

[kls44]

Try scrubbing the rust with a wad of foil dipped in white vinegar.

 

[kevinc]

Back in Black!

I went to Ace yesterday and picked up hardware I needed in stainless steel. I also picked up some CLR and black Rustoleum high heat spray paint.

I scrubbed the area with CLR and some fine steel wool, dried it off and then hit it with a shot of the Rustoleum.

I attached the new hardware and now I'm back in business.

Thanks all!