Pros & Cons Of The SnS Grills Kettle

Seven months after purchasing my SnS Grills Kettle, I’ve formed some opinions based on my experience with this grill, and in this video I give you my Pros and Cons related to this cooker.

============
Items Used This And Other Videos (* Affiliate Links - See Below - As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.)

(As a ThermoWorks Affiliate I earn a commission for sales made through the following links.)

============

You can help support Cooking With Ry through PayPal

Thank you so much for your support!

============

============

============
Amazon Links:
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Other Links:
Other links in this description may be affiliate links which allow me to earn commissions from sales.

============
#cooking #grilling #snsgrills

[BabyBackManiac]

"I wish Weber had done these things years ago." I can't tell you how many times I've said that. Great review, Ry.

[SnSGrills]

We are so happy you are enjoying your kettle, Ry. This was a huge project for our team and it's great to see people like yourself recognizing the results of that hard work.

[BravoMaryFrank]

I literally just ordered this kettle grill a few hours ago and I'm so glad that I intuitively knew this had better features compared to the Weber Kettle Grill such as the placement of the temperature gauge and damper close to each other where the heat would be exiting. With the Weber, I had the shelf and the SNS charcoal divider because it made sense and then somehow I came across this grill after I added it to my cart. I read a few reviews and looked at the photos. Of course, my phone knows everything I do so here is your video in my feed. Thank you for such a succinct yet informative video. I sincerely appreciate it!

[timothywarehime]

you should talk about warranty. In my opinion Weber has about the best customer service on the planet. I'm still getting warranty parts for my performer and it's 11 years old. They even sent me a new table top and lid when I was in a flood last year and my grill got wrecked. Incredible.

[markennes]

Great vid, thank-you! I love the SnS and use it all the time. And I agree with all your Pro points. I agree it's a better kettle than any and all variations of the Weber. There is just way too much versatility offered with the SnS relative to other kettles which so greatly expands what a cook can do with a kettle. There are even more pro points IMO than what you mentioned and that's a good thing. But there is one minor design flaw which I'd like to point out, if I may. Since this is a pro / con video, I hope this is a good place to mention this. It's part #10 - the star shaped part with the five blades that is designed to sweep ash into the vents and into the ash can underneath. The curve of the blades is not quite the same as the curve of the bowl. The first half of the blade extending from the middle is perfect, but then the curve of the blade leaves the surface of the bowl just slightly, leaving a gap as the blade extends to the tip. If you look closely at the tip of the blade, you can see the gap between the tip and the bowl. If you have a Weber and check the same thing, the Weber blade is flush with the bowl all the way to the tip - it is perfect - even though it is significantly longer. The SnS is not. So why does this matter? I had noticed this before but didn't really think too much about it. I assumed the gap was so minor that it didn't matter. That was until I used my Thermoworks Billows with the SnS. I was doing a slow cook with the bottom vents closed completely and the Billows attached to the smoke hole. When the billows fan kicked on, smoke began pouring out of the ash basket underneath! And it wasn't a little bit, it was a huge and alarming amount of smoke "billowing" out of the ash basket underneath, as well as the top vent. So what does this mean? It means, whether or not your cooking with a Billows, when you close the bottom vents during a slow cook, they're really not completely closed off. It means air is coming into the kettle through those vents whether you like it or not. And it also means when you shut the SnS down, there will be a slight air leak keeping those coals lit a bit longer than necessary. I was able to fix mine with some HD foil. Five pieces, 6 inch square, folded twice. Insert the little pocket of the foil into the finger of the blade, sliding down three inches, and I think that effectively solves the problem because the foil is sort of "V" shaped and blocks the gap. The foil actually stays put even when you sweep the blades side to side repeatedly. Things like this happen with brand new products, and I think SnS will resolve this problem eventually. Would I buy an SnS again? You bet! It's still the best kettle on the market. Thanks again

[jwilliams]

I'm in the market for a grill and I must say this is one of the most informative videos I've seen on "ANY" product in a while. Many thanks Brother Ry

[SmokyRibsBBQ]

You nailed the pros down exactly Ry! The only thing that I have noticed in addition to everything you mentioned, is if you use the supplied gasket material for the lid, there is absolutely no smoke leaks. It becomes a very tight kettle unlike any other. Temps are so easy to control and hold. Absolutely love mine as well. Great job on this Ry!

