C'mon, there is only 1 choice. Magna "[I]Catalina[/I]" Sorry, couldn't resist.

Seriously, I do have the Catalina grill and really like it. It stays lit even when it is windy and cleans up easily.

When I first purchased my boat my dock neighbor donated his old Magma Kettle style grill to me. I took it home and used it there and loved it. It had a pole attachment on its base, I drove an old broom stick into the lawn and attached it. It did a great job and was much easier than firing up my big barbaque, but Magma was old and died.

My buddy gave me a Force 10 Stow & Go for my birthday and I hate it. The difference I note is that the Magma Kettle used ceramic briquets and the Force ten uses a metal plate that heats up and trasfers the heat. The issue I have had is that when cooking anything that drips a fair amount of oil or grease on the hot plate, such as hamburgers, chicken with skin on, sausages or fatty meats like tri tip, the grease drips onto the hot plate and you loose control of the cooker. It will turn into a Chernobal Barbique, you can turn the gas all the way off but the grill just keeps getting hotter, the hotter it gets more fat drips onto the plate until you remove what is on the grill and it looks like some take out you picked up from the Neptune Society. If all you cook are veggie burgers I am sure it would do fine.

The Magma using the ceramic coals would burn off the grease quickly when it hit the coals but, would not run away out of control. On the kettle you had more control over air flow so it would not sustain a large fire. The Force 10 has lots of open vents with no regulation for them.

Again I am just using these at home and would not use the Force 10 aboard as I would be concerned that my barbaque meal could turn into my own Viking Funeral.

Good observation about the different materials on the Magmas. I do believe though that you can order individual parts for the grill from Magma, so should be able to replace the metal with ceramic. Our old boat had ceramic, new one metal. When the Admiral dropped the metal overboard last season, I hadn't thought about getting a ceramic replacement. Next time it goes overboard we will.;)

Stu, rethinking this I susspect that the Chernobal Effect has more to do with the the lack of air control than the fire media.

As a side note, I had a freind visting a few years back, they were staying at a small camp ground with cottages. He invited me over for a barbaque and to have a few beers. I watched him try and get the babaque going,
he used an entire can of starter fluid over the course of an hour, pissing and moaning the whole time about the poor quality briquets the store sold him. We eventualy noted that he had puchased a bag of ceramic briquets. We had cold sandwichs and beer and laughed about his purchase.

As the old joke goes, a man falling strapped to a parachute he's unable to open sees another man coming up, toward him. He says, "Hey! You know anything about parachutes?" "About as much as I know about backyard barbeques," is the response.

So where does one find a "Catalina Grill"?

Bob

Bob,

You get creative and use Google: "Catalina barbecue grill": [url]http://www.thefind.com/appliances/browse-magma-catalina-gas-barbeque-gri...

I originally tried "Catalina grilles" and all that came up were replacement parts for Pontiacs! :confused:

Really, if you can't find something, try Google, almost ALL the time. These days, asking "Where can I find [something]?" should not be a plausible question to someone with access to a computer, really...:eek:

It has also been reported by many that the rectangular BBQs seem to be preferred because "stuff" doesn't fall off them like what happens with the circular models. Partly because the circular ones don't have lips on the edge, and because the covers are usually blowing around when they're off.

Steve, the instructions for the Magma grills includes: "start on low it gets hotter inside" and, for once, some instructions are actually correct. :D I'm headin' out for some of 'dem "ceramic brickettes" right now, maybe they can be used to replicate the ceramic insides?!?

Bob,

You asked, [QUOTE=therobesons;1586]So where does one find a "Catalina Grill"?[/QUOTE]

Arriving just a moment ago - 1320, 6/20/2009 - and fresh out of the mailbox, in the latest WM flyer, check page 3 for Magma Catalina Gas Grill. I won't quote the price here. But they offer a less costly choice: a Magma Newport Gas Grill. I wonder, are they talking about Newport, Rhode Island or Newport Beach, California?

I will look at the newport grill, since I had a newport 30 at one time.

Bob

You should also take a look at a Dickinson Sea-b-Que. That's what I chose after a search of several sailing forums to see what others had to say. Magma's were the most often mentioned with lots of negative comments about the kettle type grills (blowing out, uneven heat and hot dogs rolling overboard) along with some positive comments. The Catalina and Newport models from Magma did seem to have better reviews.

After a good bit of looking around the web, I didn't find a single negative comment about the Sea-b-Que in a dozen or so mentions, so that did it for me, and I purchased a small Dickinson at a very good price during Defenders annual sale. I've have it about 2 years now and I'm still very happy with it. When I have guests aboard I sometimes wish I'd gone for the larger model, but the small is easier to store and I like my steaks rare so it usually works out fine. I have a Mk1.5 so don't have as much rail space as a MKII so that was a factor in chosing the small also.

THE NEWPORT MAGNA WILL NOT FIT IN THE LOCKERS IT IS WAY TOO BIG, THE CATALINA FITS PERFECT. "can only wonder why " lol .
But trust me I have them both , but the favorite of all is as Steve says MAGNA PARTY KETTLE always cooks evenly.

Just a thought

I too, had the original Magma kettle grill for over twenty years and loved it. I rebuilt it three times and it was unfailable, regardless of the conditions. I eventually had to replace the whole unit, and the Magma "party size" was appealing with two sons growing up, and the vast quantities of food required.

I will say about the new magma in one word - dissapointment. It seems to me the quality is gone. It seems very tinny. I have be so dissappointed that I actually returned it to West Marine under their no questions asked policy and got a brand new one and was equally dissapointed.

I do like the idea of adding ceramic brickettes to it and will try it.

Tom Bolen
SPIRIT
#1780
Northport, NY

Tom, if this just happened to you recently, get in touch with the Magma guys directly by phone. They're here in CA and do care about their business - family startup and run, quality was their original guiding principle and Made in the USA. Ask 'em what's changed...

I've had the same experience as you have - late 1980s Party Kettle, unbreakable except for the regulator which cleaned out easily and guess who dropping the insides overboard - just cleanin'! :)

The magnum that came with our boat use briquettes and we would like a propane one.

Does anyone offer a conversion kit for one of these things?

Thanks

Bob

I got KUUMA grill from West Marine for $100 plus Rail Mount for about $40
have been using it for several month now. It works great even in strong winds. It is big enough and small enough at the same time. Because of its light wight and a compact size it is never on the way. Defiantly did the trick for us

[QUOTE=ProfDruhot;2084]Well.........I bit the bullet and purchased a Magma Grill at West, aka Tiffanys, at least it was on sale. I paid something like $149 for it. Still too much! THEN, I purchased the mounting hardward to mount the darn thing. The price on that was (drum roll please) $80. It does look nice, I mounted it to port on the strut above my davits above my dink.[/QUOTE]

I hope you get many years of enjoyment out of it Glenn.
The price they charge for the mounts is a crime!