I think they were reworking the part that holds the actual drip pan to address air flow and temperature issues. Mine acted a little squirrely with the solid insert, while the flame zone insert worked like a champ.
I know it's been a crazy process trying to perfect these pans, without a doubt our biggest challenge so far except maybe the 4 Star
We have finished the 1 Star testing and are building production, should be a few weeks. The 2 Star is still testing....
I do have one of the new style that is being tested. We cooked the Christmas Turkey on it and a lot of food since then. Along with other test I do with and without food. They way mine is right now could be a production piece for most manufactures. But that's not how MAK Daddy rolls.
I have been a tester for many months now and even though my temperatue is probably off 50 degrees due to the solid insert I have choosen to adjust my cooking so I can keep using the full grill zone. That is how much I love the full zone, I use it even when I am smoking food.