I am fortunate to own MAK #48. I bought it - and it was a few years old then - from nepas, and o only then because he was moving into a motor home. What a luck break I was getting - and did not know it....
It was shipped to MAK, where the belly was replaced with stainless ( originally the first few had a powder coated steel lower end )and cart were replaced with and the cart was refinished with the current black and grey splatter/marbled finish, unfit electronic to include the WiFi module.
ANd...I used the 2 star to do everything I could think of....( have you ever smoke-dried your underwear...? Don't knock it 'til you ty it!
) Seriously - I lost count after about 400 hours of use. But - I was not as neat as I could have been - and would overload the pit - such that the meats would drip outside of the area of the drip pan - so all of that eventually became this black, armor plating about 3/8" thick - that could be a replacement for DU ( Depleted Uranium) armor on M-1 Abrams tanks....
So...when "that day" came - as it invariably does...when one's conscience collides with reality ....I wen full OCD x Anal Retentive + busted knuckles and tore the MAK down for not only a "restorative cleaning" - but to perform a couple of upgrades: 1. the stainless front shelf. and 2. the new Flash-Fire ignition kit that replaced the hot-rod style ignitors. This should prevent the one part that pellet grill owners all know - they should keep a spare on hand....
Because the years of hard use were showing on old #48, the stainless steel had some scratches that were minor- but obvious. And the original finish has now been replaced with a "DA 120" finish. This is one that is not as shiny - and just looks better. Less glare, and just less critical looking. I like it a lot.
Here is the hood before, half-way thru and after sanding and re-finishing with a dual action air sander and 120 grit sandpaper:
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