The Merrill oracles have spoken, and they are right as usual!
Cleaned the heck out of the CRT and insulating boot, ladies and gentlemen we have....something!
Obviously, the thing still has a lot of issues. Vertical is working, though it's not near as tall as it should be. HV and HO cathode current still need to be checked. But at least I have proved that this thing still works, which means the cabinet needs to go to the refinishing guy ASAP. Think I'll finally buy my own HV meter this weekend, unless Wayne or Mark would like to pay the Merrill in a window a visit.