... you might have to spend countless hours searching, networking, and befriending...
Ding Ding Ding! (no pun intended, lol). I agree, I'm not trying to maintain ownership of the information, but I do want to maintain ownership of my value-added work and cover my expenses.
I remember being frustrated when I started that nobody had posted all the literature out there. It took many years, lots of relationship building, lots of eBay money, lots of searching, all so that I could collect the information for my site to share it with others. More than once I tried to get a seller to come down to a reasonable price, explaining that I was compiling this for historical purposes and to help people, not as an investment for personal gain. Every one of them refused to budge. It was all about the cash for them. $40 for a 4-page parts list and diagram is robbery.
My goal was to make it available to others so they didn't have to suffer the same frustration. That's why I'm always willing to provide the info or occasional page for free. Eventually I hope to make it all free.
I'm kind of stuck on both sides of the fence. It's like a toll road. It took a lot of money and time to build it. For a nominal fee you can access it. Once the costs have been recouped, it can be free to everyone. Unfortunately I'm just not there yet. Even public museums charge admission to cover operating expenses. Free is my goal. I'm working hard to get there, but if everything showed up online tomorrow, I might be sunk.
BTW, note that what Arctic Restoration is providing for $10 is a $2 copy of the 4 page parts list, not the owners manuals.