Opening it up, I find a rather nice mode of the first A4 class steam locomotive, Silver Link. Trix are generally considered to have got the elusive A4 nose most "right" until the more modern Bachmann model came along. Best of all, it's in the original LNER grey livery which always seems the most appropriate for this particular engine. When it received a cosmetic restoration years ago, the results were a joy to behold.Sadly, this model had been in the wars and needs a little repair to the front end before it can make an appearance on any layout. The buffer beam has been walloped and fallen off. Luckily, it appears this is a separate moulding glued in place so a few moments work with superglue sorted it out.
Putting the model on the track, it ran but sounded a little dry. Hardly surprising as it's sat on a shelf for many years. Access to the motor, which is in the tender, is via a single screw where the fall plate should be. Undoing this followed by unhooking the back reveals a whopper power unit atop a gear train. While nothing looked in trouble, in fact it all appeared very clean. I suspect that this loco has hardly turned a wheel in its life. You might clean the treads, but only a real anorak would polish the commutator. Anyway, I smeared some molybdenum grease on the metal gears and squirted a touch of light oil into an bearings I could see.
Reassembling the body and running on the track, things were a bit quieter. To be honest, this locomotive needs a good thrash on a layout, not trundling back and forth on 18 inches of track. With a bit of luck, later on, that's what it's going to get.
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