Thanks for the replies, appreciate the help.
Had bit of a closer look over the bike today, and apart from the usual cable wear & expect scrapes on a 16yr old bike, the finish on the frame is not as bad as I first thought.
I was originally thinking of spray/powder coating it but it'll suffice for now.
The rear v-brakes are trash and the transmission will get the bin too but the wheel set looks good and is built on disc compatible hubs so she’ll get a disc up front and move the front deore Vee’s to the rear.
I’m thinking maybe 1x9 or 2x9 XT sourced from the ‘Bay on the cheap.
New seals for the Marzochi’s, I think the bushings are okay but we’ll see.
Tires are okay but will be forwarded to the Spare’s Dept. and she’ll inherit a pair of new PanRacers I've got knocking around.
The various steel allen heads are very tatty so I’ll be rummaging through my collection of stainless bolts, washers and various bits.
Unfortunately due to work I'm away from home for most of the week so without access to my workshop this'll be more of a winter project rebuild but we'll see how it goes.