Is anyone still hoarding noritake VFDs for the Mk2 players? I'm not sure whether to buy one in advance or not. I dropped my player yesterday, and when I opened it up to reseat the disk drive cable that had knocked loose, noticed some cracking of the VFD glass near the fill nipple. It still works fine, but I'm guessing I'm on borrowed time.

I have a stash. You may have one, but it must be replenished when more become available.

I wouldn't be surprised if Paul had some left-over though.

I've got a single VFD on spare, if all other options fail let me know and I'd be happy to send it (as long as I can get another one if I happen to drop mine)

I have one or two left from the last order.

In five year's time this board will be like a scene from "Death Becomes Her" !

I have a box of 8 new ones, plus about 50 or so working ones from display board pulls.

They are not expensive and can still be bought in quantities of 1 and upwards from Noritake. They are not going to be EOL'd for at least 3 years. Stock will be available from that point only until exhaustion. However, apparently, they will be producing an electrically and outline compatible replacement beforehand.

The bottom line is, you should not be worried about supplies of the VFD. If there is anything to worry about, it's the handle, which is now starting to go into short supply with no source of replacement.