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I would look the cabinet over to see if there is any visible water retreat line, or rusted fasteners (or anything to indicate it might have been in a flood area). And look over any visible wire contacts for any powder corrosion showing the presence of water.
I would only be suspect in the cost...
Is the capacitor regulated model brushed or brushless? I know the AVR ones are brushless, but I thought I had read somewhere in the past that the capacitor units weren't brushless (which would be inherently dirtier power).
Hardware cloth is just as good to cover that giant hole, thats what I do to every machine. Self tapping sheet metal screws work wonders.
Its a main egress point for water (they are designed to be forded on trailers), but also an air entry point for cooling the set. Thats why I would leave it...
You will also want to do the S1 start switch with the same effort. Also there is a little jumper cable between 1 and 7 positions on the start switch. It appears its in place, but its got a directional component soldered into it. Wouldnt hurt to share some photos of what you have, to confirm its...
No thats absolutely the start of a nest. You are lucky thats where it ended. Not all machines have the RTV sealant at the top. You will want to properly rodent proof the set once its out of your bed and into its final resting place. Its been covered in the forums, a bit of searching will yield...
Its not common, but its not uncommon. Even if one was stuck, it should run on the other cylinders (and you would be aware that its not running right). Going through the TM steps first is your best bet.
As part of your baseline on this, I would consider investing in a bottle of two of Deoxit D5 contact cleaner. Before you go too far into things, corrosion is a known problem in these sets (because they have been used in all conditions across the world, and the newest one is 13 years old now).
I...
The easy shortcut to life with these is knowing the right book, at the right time
TMs ending -10 are Operating Instructions
TMs ending -24 are Technical Troubleshooting
TMs ending -24P are Exploded Parts Diagrams
There are manuals for the complete machine, and manuals for the engine alone.
I think there are plenty of steps before higher maintenance level. The right book will work wonders. Like this section from the -24 that can be found in the directory peapvp linked to:
Once you know where to look, these things become a whole lot less mysterious. :)