i took a look at the yoke without removing it (the plastic is yellowed and brittle, i fear it may disintegrate on me if i attempt to remove it.) other than the plastic, it looks great. no evidence of excessive overheating or anything like that. the enamel is still light. ohmmeter shows neither of the coils are shorted, and neither read low.
i do have a scope (Hitachi) and a 10:1 probe. though with 5v/div and with 4 divisions thats 200v...it might be cutting it close.
i'll have a look at the components you suggested. I'll be testing/fixing this chassis some more in the coming days. i have a few other projects on the go... chopping up a golden tee cabinet and using a 42" plasma for the display and turning a Rowe CD100E into a touchscreen jukebox.
ALSO PLEASE NOTE: the chassis i have has "q714" screened on the board instead of q704 as stated in the schematic.