Hey, Soprano, yeah, that glue was a real pain in the ass. I believe I just took a wet wash rag and let it sit on top of the label til it got real saturated. I then just kept scrubbing it was the rag. I think I worked on it over a period of three or four days before all last bits of glue came off. I, too was not real crazy about the top chimney, I think mine seemed to be just a tad loose, so I cut a piece of black Gorilla Glue Duck tape about the same width as the felt and put it around the felt just to make it a little tighter. I was worried about these issues til I did my first low and slow, and saw how it was able to keep a constant 225-250 temp for 12+ hours. I have to say I'm happy with it. Ive had it for about 2.5 months, decided to take it apart for a good cleaning, took the firebox out. I inspected the inside ceramics real closely and saw no evidence of hairline cracks or anything. On the firebox, right under the expansion joint line, there is a hairline crack, about two inches long. It doesn't seem to be affecting the firebox in any way. However, I might think twice about taking out the firebox again, as I have read where these fireboxes break real easily, even on the Big Green Egg models. Good luck with your cooker, Keep us posted on how you like it.
