New Big Iron Acquisition - IBM Tabulating Equipment

The Museum of Business History and Technology in Wilmington, DE is proud to announce the arrival of its latest little bundles of joy, an IBM 405 Accounting Machine and an IBM 513 Reproducing Punch. The 405 weighed in at a hefty 1000 lbs, while the 513 is a relatively svelte 400 or so. Pictures of the blessed event are available: http://www.ddmx.net/ibm405/ibmHaul01.jpg http://www.ddmx.net/ibm405/ibmHaul02.jpg http://www.ddmx.net/ibm405/ibmHaul03.jpg http://www.ddmx.net/ibm405/ibmHaul04.jpg http://www.ddmx.net/ibm405/ibmHaul05.jpg http://www.ddmx.net/ibm405/ibmHaul06.jpg http://www.ddmx.net/ibm405/ibmHaul07.jpg http://www.ddmx.net/ibm405/ibmHaul08.jpg Birth announcement euphamisms aside, this was a pretty cool find. The systems came with 405 & 513 schematics -- blueprints, really; 405 & 513 service records and a 513 CE guide. The 405 also has five programmed plugboards (the system was originally owned by a liquor distributor in Madison, WI) with various sales reports, as well as a blank board. Both machines are in very rough condition, as you can see from the pictures. As it turns out, I spoke to a guy in Green Bay a while back (prompted by a mail list posting) whose brother was selling some property. On the property was a barn; and in the barn was, you guessed it, old IBM tabulating equipment. The plugboards even had hay on them! On the other hand, the wiring bundles actually look pretty un-nibbled by various critters, so go figure... What's next? Any retired IBM customer engineers out there with an interest in helping to restore these machines? Restoring the 405 looks to be an enormous task, but with a very high coolness factor. Does anyone know of another organization that has restored one of these?