[gtsbarbecueandcuisine]

This is great Ry. I’ve been following you for many years and know what a fan you are of the Weber Kettle. So when you give this such high marks I know you really mean it. I will be selling a couple of my kettles and add this to my stable. Thanks for your candor and great review. Have an awesome weekend!

[erichoehn]

Great timing on this video for me. We just moved and I gave a friend my Weber to avoid moving it. I am looking to replace my kettle and this is on my short list along with Weber

[RonOnTheGrill]

I'm so happy to see a comparison of these two by someone I respect so much. I'll admit, I was mad at SNS for a long time because I felt like they "betrayed" the people that put them on the map. But this is the first comparison I've seen between the two, and now I can see how much thought was put into improving very specific qualities that we've all complained about in our beloved Weber kettles. Moving the lid thermometer closer to the grate was such a smart move in and of itself. Moving the top vent right next to it was genius!

Then they added a port for your temperature probe, which which is a great addition that solves a problem all Weber kettle owners end up fighting with eventually, to the point that some people are actually cutting slots into rim of their Weber Kettles for the wire. I've all but stopped using mine because of the hassle of fussing with the wires. I have 2 Weber Kettles, both in great shape, so I'm not looking for another grill. But I'm glad you make this video and broke the differences down so thoroughly. I'm actually putting together a video about how to buy your first grill, and this will be great information to include.

[casemeisterT]

I've had mine for about the same amount of time, and only con I have is the clean out fins are a bit short IMO. I find myself having to remove the charcoal grate often to push ash that builds up above the fins down.

Other than that the rig has been solid. I already had a SnS basket and HIGHLY recommend folks to get one to go with it.

[Bamakettles]

Love your channel and videos. SNS has some really nice accessories and I have most of them. That said, my preference is still the Weber Kettle, tried and true. I have many Weber kettles from the 60's to present and they do stand the test of time when properly cared for. I really appreciate the history and colors of the past models as well as the color choices with current models. Nice review.

[beers-jackofbbq]

Great review Ry! They have some great features, I did see someone comment on the ash bucket, much easier to work with! The smoke hole is one of my favorite features, as you mentioned, so easy to dial in! Cheers!

[colinbutler]

Great Video Ry...and I know Weber has had a very successful run since the 1950s, but why in the world havent they made these simple, yet very effective modifications is beyond me. I guess because people just keep buying them...

[agmajor]

Agree whole-heartedly with your pros. The big con for me is the ash sweep. I see another comment below about that it doesn't close the vents as well as Weber's does, but more disappointing to me is that it doesn't sweep the ash away nearly as well as Weber's sweep. I notice this in particular when I'm using the slow 'n sear with it. You get a ton of ash build up underneath it. It also has a much looser connection between the lever and sweep, I don't feel like I have as much control as I do on my Weber. Using the ash catch bucket though is much easier then on the Weber. I just wish the bucket was bigger.

That being said, the pros outweigh the cons for me and I'm very happy with mine.

[Wisconsincatmom]

Thanks for this review. I have been deciding on what grill to get and this helps tremendously ☺️

[jaybooth]

Nice review Ry! I would also add the ash catcher is really easy to remove and replace! Cheers!

[ChadRex-]

We all love our Weber kettles & end up making modifications like adding a probe port hole ( or notching the kettle). adding a hole if we plan on adding Fan Control.

Weber should have added a Temp probe port. On Weber Summit Kamado, they did add a factory hole for temp control fan. its got a removable plug to add a fan like the ThermoWorks Billows.

[GiacomoCalabrese]

I agree but there are 2 more pros and cons. The bowl. In the weber kettle the cooking grate sits a bit higher in relation to the kettle. Pro of the cons is when cooking a whole turkey or large roast there is more room at the bottom of kettle for those cooks. Con is using the elevated cooking grate to throw something at the top level leaves you with less room. Is it a deal breaker? Not at all. It just i wouldn't do really thick roasts etc like a second brisket up on the top level but racks of ribs or etc there is still plenty of room.

The other pro and con is the added thermal tape ring included in the sns system. I haven't bought a weber system in over 5 to 7 years but my sns grill over the winter was very economical to run on coal. The burn rate was much longer and more steady using that thermal tape around the kettle lid when installed. It makes the lid sit a tighter seal as well. I don't remember my weber having that option?

[Mike-hsfq]

Very educational and informative. Thanks for the honest review.