Does this impact the way your gage the flame or is it totally an aesthetic issue? I say, I would have not noticed it had you not pointed it out.

I'm wondering if your entire kitchen is being renovated and empty now. Often the small out of whack seems that are entirely irksome near the end of a kitchen renovation and up feeling less so after everything is moved in and you are using the space.

I understand though it is disappointing to shell out a lot of money for something that is not perfect.

Hi Kendrah, it is purely cosmetic. Maybe it's more noticeable in person because everyone that sees it asks about the knobs.

The knobs that are not exactly vertical, what happens if you move them 1-2 degrees to exactly vertical?

If the igniter doesn’t click and gas doesn’t flow, then that’s your answer - if you want the knobs exactly vertical, then turn them that way. Just because the valve stop is at 358 degrees (two degrees counterclockwise) instead of at 0 degrees (straight up) doesn’t mean you have to turn it all the way to the stop.

There is probably a way to get the stop at exactly 0 degrees. Behind the front panel are the burner valves, each valve is held to the range body with screws, you can loosen and retighten screws, ovalize screw holes, use shims, judiciously apply a large hammer, etc to adjust the valve position by the necessary tiny amount. But the Bluestar techs aren’t going to do that because it’s not a defect, just a pecadillo.

I replaced the valves on my kitchen faucet. The hot water handle didn’t stop at exactly the mirror image of the angle that the cold water handle stopped at. I took the faucet apart, adjusted the valves, checked the angle, did that over and over, and it still wasn’t exactly right. Like 2 degrees off! It was awful! After about an hour of this, I realized that if I had nothing else but this to worry about in my life, I was a lucky man indeed! but actually I wasn’t that fortunate, so I moved on to other things. When I notice the hot water handle misaligned versus the cold water handle, I’ll still move it that teeny amount. I no longer notice it . . . not more than once a month.

Just like when installing an outlet cover, I always “clock” the screws so the screw slots are all vertical . . . but I no longer prowl the house with a screwdriver, pouncing on unclocked screws.

Being too OCD is ultimately tiresome for ourselves if not for others. Chill and enjoy life, I say. And keep those knobs clocked!

John, thank you for the thoughtful response. As they say don't sweat the small stuff and I add the corollary that most stuff is small including this. I'm just looking for a way to solve it if I can.

Unfortunately what you see in the picture is as good as it gets. What you see is with the slack taken out. The knobs turn on counter-clockwise so moving that direction just makes the angle more severe. So the point about not turning it all the way to the stop just makes it worse. The vavles are installed perfectly level and they offer zero adjustability as it sits. I have considered enlarging the screw holes in the valves and I will probably do that if Bluestar ultimately fails to resolve it. I will make a formal request myself since what the repairman told me may just be the opinion of the person he happened to talk to.

Thank again and have a great day!

I took the front cover off to interogate the problem. There is no reasonable way to adjust anything. Here are a couple of photos.

You could use a file to remove a bit of material from the right upward-facing flat of the “D” shape of the brass valve shaft, until the knob can be turned to perfectly vertical. Then put a bit of JB Weld on the left flat and file it down until the knob has no rotational play. “A bit” will be like 0.01“ to 0.02” I think. Very little anyway.

You could also make the change at the plastic insert in the knob. Trickier to do in a way that is precise and leaves the knob exactly vertical and with no play, I think. A set screw could remove the play but adds more complication.

You might end up like me with the stupid faucet handles, though.

Looking at a photo of the valve, one wonders whether the valve shaft is at an angle to the valve body or whether the entire valve is installed at an angle in the appliance. It appears that it's the former.

Bluestar 701805 Gas Valve, Top Burner

It would be interesting to disassemble a valve and see if there is some way to adjust the stop position. But, gas risk.

Yes @wdccruise, the screws holding the shaft assembly in the valve are level and the gas fitting is at or close to a perfect 90* but as you can see the shaft is slightly off by a few degrees.

Here's a different photo where you can kind of see the angle of the shaft relative to the two screws. Also note the dab of glue on that left screw. I'm guessing that falls off or breaks when the valve is tampered with so I wouldn't want to jeopardize my warranty at this point. As I mentioned earlier I'm going to attempt to escalate the issue with Bluestar and see where it goes.

gfreedy: "Also note the dab of glue on that left screw."

Even if you could loosen the screws, it doesn't appear you could then adjust (i.e., turn slightly) the shaft within the valve. But I'd never fiddle with a "live" gas valve. It would be interesting to order a valve and see how its constructed.