CG Works Swing Rack or CG Store Adjustable Rig??

tmackie · February 2012

I have had my Large BGE since Christmas and am ready to upgrade my grate system.

I already have the platesetter & Cast Iron grate, but I want to upgrade. I am torn between the Swing Rack from ceramicgrillworks.com and the Adjustable Rig from ceramicgrillstore.com

At this point I'm leaning towards the Swing Rack since I already have the platesetter. For those of you that have one or the other of these (or both) please give me your thoughts on the advantages of each.

Thanks in advance!

hogsfan · February 2012

Long time lurker here. I don't really have a comment on the adjustable rig other than I think it's really cool.

I have the swing grate for my XL. I haven't had it very long, but I really like it a lot. The functionality works exactly as you would expect by looking at the videos. The quality of the materials is probably much higher than you expect. It's extremely solid...or at least it is for the XL. I actually feel like it's probably worth more than I paid for it based on the way it's built.

Couple of things you might not expect. The swing rack is adjustable but there is really a narrow range of practical height settings. If you go too low, you could either hit the side of the base when you swing out or the post below the main grate will hit your platesetter or indirect piece. For me, I think I've found the sweet spot for me and I plan on just leaving it there.

Also, there is a collar that drops below the post hole on the bottom grate by about 1.25 inch (it may be smaller on the large). This is a good thing because it gives the upper grate stability (when I was looking at pictures before I bought, I was afraid the upper grate would sag over time...I am no longer worried about this.) The down of that post is it's always hanging down so you have to account for this. I use a spider and the post collar just happens to line up with the inner ring of the XL spider. This isn't a problem when I'm using the spider like a diffuser (though I don't use a ceramic stone...just a drip pan because I'm not totally sure there's room for both) but if I want to flip the spider over and use it to get the main cooking grate closer to the felt level, I flip the main grate upside down so the spider doesn't hit that post. (I don't know if any of that will apply to you using a platesetter but just in case you ever decided to go that route in the future...)

One awesome thing about the swing grate that I didn't expect is the thing is freakishly non-stick. I really like that compared to the SS and cast iron grates I've used in the past.

So far, I really like it and I'm very happy with my purchase. Hope this helps.

hogsfan · February 2012

I tried to post pictures but can't seem to get them to work.

smokeyj · February 2012

Not much more to add to what hogsfan said about the two tier swing grate. I love mine as well.

Austex_Egger · February 2012

I've had a swing grate for my large for a few months now and love it. Much better than the raised grid I made before. The swing aspect in VERY handy. Agree with hog about a narrow range on height adjust-ability. I have mainly used mine during low and slows. Would like to be able to lower the top a bit more, but it hits the plate setter. I'm considering cutting the rod, as I don't think I could ever raise it all the way up as it would hit the cover.

The only minor draw back is the things are made with very tight tolerances. On mine, practically have to use a hammer to take the rod out. Very well constructed though.

Gezr · February 2012

Like Hogsfan I found a level for the top swing rack that works for me and so I don't do much adjusting for height. The pivot rod does need to be pulled out occasionaly and cleaned or the gunk build-up can make it very difficult to remove.
With the two racks there is a lot of grill space and being able to swing the top rack out gives good access to the food on the bottom.

RustyBrainpan · February 2012

I have the adjustable rig and wouldn't trade it. I enjoy the seemingly endless combination of cooking heights and grid combinations. I added the slides for the oval grid so I can slide it in and out to tend to food on the lower level. Granted this only works with the grids at the upper heights so that the sliding grid clears the Egg, but it is very useful for ribs in particular. I use the spider and stone for the dutch oven and like it better than the plate setter for this purpose, although I do have the plate setter as well. I also have the 13" BGE cast iron grate that sits well on the spider down close to the lump for searing. Long and short of it is that you get a lot of flexibility with the adjustable rig and its individual components over just dual cooking surfaces.

tmackie · February 2012

Thanks for the advice guys!

I went ahead and ordered the CGW Swing Grate. They are out of stock at the moment but Franco told me that it should be no more than 2 weeks.

I will report back once I receive it with some pics and a short review.

BakerMan · February 2012

I have had the CGW swing rack for a few months now and find it to be very flexible. It has seasoned nicely and I just give it a quick brush before cooking. Like Hogsfan mentioned when it is on the fire ring you have to make sure it is high enough to clear the edge of the grill. I have also used in a rasied grid configuration by placing my original Egg grate on the fire ring, adding three empty cans and placing CGW grate on top of the cans (at somepoint I'll upgrate to firebricks). In this config you will need to lower the upper grate in order to get grill dome to close.

JerkChicken · February 2012

I went with the Adjustable Rig. I like it overall, but find it a bit cumbersome. I wish I could have tried both before buying to see which is best for me.

BOWHUNR · February 2012

I have both, and recommend both. The AR is more versitile, but the swing rack is easier to use and clean.

Mike

Omaha, NE

tmackie · February 2012

I'm sure I will order the Adjustable Rig at some point, but the Swing Rack just seemed the most logical for me at this point. Can't wait for it to come in!

joe@bge · February 2012

Swing rack for me too...I haven't run into the adjustability limitations yet. I have it set where I can use both levels with the platesetter in and aside from a really tall butt or roast, I don't see many cuts I couldn't do in this configuration. I pretty much completely switched to spatchcocking all my chicken so there's no issue with doing them either.

Quality is amazing...customer service is awesome...you won't regret it. I am thinking about ordering a second one for my medium now. B-)

lousubcap · February 2012

Okay-late to this party but I'm in the CGW 2 Tier rig camp- great accessory-adjustable height and the swivel makes easy access. Construction and functionality are top tier. I'm very satisfied although to be fair I have not used anything from cgs-know a few eggers who do use the cgs AR and like it but you have fixed heights and have to work for below the top level access.

jmsmrdk · February 2012

"I actually feel like it's probably worth more than I paid for it based on the way it's built."

sounds like it was made in Pittsburgh.

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