Warped Broiler Lids

[ha_asfan]

I'm just like CHIPPERHIKER, waiting for my manuals to arrive and hunting for a stove to buy...and, we have some of the same questions: what causes the top of the brolier to warp ? it seems to rather a common phenomena...also, how does the griddle work ? is there heat UNDER the broiler to transfrom it [the brolier] into the griddle ? I'm still really curious how these stoves were originally marketed: through department stores, appliance delaers ??? and what their original costs were. Seems that this was a pretty costly item back in the day. I've got my eyes on two stoves and am narrowing my focus. All goes well, i'll have one cooking, baking, broiling, steaming, poaching, frying and more within a few weeks ! thanks for all the info !

[tplumeri]

hi ha,
im guessing youre refering to the griddle that is warping. very common as its made of relatively soft aluminum. below the griddle is a burner shield which has support screws for the griddle. below the shield is the broiler burner, below that is the broiler pan (for the steaks!)
even with the support screws the griddle tends to sag from the heat.
its very easy to fix; i cut a piece of 3/4" plywood to fit inside the lip of the griddle and use a rubber mallet to straighten it.
when i got tired of doing that i welded two 1/2' aluminum angle stock to the bottom of the griddle. it doesnt warp anymore. easy fix if you can weld aluminum or know someone who can.
tom

[taheckler]

Tom, you're amazing! Can you send me a picture of how you welded those brackets on?

Would you be interested in straightening and strengthening my griddle? Just let me know the price - I am happy to pay for something as useful as this.

Oh, yeah: and the burner shield Tom mentions didn't come on the Model B's and before, only the BZ and C. I changed out the broilerbox on my Model B to a BZ/C model for exactly this reason - I wanted the burner shield - I had to change it out anyway because it was rusted so I chose the different model.

<font color="#FFFFFF" size="1">[ October 30, 2005 01:54 PM: Message edited by: Tura Heckler ]</font>

[annnt]

Is the sagging and warping still a problem with the shield that the BZ and C's have? I've griddled a few casadillas, but not much more than that yet.
Ann

[Joe Pieweed]

From a shieldless B owner, can you guys please tell me what is the intended purpose of the burner shield?

This all brings up something very interesting, from a current Ebay listing of one ot those two older (1929) Chambers. (link shown here):

[url="http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=7361492231&sspagename=ADME:L:RTQ:US:1"]http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=7361492231&sspagename=ADME:L:RTQ:US:1[/url]

The description mentioned that the griddle had been recently nickel plated.

When I asked the seller why they had done so, and explained that I thought all griddles were aluminum, they replied "I had the griddle nickel plated because, the griddle was totally rusted. And nickel with stands high temperature."

So, I assume that earlier griddles were made of steel, rather than aluminum. I wouldn't at all mind having a steel griddle coated with nickel, rather than an aluminum one.

However, since pounding it straight when we first got it, in the three plus years since we've been cooking on it, our aluminum griddle has stayed pretty straight.

Old stove griddles!!!??????? Why aren't I in bed??? I used to do shipwreck research, and people called me a geek back then.

ZZZzzzzzzzzz.

Joe

[tplumeri]

dont know about any steel griddles but can tell you that anything that conducts electricity can be plated. aluminum is a great conductor and is faily easily electroplated. nickel plating can be hi polish, medium or matte finish. you can also get dark grey and black. aluminum can also be anodized by reversing the current. anodizing comes in every color. could be interesting to have the griddle color match the color of the stove...
by the way, most of the shiny chrome trim inside your car is a chemical nickel plating on plastic!

[annnt]

The B/BZ Service Manual says that you should place a warped griddle face down on the floor and step on it or pound it with a rosin or wooden mallet or bend it over the corner of a wooden table. It also has some helpful suggestions (page 10) on how to keep the griddle from warping regarding adjusting nuts and screws - but "moreover, the broiler burner should never be used to heat the kitchen."
Gosh, I learn something new everyday from these great stoves!
Ann

[Joe Pieweed]

"moreover, the broiler burner should never be used to heat the kitchen."

Eeeeewwww. I'm guilty of that. I'll stop it.

Joe