I know what you are talking about, and I have the honour of still running a 1040 with an external hard drive the size of a small minivan. It still runs my laser printer that is bulky, slow and the quality depends on the day.
I had the 1040 running Calamus last week, and doing good old DTP just like the old days in monochrome, but fun nonetheless. Remember the slogan they used? Something along the lines of "The only computer for a Buck per Byte" when they tried to keep the price as reasonable as possible.
I am actually looking for a collector who won't sell, rather refurbish the 1040, Syquest 88 MB Replaceable platter drive, laser printer and extras. I want to see it appreciated, not recycled.