In about a week it'll be the 10th anniversary of my posting about old lasers here, and I've enjoyed every minute of it. My sincere thanks for the reception, comments, and interest from the membership, and for your tolerance of the style of some of my off-topic inputs.
Best way for me to celebrate ten years of vintage lasers on PL is to post a real nugget I've been seeking all that time and just found. Shown below is a 1971 Optics Technology Inc. model 170 He-Ne classroom laser. I love the groovy design of the case. The tube featured internal mirrors which were aligned by gently pushing in two directions at one end. No magnets or resistors near the tube, no interlocks, a start position on the power switch ... yeah, it's "vintage". For eventual display, I have the manual, a spare plasma tube, and a few pictures from old books and magazines.