We have the 17 and love cooking with it.
We use a "Y" adapter between the Blackstone, and the Weber Q2000 and the 20 lb LP bottle..
I can say that we use it a lot and never have I said I wish it were bigger, its a good travel size. We do not have the lid, but we do have a cover..
I made wind screens for mine, we camp a lot at the beach and wind is usually an issue, no more with the wind screens..
Clean up is a breeze, I use a large scraper, then paper towel, then a sprinkle of oil to re season before covering for travel...
Mine has a front trap, my bro in laws is rear, either way, they are fantastic.. 2 lbs of bacon and it's not full...