Well I finally bit the proverbial bullet and nabbed a very tidy looking 15" A1106, for just shy of $70. Unless mister postman uses it for football practice, it doesn't have any dints, just a couple of minor scuffs on the underside. I took in to account a lot of what was said here, much of it was very helpeful, so thank you to everyone who shared their experience and knowledge.

Ultimately what swung the deal was price, there is a substantial gap between the G4 and intel version of the 15" PB. The best one I could find in decent cosmetic condition, was going for three times the price of the PPC version. As a fan of pre intel Apple machines, I have to confess to liking the idea of owning the last of the PPC Powerbooks I'm not expecting lightening speeds, nor am i expecting youtube or facebook to run that good. But perhaps not having those distractions will force me to get on doing my writing and art, instead of faffing around online lol