Alex Eisenhut: Thanks for confirmation that is is compressed-air operated.
texaspyro: Thanks for the "Visifilter" info. There were some other things in the box (a Metcal station with no handpiece, a bunch of Hakko 900-series handpieces, misc. junk); I'll take alook, perhaps it's in there. The "long S-shape" strip is inside the rubber tube, as is a well-used felt filter. (The filter looks to be the same size that my Ungar desolder handpiece uses. I have spares.) Good story on the glass tubes! You're clever and resourceful
Yes, I've heard Pace parts are expensive. But if they're uber-reliable, I can handle that. My Ungar 4624 has been flawless with daily use for over 12 years. Still using the same soldering tip, and on the second desolder tip. Can't ask for better than that.
So I still need to find out the model number for some of these.
PPS 17 nets nothing in the way of info. Pace systems numbers from last decade seem to be in the form ST-xx. Such as ST-25, ST-65, etc. What is this one? Any ideas?
The ThermoPik looks like a TP-65 in a Youtube video. Only two versions of that, it appears; single and dual.
There have been several versions of Sodr-x-tractor. The closest one appearance-wise is the SX-70. Why doesn't Pace put a model number on their equipment? It's needed to order parts.