Decision Made

 I went with the smaller build which is a recreation and update of the set I had.

I even incorporated the original LL924 brick.

Discolored by years of play.  43 year old Lego is still compatible with the new stuff.

You can't say that about some of the Chinese copies from week to week.

It's a lot different and larger from the 1979 version:

 As expected, there are a couple of parts left over...

I looked for the parts to make the original, and they're all almost there.  The t-tail parts have all broken over the years.  They weren't a good design and I haven't seen them in a new set for decades.

That original set included my first two mini-figs.

And, of course, I still have them!  The white suited one got the most play and lost his white hands somewhere along the way.  He was my main "character" until he got replaced by the yellow suited one (now lost) and then the black suited one.

He's lost his original helmet.  I replaced it as soon as the ones with the faceplate came available.  The original is probably still rolling around in my Lego box.