I'd been eyeing the improvements to the MAK 1 Star, after talking with MAK-Daddy, who said he could use some serious field testing, we decided to go ahead and give it a go. This also meant finding a new home for our original 1 Star. Fortunately a good friend has been wanting one, so we struck a deal and he is the proud owner of MAK 1 Star #171.
One big plus (for us at any rate) is the $900+ in add-ons/accessories we'd purchased over the past three years for the original 1 Star still fit and work with the new one. These include: 2 upper half racks, Griddle & Split Grate, FlameZone, Searing Grate, 4" casters, Side & Bottom Shelves.
We received the new grill last Thursday, but with all the rain we've had lately, the yard had finally dried out enough this past Wednesday to get this new grill put together.
We got the grill unpacked, parts laid out and parts checked.
The first thing I noticed was the difference in packaging & assembly. The new 1 Stars take up less room during shipping, which I am sure saves on shipping costs which have soared the past few years. This approach allows a person's money to go into production rather than shipping. Nice move MAK Grills!
Talk about a class act; MAK even includes a set of Allen wrenches, and not some cheap Chinese set either... Made in America baby!
Here is the grill assembled with the optional 4" Casters (available on MAK's website). Boy it sure is pretty!
The next thing to notice is the grease drain systems has been totally re-designed. The grease bucket is gone and in its place is a pull-out Grease/Ash drawer. The drawer is designed to accept a disposable aluminum mini-loaf pan for easy grease/ash clean-out.
Inside, you'll find a removable stainless steel grease shield and ash clean-out cover.
These will make cleaning the grease chute and sweeping out the ash an easy task.
Grease Drain Details
Another improvement is the smoke vent baffle is now easily removable to make cleaning the rear vents much easier.
The new 1 Star also features the latest Pellet Boss & firmware.
My initial thoughts? These improvements show why a MAK is worth every penny spent. They are always on the cutting edge looking for ways to improve. Knowing how happy I was with our original 1 Star, these improvements can only make our MAK experience even better!
I can't wait to get cooking on this.
