Performed an autopsy on the chopped up spark plug octopus (calimari?)
I initially tried using a hot knife but then just switched to a razor blade. I sliced the seam and then used a combination of Angry Old Man Strength and the razor to peel the top section away. It looks like the factory assembled these units with some type of weatherstrip adhesive/rubber cement. Definitely some tough stuff.
After slicing and fileting the top off, here is what appeared:
It is a pretty simple design. The wires have a terminal end with a tip that resembles a Chevy bowtie. The Bowtie inserts through the eight rectangular slots and is preset into the correct position around the circle.
Here is a close up of the "Bowtie". It can rotate 360 degrees to any position. There are two styles, 6 of the end-mounted tips and 2 of the side mounted tips. Each wire is stenciled with the number of the cylinder it goes to: 1,3,5, and 7 on one side and 2,4,6 and 8 on the other, preset in the 1-8-4-3-6-5-7-2 firing order.
And here is the base with all 8 wires withdrawn. Looks like a reasonably easy swap of the terminal ends onto another set of wires and then reseal the top with a suitable adhesive.
I will update once the replacement donor wires arrive.