I ordered the new drip pan Monday afternoon and it arrived today.  It's not super heavy-duty, but appears to be plenty sturdy enough.  I'm looking forward to using it as soon.  I really believe the 2-piece drip pan was ill-conceived.  It never made any sense to me how their "open flame technology" could possibly work because the heat shield blocks 99.9% of the flame to begin with and then somehow just because the holes on the drip pan are open, there's some flame action?  I don't think so. 

Before I got the 1-piece drip pan, I started foiling the original drip pan to cover the holes and it made a significant improvement to the quality and evenness of the cooking.  Here it is:

Did you find it on their website, or did you have to call?  I'm not a fan of the two piece tray and I may get me one also.   
Thanks

I called and ordered on the phone.  I've been calling them every few weeks and they finally have them in stock now. 

I have the early model DC with the pin hole sized holes that are a pain to keep open & the 2 piece tray is very heavy Might have to look at these simply to reduce the weight since now the DC's use is to haul around when camping.

My only problem with the two piece is that they are a PIA to clean/scrape. My experience is that when open, the holes do improve the searing capability.

My only problem with the two piece is that they are a PIA to clean/scrape. My experience is that when open, the holes do improve the searing capability.

I found that the closed holes also improve (unwanted) searing capability.  LOL.

Not sure If I'm in the minority or not, but I actually REALLY like the drip tray with holes in it for cooking certain things, like wings, burgers, etc...   I feel that little bit of heat that comes up through the holes actually works quite well... Just enough more uumph to get something a bit closer to real 'grilling' temperatures.

  I could see a argument for having two drip trays, one with holes, one without... but I really would prefer not to be forced to only have a solid drip tray. ( like if something ever happens to my two piece )

Not sure If I'm in the minority or not, but I actually REALLY like the drip tray with holes in it for cooking certain things, like wings, burgers, etc...   I feel that little bit of heat that comes up through the holes actually works quite well... Just enough more uumph to get something a bit closer to real 'grilling' temperatures.

  I could see a argument for having two drip trays, one with holes, one without... but I really would prefer not to be forced to only have a solid drip tray. ( like if something ever happens to my two piece )

That was one of the reasons for me buying my DC was because of the flame kiss capabilities. Just those small toothpick size holes are a PITA to keep open. Which led me to buying a Louisiana where just a portion of the driptray slides open & the large slits in the pan won't clog up & you really get flame kissed meat.

IMHO GMG took a step backwards by going back to the solid driptray instead of making a better slider to better serve its customers.

Honestly, I'd personally be fine having two separate drip trays, one with holes one without holes...  Now, obviously it'd probably cost more to provide two separate drip trays ( if they were both relatively thick... )

But anyway, even if it was optional to buy a drip tray with holes, I'd be fine with that...

I'll probably buy a one piece for every day and retain my two piece for specific usage.

I agree with Hughver to keep both.  The 1-piece is not expensive so it's worth it to improve the smoking performance.

The problem with the 2-piece in the DC is it compromised the performance as a smoker - the 2-piece simply runs too hot (as well as too many hot spots) for even low and slow cooking.  It seems to me that the 2-piece works much better in the Jim Bowie and Daniel Boone as they are larger with more and better airflow.  But, in the DC, space is limited and the food is (at grate level) closer to the firepot, making the 2-piece problematic. 

I've really wanted to like my DC and I don't expect it to smoke like my Mak 1-star, but I do expect it be able to smoke a rack of ribs low and slow without burning them because of excessive heat from the bottom.  Now that I've got the 1-piece and used it a few times, I can definitively say that the hot spots and unintended searing/burning have disappeared.  Smoking performance has evened out significantly and the DC is working as a good smoker now. 

So, if you want to grill, keep the 2-piece.  If you want to make this a better smoker, get the 1-piece. 

Here's a rack of pork spareribs and 3 single beef ribs I smoked at 225 degrees.  I smoked the pork ribs for 3 hours, foiled for 1.5 hrs, removed foil and smoked for another 45 minutes.  The beef ribs were naked the whole time.  I just wanted to post the picture to show how evenly this cooked with the new 1-piece drip pan.  I never could have done this with the 2-piece drip pan without crispy and burnt bottoms and edges. 

I ordered the new drip pan Monday afternoon and it arrived today.  It's not super heavy-duty, but appears to be plenty sturdy enough.  I'm looking forward to using it as soon.  I really believe the 2-piece drip pan was ill-conceived.  It never made any sense to me how their "open flame technology" could possibly work because the heat shield blocks 99.9% of the flame to begin with and then somehow just because the holes on the drip pan are open, there's some flame action?  I don't think so. 

Before I got the 1-piece drip pan, I started foiling the original drip pan to cover the holes and it made a significant improvement to the quality and evenness of the cooking.  Here it is:

Where did you ever read that it was advertised as, "Open Flame Technology"? It just let more heat through, that is all. I never read the term, "Open Flame Tech" in any GMG documentation.

I ordered the new drip pan Monday afternoon and it arrived today.  It's not super heavy-duty, but appears to be plenty sturdy enough.  I'm looking forward to using it as soon.  I really believe the 2-piece drip pan was ill-conceived.  It never made any sense to me how their "open flame technology" could possibly work because the heat shield blocks 99.9% of the flame to begin with and then somehow just because the holes on the drip pan are open, there's some flame action?  I don't think so. 

Before I got the 1-piece drip pan, I started foiling the original drip pan to cover the holes and it made a significant improvement to the quality and evenness of the cooking.  Here it is:

Where did you ever read that it was advertised as, "Open Flame Technology"? It just let more heat through, that is all. I never read the term, "Open Flame Tech" in any GMG documentation.

It's on the GMG web site.

https://greenmountaingrills.com/products/new-parts/stainless-steel-grease-tray-2-piece-db/

Here's another rack that I did with the 1-piece drip tray.  This one is notable because the length of the race literally spanned the entire length of the grate, even barely touching the side walls.  I though for sure I'd get some crispies on the ends, but no.  Totally even.  Again, 225 for 2.5hrs, foiled 1.5hrs, then 45 min (or so) unwrapped.