Like others, I also got a lot of stuff from Auber: 1/32 DIN temperature controller, 25A SSRs, heat sink, RTD sensors and connectors and thermocouple connectors.
Though I have the Auber PID controller, I'm actually using a 1/16 DIN Ogden ETR9300 controller that I got off eBay (I see they still have "More than 10 available.") because I plan on using the Auber for reading a meat probe. I should have gone to Auber for the meat probe itself, but I didn't see one on their site until after I ordered one for more than twice the price from
Thermoworks.
I mounted the Ogden and Auber controllers in an aluminum project box along with the SSR, heat sink, various connectors, a switch and fuse. To be honest, the box is a bit lightweight for the 110v plugs if you plan on unplugging them often. But if you're going to plug your smoker into it once and leave it that way, then it's probably okay.
I'm only driving 500 watts on my CookShack so the heat sink doesn't even get warm- either that or the aluminum case is dissipating a lot of heat itself since it's sandwiched between the heat sink and the SSR.
Anyway, the Ogden does well for me, though I must say that the first time I autotuned it for my smoker (after initial testing on my rice cooker for sous vide cooking), it was way out of tune. After putting in more reasonable initial settings, then having it autotune, it was better. And after it self tuned, it was great. Now it holds +/-1 degree with almost no overshoot when starting up.
Give me a few weeks since things are going to get busy soon, but after that I hope to have pictures and a rough wiring diagram of what I have set up. I also hope to have tested the cook and hold feature I've implemented (which is why I needed the Ogden instead of the Auber).
So, to address your concerns: the specifications for my controller indicate it's rated for operation between -10C to 50C (14-122F), outside your range, though not by much. But at least the storage temp is -40 to 60C. But, yeah, at over 100 pages, the manual can be overwhelming. On the other hand, it has more detailed information and examples than the six page Auber instruction manual.
Panels- I just cut it out of the project box. If you wanted to get really fancy, a friend of mine has used frontpanelexpress.com for work projects.