PDP-11/35 (And: It's good to be back)

Hi folks, First I'd just like to say it's good to be back. I think I first joined Classiccmp in 1998-ish, and I've been on-again off-again as time and life has permitted participation in the hobby. Following a very long time spent off the list, it's really good to finally be back. I've missed this place a lot. Now, for the meat... Last year I was offered a PDP-11/35 by a friend who was cleaning out his shed in preparation for a move back to the Bay Area. I haven't had any PDP-11s in a long time (unfortunately!), so I jumped at the offer. He moved it down here two weeks ago, and I picked it up. It's seen better days, that's for sure. Time, the climate, mice, and spiders all did some damage. On first sight I was scared there wouldn't be anything salvageable. But I was in luck, the physical damage was largely confined to the metal chassis, which is covered in surface rust and dirt. I've started to work on cleaning it up and restoring it, and I'm documenting the process here: ?http://www.loomcom.com/projects/pdp11-35/index.html I haven't done very much yet other than disassembly and a little surface cleaning. My next priority will be to get the power supply out so I can inspect it, clean it (if needed), and start testing it on my workbench. Eventually I want to take care of the chassis by sandblasting it and re-painting it. That will be a while, though. Anyway, I hope I'll be able to bounce debugging questions off folks here as I go along. And if anyone local to me (San Francisco Bay Area) would be willing to lend a hand now and again, that would be fantastic. I may need some help by the time I get around to applying power. One downside to this is that it has rekindled my DEC-lust to levels not seen since 2000. A real pity - over the years I've had tons (probably literally) of DEC gear come and go through my collection, but I've kept almost none of it due to lack of a permanent, owned home for it all. But now that I'm settling down and I have some time again, I wish I'd kept a lot of it. Such is life - you never really appreciate what you have until it's gone :) At least it has all gone to other collectors, and not to the scrappers! -Seth