Adjust the Air Lift hinge

Make the dome lighter or heavier

The hinge and the bands are under high spring tension. The manual: never loosen the bands or take the hinge apart without the hinge disengagement kit fitted, because the hinge cannot be removed safely without it; any change of dome, base or bands needs two people, gloves and safety glasses. Refit the base band first, front pin first, with a helper holding the hinge (Kamado Joe Europe).

This adjustment is the one hinge job the manual gives the owner.

1. Open the dome, with the grill cold.
2. Put a 7 mm open spanner on the flats on the screw.
3. Put a 9/16 in open spanner on the adjustment nut on top of the spring retainer ("or 14 mm may work", says the manual).
4. Hold the 7 mm still and turn the 9/16 in clockwise to make the dome easier to lift, anticlockwise to make it heavier.
5. Try the dome after every full turn.
6. Stop before the nut touches the nut under the connector.

The 2019 edition: if your screw has no flats, use a 7 mm socket on the hex end at the bottom of the screw.