It lives!
Keither wrote:
Edgar it still astonishes me the way machines are misused and abused. I hope that you will be able to successfully restore it.
I reply:
Oh yeah, it was an easy fix. The only things really wrong with it were a missing screw from the generic hose, a missing knob from the bag eject control and somebody cut the cord off. I replaced the cord winder and the screw, disconnected the bag eject control, cleaned it up and while it's not the prettiest thing, it's good to go. If and when I ever get hold of a control knob, I'll reconnect the bag eject control and see if that works. The bottom line is the thing's got a whole lot of life left in it. Why somebody dumpstered it is beyond me. I'm just glad I came along when I did, knew what I was looking at and rescued it.