the larger gauge wires were to carry more current required by the old halogen bulb and are unnecessarily large for an LED light
To be fair, just because the controlling factor is mechanical strength rather than current capacity doesn't mean the need for heavier gauge wire isn't legitimate.
I found my pair* of Brother color laser MFPs on Craigslist, being listed by a small business that was getting rid of them. I think you'll have a lot better luck finding them via some method like that than by checking thrift shops.
That said, they are pretty giant, being designed for small/medium office use. However, I'm not sure there even is such a thing as a "small" color laser, since they inherently have to contain four sets of rollers instead of just one.
(* if you find somebody selling more than one of the same model, definitely get two so you have one for spare parts.)