Contemplating between picking up a Weber Gold vs Silver. Can't seem to find a newer Kettle in either silver or gold on CL lately. The extra $50 for the hinged grate and ash catcher seems worth it to me.
Go gold, I think you'll find the extra convenience features well worth the cost. Plus it's a Weber, meaning that you'll be living with this decision for a very long time unless you decide to sell it down the road, so I think the extra $50 is pretty easily accounted for over the course of a decade or so.
As for the Performer, I've been seriously considering it lately. I built myself a small side table out of some construction-grade scraps to hold me over for the summer last year and I'm planning on building a nicer table this year but honestly, by the time I buy the wood, screws and finish I could have probably just bought a Performer any-damn-way. Mine will be solid wood versus the metal/plastic of the Performer, but I'll still be missing the lighter so I guess it's a trade-off.
Also, I stumbled upon a great fire-starter I thought I'd share. Save your cooking oil and drizzle a little over a small wad of paper towels. It burns much longer than the traditional rolled up newspaper, is cheaper than commercial fire starters and provides a use for old cooking oil that would otherwise be thrown out. Not to mention I can't recall the last time I bought a newspaper, where as I think the house would fall in if I didn't have paper towels on hand.
