I often buy cosmetically decent Postwar Lionel equipment that sometimes needs mechanical work to run well as I don't enjoy doing cosmetic restorations as much as the mechanical work. I picked up this Lionel 1400 passenger set from 1946 on eBay because I've been wanting an example of the two year only 221 Dreyfuss style locomotive for some time. While I'm not sure it's an original set versus one that was put together later, it was available at a decent price.
The locomotive needed a little work. One of the lead truck wheels was loose on the axle and could slide right off. I peened the rear of the wheel around the axle hole which snugged up the fit and reinstalled it. Other than that I gave it a good cleaning and lubrication and installed some new pickup shoes. It runs great.
The cars were a little rougher. The roofs were horribly scratched and scraped and the trucks have been modified over the years to replace damaged or missing couplers. Somebody installed a coupler on the rear truck of the observation car which involved bashing in a portion of the skirting around the rear railing to allow clearance for the coupler that wasn't originally there. That modification I will leave as a touch of its history.
I broke down and decided the roofs needed some attention. The blue paint on the bodies is in pretty good condition aside from a few chips here and there, but the roofs just distracted from the condition of the rest of the car. Three coats of Rustoleum Aluminum enamel later and they look great once again. Although the overall condition isn't show quality, it looks much better than it did with the chipped up roofs and the paint really makes the set look nice.
Before
After
