With all due respect, I think @choochoopaul is mis-remembering. Some Lionel locos may use a nylon intermediate gear, but I'm pretty sure this one has a steel worm that directly drives a bronze worm wheel on the axle. [And I certainly wouldn't want to replace the axle gear!] If I'm right, the dog-bone shaft is the only part of the drive train that isn't metal. And it's not really that difficult to replace.
Another option for the original poster: NorthWest Short Line (NWSL) sells U-joint kits if you want to make your own dogbone shaft of any length.