Thanks for celebrating with me, y'all!
Yeah, Marty, I was looking forward to cleaning this up (especially since it doesn't need much cleaning), but after seeing it, I'm thinking I might leave it just like it is. It does have a wonderful patina, and some good memories in that little bit of grease. I can't wait for my kids to cook on it.
It was funny, too, because I called Weber CS today to order a bunch of stuff and asked about the fiber washers. The lady worked really hard at it, but couldn't find the category in her computer system for any pre-1980 Smokey Joes-- it was like it was ancient history or something; totally inaccessible. But I ran out to the shed, got the box down, pulled out the original parts list, and gave her the digits for the fiber washers, and she said, "Oh, here they are, fiber washers!". It was like I had just given her the codes for a time machine or something.