G-day all,
The payment arrived at my end and the bank balance looks all the nicer for it. I'd like to thank all who responded and gave their suggestions on how to approach this situation for an amicable outcome.
I was prepared to let it go but glad to have posted it up here to get more opinions and ideas . ODK saves the day again.

Ahh, if only victa had kept producing the thumblatch catcher series, they would be in better shape today!