Napoleon Grills TravelQ 285 with Scissor Cart Review. There are a few big names out there in the grilling universe but Napoleon Grills is one brand that should never be overlooked. The grilling experience on the Napoleon TravelQ 285 with scissor cart is superb and lets you have that home grilling experience anywhere you want to take it! There’s even directional tires on it!
The Award Winning Napoleon TravelQ 285 is a combination scissor cart and portable grill that will be your best friend for tailgaters, car campers and picnickers alike. The company produces high-end, high-performance Gourmet home and portable grills.
TravelQ TQ285X Specs
The Napoleon TravelQ 285 with scissor cart TQ285X features 2x 12,000 BTU burners that rival many home size grills, an attached scissor cart with 2 wheels for convenient relocation and a 285 inch cooking area between the two burners.
The unit runs on a 1lb Propane bottle that you can pick up virtually anywhere, Lowes, Home Depot, Campmor… Additionally you can purchase an optional adapter that will allow you to hook up a 20 pounder bottle of propane for your home.
The lid is made of Powder Coated Steel while the cooking box is made of heavy gauge steel and measures Height 37.25″ x Width 44.25″ x Depth 20.25″ and weighs approx 50lbs.
The TravelQ 285 comes equipped with JETFIRE™ Ignition system, ACCU-PROBE™ Temperature Gauge, Removable Grease Tray, Side Shelves on both sides for decent work area when out in the field. Dual stainless steel burners allow for direct or indirect grilling, superior wind proof design and Porcelainized Cast Iron WAVE™ Cooking Grids ensure that you won’t sacrifice your grilling quality when your away from home.
The side tables provide you with a small, but stabile area on either side of the grill unit, rounded handles give you the perfect place to hang a hand towel and the 8 integrated plastic hooks (4 on each table, 2 front/2 back) let you hang your grilling tools the same way you do on your home grill.
Setting up the TravelQ 285 with Scissor Cart
Setting up the TravelQ 285 for use is about as easy as it gets. The unit comes 98% assembled, all you need to do is put on the wheels. Slide the provided bar in through the axle holes on the frame, put on the wheels and snap on the caps that hold the wheels. Additionally you need to screw on the kickstand leg/side table and slide the grease tray into position. The Porcelainized Cast Iron WAVE™ Cooking Grids come thoughtfully wrapped and the cover or lid has a locking mechanism to hold it all down when you fold up the unit after use or for storage.
From unboxing the unit and completing the minor assembly to screwing in the propane bottle and firing her up took all of about 20 min tip to tail. There is virtually no learning curve and you’ll be grilling like a chef in no time.
Cooking with the TravelQ 285 with Scissor Cart
Firing up the TravelQ 285 is a cinch. Though I recommend that you look closely (don’t burn your hair) to see if the burners are lit if you are in direct sunlight as I thought initially that they were not lit but in fact were. The flame itself isn’t overpowering but works very efficiently which is welcome as we are working with these 1 pounder Propane bottles, actually 1.2 lb but who’s counting.
At 2x 12,000 BTU burners, these puppies will let you grill like you’re at home. The burners are super efficient and allow you to cook with ease. You will however want to cook with the cover closed for maximum efficiency as with most portable or table sized grills but the open direct flame area allows you to grill on the go without sacrificing that beautiful sear on your steak. An optional Smoker Tube, with the two, individually controlled, stainless steel tube burners is available for those of you who like to go the extra mile when your camping.
The broad 285 square inch cooking area makes it possible to cook in bulk in case you have more than a couple of hungry mouths beckoning you for food. You can fit approximately 20 meaty burgers at once on this thing!
Clean up is a snap with the removable grease tray. Just make sure you empty/clean it before you try and store it upright or you might have grease drippings meander their way over the scissor cart area.
The locking lid makes it easy to store, carry and cook. The ACCU-PROBE Temperature Gauge is excellent and bringing the grill up to operating temp is quick and painless. I always like to have multiple canisters on hand but the 1 pounder Propane bottle surprisingly lasts quite a while and provides more than enough grilling time for any one typical session of cooking. You may notice, espcially with the summer heat that the Propane bottle will get cold and sweat with condensation, this is normal for operation of any propane cooking unit and should not be of any concern for safety.
The temperature knobs could be slightly more crisp. They work well and there’s nothing wrong with them but there is a slight amount of play in the control knob before it becomes responsive.
Traveling, Folding, Storing the TravelQ 285
A huge added convenience to the portable table style grill is the attached scissor cart. The cart makes it possible to roll your grill along with ease, unfold it and have a useable table area on both sides of the grill. How nice is that? Table grills are nice, but the TravelQ 285 with scissor cart allows you to setup shop virtually anywhere; especially great for tailgating partiers. The TravelQ 285 with scissor cart is relatively compact, efficient and convenient making it great for condo balconies or even your home if you don’t have the room for a full sized grill. It’s slightly bulkier than a traditional table top portable grill due to the attached cart but the unit will fit in just about any car trunk, even a subcompact car provided you have it cleared out.
The TravelQ 285 grill with scissor cart is made to travel but is an excellent choice for those that don’t have much real estate to work with at their home or condo and still want that home grilling experience and taste. The compact unit is perfect to stand up and pack away for storage when not needed.
The grill does not natively separate from the cart. I would have loved to have seen a modular unit. Conversely the fact that the unit is NOT modular adds to the overall rigidity and stability of the unit which is probably why this was built this way and provides a nice stabile base anywhere you have relatively flat ground.
The grilling experience is superb! But if there’s a complaint about this unit it might be that when you are erecting the scissor cart. The cart is spring loaded to easily flex back into a flat form when it’s time to pack her up. When you erect the unit, make sure to securely place your foot on the leg, hold the handle to raise the unit, once you are at full extension, lower the unit so it sits into its locking position and ensure that the locking latch mechanism is in a down position before letting go. At it’s full extension the unit can recoil quite hard if not seated in place properly, so be careful.
It’s not difficult but you just need to be conscious of it or the snap back will remind you pretty quickly. When you fold the unit up, pull back on the latch locking lever shown above to release the latch lock, raise the grill slightly with the handle, then slowly begin to lower the unit to the ground. Once the unit is flat on the ground, one side-table will automatically pivot upwards to act as a kick-stand when in it’s upright storage position.
The wheel assembly could be improved upon. The caps that hold the wheels on the axle could be a bit more sturdy and secure. They are simple 1x use caps with segmented folds inside, when you squeeze them onto the axle they hold the wheel on. If they are ever expanded or bent they can come loose. Very similar to a child’s wagon or push vehicle wheel caps.
Warranty
Napoleon offers a 5 year limited warranty on the Lid Assembly, Base Casting, Stainless steel tube burners, Porcelain-enameled cast iron cooking grids and another 5 years extended warranty where the parts will be covered at 50% of then current retail cost. Additionally Plastic components are covered to 5 years and all other parts 2 years.
Recommendation
The TQ285X Napoleon TravelQ 285 with scissor cart offers the greatest convenience and ultimate in portability for tailgaters, car campers and picnickers with its folding cart design. The sturdy design with side tables and removable grease tray makes for a great cooking station virtually anywhere you want to take it. The TravelQ 285 with scissor cart is like having all the comforts and performance of your gourmet home grill with you on the road! A great way to spend the 4th of July with juicy burgers anywhere!
TQ285X Napoleon TravelQ 285 with Scissor Cart $399.00
Available in blue or red
www.napoleongrills.com
