"It does have the advantage of being one file and not spread between two." I'd agree with that - no chance of the reference getting broken. If you simply must have the .obj file, there's no need for text editors or purchased software. Just fire up UVMapper and drag that sucker (.pp2) onto it. Yes, UVMapper will read the embedded geometry in prop and hair files. It may even grab an .obj out of the middle of a html file for all I know. Once loaded, just do Save Model and voila, you got your .obj and you can map it too - Neat!

"Democracy is a pathetic belief in the collective wisdom of individual ignorance." - H. L. Mencken