You got me curious on why NWSL discouraged you from buying extra gears to spread the cost. I know of two others besides myself who would be interested in buying them.
Besides the U joint and gears the other weak item is the deck apron. Its diecast and breaks easily. The pivot is in the wrong location which should be on the same plane as the deck itself. Instead is a 1/4" below that so the deck cannot rise above horizontal. If you lift the tender before lifting the engine the force will break the apron. Also running on rough track or on grades with sharp transitions can cause the tender to hit the apron. Any small force will shatter the deck. You can break it between your fingers.
If you do want to run your engine you would be better off leaving the deck down, not resting on the tender deck.
Pete
