She came in a huge box with tons of styrofoam peanuts (a friend told me they were the biodegradable ones), wrapped really well and weighed tons. Once I got her unwrapped, I just had to stand back and take her in, the lines, the Mother of Pearl, the idea that she was older than my late Opa.
First thing I did was to unscrew her from the wood base (note to self - don't forget the wood screw that broke), Liquid Wrench that which wouldn't come undone easily, remove, label and photograph the parts as they come off so they can be put back on where they belong and start cleaning. Once I removed the back panel and oiled the internal parts and flipped her on her side to oil the bottom, I just let her sit for a day to let the oil work into her.
I've been cleaning the shiny bits with some baking soda and vinegar with a bit of steel wool and rotating with Mothers Mag and Chrome polish. As you can see from this picture, the work is beginning to pay off. The shuttle covers and the wheel were covered in rust, I'm pleased with less than 10 hours invested she's starting to clean up nicely.
My hope is to have her done by the end of May, my granddaughter wants to use her and I think this would be a great machine for her to learn on - thing is, I have to figure it out myself first.
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