I didn't have any sandpaper, but the girlfriend and I scrubbed off as much rust as we could with steel wool, oiled up the inside, and threw a chimney full of hot coals into both the firebox and the cooking chamber. Halfway through, I decided "screw it" and threw some boneless ribs on there too. Hopefully that wasn't a bad idea, but I couldn't help myself. The ribs that were furthest from the firebox came out pretty good, but I completely charred a couple, lol...
Scrubbing:
Lids look a lot better:
Dumped out the ashes. Probably will scrape, sand, and re-season again.
This is my biggest problem:
Not only is the damper bent, but the screw/nut are completely loose and are frozen together. I'll probably have to snap the bolt to get it off. What kind of hardware should I replace it with? Should I just get stainless nuts/bolts from home depot? Is it worth upgrading to bigger hardware?
I'd also like to try the baffle + tuning plate mod. What can I do to get straight cuts in sheet metal? Should I just find a machine/metal shop to cut the plates for me?