I'm really glad to hear you switched to a new undamaged one with someone else. I was literally getting ready to pull the trigger on that SM045 when a kid about an hour from me who had a SM150 called me - his ad had been on CL for over a month and I wrote him so many times he said he had to contact me first because I was so persistent. Deal done in minutes... I dropped $1400.00 on the SM150.
You will love the SM045. Do the break in run like on the YouTube video and make the first thing you cook off in it a pork butt - dead easy and it's got enough fat on it that it'll be the beginning of a great seal job. You're in for a lot of fun, these Cookshack smokers are the best... I hardly cook inside any more. LOL