Is the sear station burner worth the extra $100? Do you owners of the 330 feel it's a significant upgrade to the 310? I don't care about side burner
297787
The grill will heat up faster with the sear burner on and if you put the steaks on that side of the grill they will sear more uniformly. All in all, a doubtful use of $100. The side burner makes a good site for mouse nests.
297788
"Sear station" is just an extra burner between the left and middle burner. I find that it helps get the heat up faster even when you are not trying to sear, and when I am smoking, I use that burner under the smoker box. You also get a side burner on the 330, which you don't get on the 310. I like it for outside frying in a cast iron skillet -- fries, fish, and chicken -- so I don't smell up the house. We found that the extra $ for both features was worth it.
297789
To be honest it depends on your situation. The sear station is not like on other grills that I have owned that is separate from the other elements. I used it a lot on my Charm-glow to get a nice sear on i my meats. However the sear station on the Weber does not appear to work that way or at least I don't use it that way. I just use it as an extra element to maintain consistent heat overall. The side burner is nice to have as I have used it alot when cooking beans and sauces. If you are on a budget then I would say skip it. However if you have the cash get it its nice to have and not use than to not have and need. Come to think of it now that I am typing I did use it once. Hope this helps.
297790
To be honest it depends on your situation. The sear station is not like on other grills that I have owned that is separate from the other elements. I used it a lot on my Charm-glow to get a nice sear on i my meats. However the sear station on the Weber does not appear to work that way or at least I don't use it that way. I just use it as an extra element to maintain consistent heat overall. The side burner is nice to have as I have used it alot when cooking beans and sauces. If you are on a budget then I would say skip it. However if you have the cash get it its nice to have and not use than to not have and need. Come to think of it now that I am typing I did use it once. Hope this helps. To be honest it depends on your situation. The sear station is not like on other grills that I have owned that is separate from the other elements. I used it a lot on my Charm-glow to get a nice sear on i my meats. However the sear station on the Weber does not appear to work that way or at least I don't use it that way. I just use it as an extra element to maintain consistent heat overall. The side burner is nice to have as I have used it alot when cooking beans and sauces. If you are on a budget then I would say skip it. However if you have the cash get it its nice to have and not use... » Read More To be honest it depends on your situation. The sear station is not like on other grills that I have owned that is separate from the other elements. I used it a lot on my Charm-glow to get a nice sear on i my meats. However the sear station on the Weber does not appear to work that way or at least I don't use it that way. I just use it as an extra element to maintain consistent heat overall. The side burner is nice to have as I have used it alot when cooking beans and sauces. If you are on a budget then I would say skip it. However if you have the cash get it its nice to have and not use than to not have and need. Come to think of it now that I am typing I did use it once. Hope this helps. « Show Less
1250551
My advice is to go with an evernew crosstand, with trangia burner. Works like a champ
1846427
The weber are good, and a lot cheaper. This will last a lifetime of neglect and abuse. Does it cook better than a Weber? Maybe not better but every bit as well. I think the claim of how few briquettes it uses is a little over(under) stated. If this had a better way of collecting ashit would be awesome.
709864
How sensitive is the knob for temp control? I need a burner that I can 'dial in'. I have another brand and even the simplest adjustments change the flame/burner too high or too low.
1362892
best burner and good for camping, i ' m glad that i brought best burner i recommended this burner for first time buyer..dont waste your time, just buy it..
1665368
I bought this and love it. Both burners heat up nicely and boil water pretty quickly.
375415
I think there are 3 upgrades. None will Cook the food any better. They are convenience products. The ash pan will last several cooks without needing to dump. Also on windy days u don't have to worry about ash blowing everywhere. It also comes with a dome thermometer. You can probably buy one for like $5 but it's nice to have it integrated. Hinge grates are nice to have to add wood or more charcoal for longer cooks
790459
Thank you all for taking the time to help me out with this. i have decided to just belly up the extra money and but an actual burner. 110000 BTU and a wide base should suit me well. thanks again for all of your advice.
1757492
My burner works well at all settings, though I confess it is used more often on high. Against cheaper burners, it simply works better. Are you using outside or in a drafty location?
2122496
Save your money buy a cast iron griddle. I sent this back it never got hot enough on my weber platinum series. The conept is good but it sits too high from the flame. It should fit the 320 though
941824
I'm not sure, but if you don't need the sear burner, I recommend getting the other (400?) because the sear burner/grill are not connected to the frame well. I had to put mine together with a couple of self-tapping screws as soon as I took it out of the box.
1700501
the 330 got much better reviews than the 340- I was going to buy the 340 but instead bought the 330 which I love so much I bought a second one as a spare- pics are awesome!
1932834
I have NEVER experienced such a beautiful caramelization of meat anywhere (including some top mid-west steakhouses) than I can easily produce on my Summit sear burner. Once the sear burner is up to temp, I go about a minute each side plus another 2 minutes at a regular high heat main burner for consistently perfect med med/rare regular cut rib-eyes. Simply amazing and worth the upgrade. I would guess it is well more than the 100 degrees that others have reported but have never measured it. Maybe I will work out a way to accurately measure and add another post.
1312731
try Liberty Mountain Westwind Stove Set without Burner. Haven't tried it out yet, waiting for summer campout in July.
905152
Actually I've only had it now for a month. I installed it myself - fairly easy and it came with everything I needed including a new regulator. As some reviewers noted, the grate does sit a bit high, but the flame is much hotter than my old standard GE cooktop, and the center 3-ring burner gets really hot - works well on my wok. The griddle is a nice touch and works as expected (the specialized burner control is handy), but it's a bit of a storage challenge. It's a good thing we have lots of storage in our kitchen. So far, so good.
1663238
How much storage space do you have? If you have plenty of space go with the one I bought, as it has a roomier surface to work with, and a couple of extra handy accessories. The only drawback we've found so far is the ash catcher at the bottom is made of thin aluminum and may warp a bit with the heat. This has made the levers at the bottom harder to move on our grill. I think both models have the same ash catcher.
1553556
If you read my review, you know that I have two of them now. The old one I fixed...well I make it work. The new one works just fine.I use pots much larger than the diameter of the burner but also use a chef's pan and a three quart sauce pan. When using much larger pots, then entire burner heats its 'footprint' on the bottom of the pot. Usually, when a burner is not doing this, the burner itself has gone bad.So, technically I said yes to your question. However, a very large pot should not be used on this device. A very large pot holds too much water and ingredients and the weight alone will eventually cause damage to this device. I wish you the best.HJ If you read my review, you know that I have two of them now. The old one I fixed...well I make it work. The new one works just fine.I use pots much larger than the diameter of the burner but also use a chef's pan and a three quart sauce pan. When using much larger pots, then entire burner heats its 'footprint' on the bottom of the pot. Usually, when a burner is not doing this, the burner itself has gone bad.So, technically I said yes to your question. However, a very large pot should not be used on this device. A very large pot holds too much water and ingredients... » Read More If you read my review, you know that I have two of them now. The old one I fixed...well I make it work. The new one works just fine.I use pots much larger than the diameter of the burner but also use a chef's pan and a three quart sauce pan. When using much larger pots, then entire burner heats its 'footprint' on the bottom of the pot. Usually, when a burner is not doing this, the burner itself has gone bad.So, technically I said yes to your question. However, a very large pot should not be used on this device. A very large pot holds too much water and ingredients and the weight alone will eventually cause damage to this device. I wish you the best.HJ « Show Less