Vents control the fire; the lid turns a grill into an oven · review
The kettle that adds a lid thermometer and a hinged grate, which is what lets you roast and refuel.
What we would actually buy The step that buys the thermometer and the hinged grate — the two things that turn a kettle from a searing grill into one that can roast. Two hundred and nineteen dollars, and no warranty on the page where the $149 model has ten years.
Over the $149 Original Kettle this adds four things, and two of them matter:
A built-in lid thermometer. A hinged cooking grate. A removable high-capacity ash catcher rather than a fixed one. And glass-infused nylon handles, which the $149 listing also claims — so treat that as shared.
The capacity is the same. Both say up to 13 burgers, as do the $98, $289 and $309 Webers on this shelf.
On a kettle without one, adding charcoal means lifting the entire grate with the food on it. You need somewhere to put a hot grate covered in half-cooked chicken, and then you have to put it back.
Nobody does that twice. What happens instead is that you cook on one load of fuel — and a single chimney of briquettes gives about an hour of useful heat.
The hinge lifts two crescents at the edges of the grate, so charcoal drops in at the sides while the food stays in the middle.
For searing burgers it changes nothing at all. For roasting, for smoking, or for feeding a crowd in shifts, it is the thing that makes it possible.
The two upgrades are the same upgrade, really: this is the first kettle on this shelf that can be used as an oven rather than as a grill.
A lid thermometer reads the air under the dome — not the meat, but the oven. Which is exactly right for holding 225 to 250 °F for ribs or 350 for a chicken: you set the vents, you read the dial, you adjust.
It will not tell you when the meat is done. For that you want a probe, and on this shelf only the Napoleon has dedicated probe doors so the cable is not pinched under the lid.
No warranty. And the kettle seventy dollars below it on this shelf — the Original Kettle at $149 — publishes ten years limited, the only warranty on any of these eight pages.
No vent count. The Master-Touch publishes “3 air vents regulated by 3 arched, swiveling damper blades”; this says only “rust-resistant aluminum damper”.
No Tuck-Away holder. The lid parks on an angled hook here. The $289 Master-Touch slides it into a holder on the side instead, which is the tidier of the two.
14,651 g. Worth noting because the $149 Original Kettle is listed at 1,500 g, which is impossible for the same bowl and lid. This is what a 22-inch enamelled kettle actually weighs.
On sale at around $220 on the American Amazon store at the time of checking.
Prices and availability are what Keepa reported on the date this page was updated; both move.
Prices quoted in this text were read on 4 October 2026. The live price is at the top of the page.
| Diameter | 22 in |
|---|---|
| Thermometer | Built-in lid thermometer, showing the internal temperature |
| Grate | Hinged, to add charcoal while grilling; durable-plated premium steel |
| Ash system | One-Touch cleaning, with a removable high-capacity aluminized ash catcher |
| Stated capacity | Up to 13 burgers made with a Weber burger press |
| Lid and bowl | Porcelain-enamelled, stated to resist rust and not peel |
| Handles | Glass-reinforced, glass-infused nylon |
| Damper | Rust-resistant aluminum |
| Lid parking | An angled lid hook |
| Storage | Tool hooks |
| Mobility | All-weather wheels |
| Weight | 14651 g (516.8 oz) |
| Warranty | Not published by the maker — the $149 Original Kettle publishes ten years |
| Lid holder | An angled hook rather than the Master-Touch Tuck-Away holder |
| Number of vents | Not published — the Master-Touch publishes three |
| Amazon reference | B00MKB5TXA |
| EAN | 0077924032479 |
It is the difference between a one-hour grill and a three-hour one. On a kettle without a hinge, adding charcoal means lifting the entire grate with the food on it — so you find somewhere to put a hot grate covered in half-cooked chicken, top up the coals, and put it back. Nobody does that twice. What happens instead is that you cook on one load of fuel, and a single chimney of briquettes gives you roughly an hour of useful heat. The hinge lifts two crescents at the edges of the grate, so charcoal drops in at the sides while the food stays put in the middle. For searing burgers it changes nothing. For roasting, smoking or cooking for a crowd in shifts, it is the feature that makes it possible.
