TU-58 Tape Drive Problems

Hello to all VAXenfolks, i do have a problem with a VAX-11/730 that i have reconstructed (cleaned, resoldered, replaced cable, everything. Pictures on www.vaxcluster.de. Yes, i am a bit proud of it... But sorry for the bad web-page design!) over the last few months. It is now willing to boot and tries to load it's microcode tape from the TU-58 drives. I even have a microcode tape which looks like it could be still readable. But the TU-58's are so battered that i have not been able to read the tape. I have repaced the rubber rollers, but the read/write-heads look, ummm, bad! I have found somewhere some TU-58 simulator software for DOS which looks like a promising alternative; i would place a mini-DOS-computer inside a VT-102 and route some additional cables to the VAX and bee fine. BUT: How do i get the contents of the microcode tape of the tape, into a DOS file without access to a working TU-58? Is someone on this list able to read the tape? Has someone already made a tape image i could just use? I mean, i have a original DEC tape, with serial number and all. I might even come up with a license document, if i search long enough... Any help would be greatly welcomed. This old lady is just to beautifull to use it as an electric heater only... Thank you ms -- Michael Schneider email: ms(a)silke.rt.schwaben.de Germany http://www.vaxcluster.de People disagree with me. I just ignore them. (Linus Torvalds)