Hinge on OK Joe Highland

[mdlnb]

Assembled my new Ok Joe Highland and used Permatex Ultra Copper to seal the seams.  Waiting for the Nomex tape to arrive so I can seal the doors.  Due to rain, I haven't seasoned the smoker yet.  I plan to do an initial burn to burn it out and then wipe it down real good before spraying Flaxseed oil inside and doing a seasoning burn. 

I have a question that might be obvious or just dumb.  Does anyone know the purpose of the extra sleeves welded to the door hinges might be for?  It almost appears like it could be used to attach some extra shelves. There's two sleeves on the main smoker and two on the firebox, attached to the hinges.  Come to think about it, maybe it's just extra support for the small welds holding the hinges.

 

[gonavy]

I might be wrong, but I think it keeps the lid from going completely over the back, stops it at the straight up point.  Just a guess, I have the highlander and had the same thought, looks to be the reason too me

 

[mdlnb]

Funny, I didn't even think of that.  That sounds totally logical, thanks.  My nomax lava tape came in yesterday, so I am almost ready to go.  All I need to do is burn off the residue on the inside and then start my seasoning process.  Now, if only the rain would work with me.