Every now and then, a grill comes out of the shop that was never meant to become a production model. This is one of those grills.
My friend Bryan has been asking me for years to make him a Slot Grill that matched his size and personality. If you know Bryan, you know why. He is a big guy, a fantastic outdoorsman, and without a doubt one of the physically strongest people I have ever known. I have watched him pick up hogs, deer, and other things that make the rest of us stop and figure out where the second set of hands is coming from.
Bryan has also been around Slot Grill from the early days and has always understood what I was trying to make: a serious steel charcoal grill that locks together solid, cooks like a real grill, and then breaks back down flat when the day is over.
So I finally surprised him with one built specifically for him.
When 100 Percent Wasn't Enough
The regular Full Size Slot Grill is already a stout piece of equipment. Bryan's custom grill is approximately 150 percent scale and made from quarter inch plate steel. It is a completely different animal.
Even Bryan said he needed help picking the sucker up. Coming from him, that tells you something.
For perspective, a current Full Size Slot Grill weighs about 27.6 pounds. If you roughly scale that design up to 150 percent and account for the much thicker quarter inch steel, Bryan's monster would likely land somewhere around 100 to 115 pounds. That is only an estimate because this was a one-off build, but it gives you an idea of what we were dealing with.
A Day at the Sandbar
These photos are from one of the places where a grill like this makes perfect sense. We regularly ride our side-by-sides out to a private sandbar along the river where everybody gathers, cools off in the water, listens to music, cooks, and has a good time.
It is not a staged product shoot. It is just what we actually do.
That day Bryan put the oversized Slot Grill to work exactly the way it was intended. Charcoal underneath, a grate covered with food, side-by-sides parked along the riverbank, and everybody hanging around waiting for something to come off the fire.
Now Look at All That Food
These pictures probably explain the grill better than I can. Pork chops, sausage, and enough food to feed a crowd were spread across that giant cooking surface.
Bryan reports that it cooks extremely well, and the grill has now found a permanent home at his camp deeper in the woods. With hunting season coming up, I have a feeling this will not be the last time we see it loaded down with food.
Built for One Guy, Based on the Same Idea
No, the 150 percent quarter inch version is not the standard production Slot Grill. It was a special one-off grill made for a friend who has a habit of doing things big.
But the idea behind it is the same idea behind every Slot Grill. Simple steel pieces. No hinges. No unnecessary moving parts. It locks together solid, cooks over charcoal, and breaks back down flat when the day is over.
Sometimes clean product photos are useful. Other times, a muddy riverbank, a row of side-by-sides, a grill completely covered in food, and a friend smiling behind it tell the story a whole lot better.
More pictures are certain to come.