Repair or trash

[rgator]

Hello, I just inherited a grill that I think is and (early?) Komodo Kamado but I am really not sure. Can anyone identify it for me? Also given the damage to it, is it worth fixing?

[Syzygies]

That is absolutely a Kamado from Richard, perhaps Sacramento. My first Kamado looked like this, till the tiles fell off. The less you know about its provenance (cough! cough!), or its common acronym (POSK) the better. It is cheaply made, but worth rescuing if there are no major cracks. Take apart the top hat, buy matching stainless steel bolts and nuts, and use them to retrain, clean and (food-safe) oil the threads, or you'll lose the top hat when it gets stuck.

I could have bought an early KK instead of that Kamado. I mistook the KK for a copy, a Manfred Mann version of Quinn the Eskimo, even though Dylan's original was wretched. As I understood it, some workers at the prosperous teak flooring enterprise that Dennis owns in Bali came to him, some lowlife had abandoned the workers at a tiny ceramic cooker factory down the street, when said lowlife got into some sort of trouble. Relocate, a lifelong pattern. Dennis said hey, that sounds cool, took over the factory so the workers could continue feeding their families, and got very interested in redesigning the cookers. This is at least the KK origin myth that some of us understand. The part I'm sure of is that Dennis is a very good person.

I know far more than I wish I did about restoring said Kamado, ask questions as you proceed. People make old cars into barbecue pits, you can certainly contain a fire in this artifact.

If you value your time, buy a Komodo Kamado.

[5698k]

If restorations are something you enjoy, then maybe, just maybe consider it. It is definitely an RJ posk, and not a Komodo Kamado. That said, I agree, buy a KK.

Rob

[Tucker]

Definitely a POSK by Robber Johnson
turn it into a planter; buy a KK from Dennis, you'll have a much more satisfying experience with a KK.

 

[rgator]

Thanks for the feedback. Now that I know it is not a KK, I will not be restoring it. 

[Aussie Ora]

Fun project if your keen as long as there are no serious cracks once you clean it out you will get a better idea I would also try and cover up the vent and light a fire just with some kindling and newspaper and shut the lid quick way to spot leaks .you should get one of Dennis that way you can cook up a feed you will soon forget about this one lol

Outback Kamado Bar and Grill♨

[tony b]

As a former POSK owner, go the planter option with this turd and just buy a real KK to cook in.

My "RJ special" (I got one of the first ones built in the Indonesian factory that he later abandoned and Dennis took over) lasted 6 years and then began to disintegrate rapidly. After 2 years of patching it up to keep it going, I finally came to my senses and bought the "real deal" from Dennis. Never looked back. (btw - I gave away my POSK to a friend. 2 months later, half the neck area where the bolts hold the top hat spider gave way completely. But, believe it or not, I never had an issue with the mass tile shedding that became common later, especially with the POSKs made in Mexico.)