If you cook with the lid down, yes; if you sear with it off, no. Over the Original Kettle this adds exactly four things: the lid thermometer, the hinged grate, a removable high-capacity ash catcher instead of a fixed one, and glass-infused nylon handles (which the $149 listing also claims, so treat that as shared). The capacity is identical — both say up to 13 burgers — and so is the porcelain enamel, the aluminum damper, the angled lid hook, the tool hooks and the wheels. The one real cost of trading down is that the $149 model is the only kettle on this shelf with a published warranty: ten years limited. This page publishes none.
Accurate enough for what it is for, and not a substitute for a food probe. A lid thermometer reads the air temperature under the dome, several inches above the grate and offset from the coals, so it tells you what the oven is doing rather than what the meat is doing. That is exactly the right measurement for lid-down cooking: holding 225 to 250 °F for ribs, or 350 for a chicken, is a setting you reach by moving the vents and then reading the dial. Where it will mislead you is as a guide to doneness — for that you want a probe in the meat. On this shelf the Napoleon is the only grill with dedicated probe doors in its stainless ring, so a probe cable does not get pinched under the lid.
Close prices, same category: comparable cookware and knives. We keep only the specifications all of them publish, because a column with gaps compares nothing.
| Model | Price | Thermometer | Grate | Lid parking | Warranty |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weber 14401001 Original Kettle Premium | $220 | Built-in lid thermometer, showing the internal temperature | Hinged, to add charcoal while grilling; durable-plated premium steel | An angled lid hook | Not published by the maker — the $149 Original Kettle publishes ten years |
| Weber 14501001 Master-Touch | $290 | Built-in lid thermometer | Hinged and compatible with Gourmet BBQ System inserts | Tuck-Away lid holder — the lid slides into a holder on the side | Not published by the maker |
| Weber 741001 Original Kettle | $150 | None — the $219 Premium adds it | Durable-plated steel, from premium steel | An angled lid hook | 10 year limited — the only warranty published on this shelf |
| Weber 14516001 Master-Touch Deep Ocean Blue | $310 | Built-in lid thermometer | Hinged and GBS-compatible, for adding charcoal while grilling | Tuck-Away lid holder on the side | Not published by the maker |
Anyone who wants to roast and smoke as well as sear — the first kettle here that can
Listed because the add-on names this pan as a fit.
Amazon reports what buyers took in the month before this page was last checked: at least 1,000.
The figure is a floor, rounded by Amazon, and read through Keepa — it says what buyers picked, not what a maker claims.
Specifications: the manufacturer sheet for cookware and kitchen knives and the matching Amazon product page. Prices and availability: Keepa. Every figure on this page names its source.
18 in kettle charcoal grill, stated for 1–4 people, with wheels, handles and a built-in ash collector, assembled by one person in 15 minutes
An 18-inch kettle for fifty-three dollars, assembled in a stated fifteen minutes by one person.
Best for: A first kettle, a gift, or a small household that grills for two
22 in charcoal kettle with 354 sq in of cooking space, a porcelain-enamelled lid and bowl, adjustable air dampers, a removable ash catcher and a storage rack
A 22-inch porcelain-enamelled kettle with 354 published square inches, at twenty-three cents a square inch.
Best for: The most cooking area per dollar on this shelf, if you can live without the lid hook
≈ $80
22 in charcoal kettle with hinged cast iron grids adjustable to three heights, a Vortex heat management system, a Smoke Stack Chimney, a stainless steel extension ring with rotisserie spit ports and temperature probe doors, an offset hinged lid and chrome-plated cooking grids
The only kettle here with grids at three heights, probe doors and rotisserie ports, at 28 kg (61.7 lb).
Best for: A charcoal cook who smokes with a probe, roasts on a spit, and wants to move the grid rather than the coals
≈ $390
Prices quoted in these summaries are dated readings. The live price is shown next to each product.
