Good evening all,
I just picked up a used Norfolk & Western Class J 4-8-4 Limited Edition (Item # 51-0658-A4).  It's a beautiful little locomotive, but I'm having some issues with it.

I managed to fix the light (wouldn't come on) and to devise a new method of connecting the tender to the locomotive (the plastic rod from the factory was snapped and I don't have the piece that connects to the locomotive).  However, I can't get it to run.

The motor will spin when not contacting the drive gears, and the locomotive will move under it's own power for about 1/4" in each direction before stopping.  From what I can see, the traction rods (not sure what they're actually called, but if that's not what they're called, it's the rods connecting the wheels together) are locking it up.  It's seems to be coming from the front, where the rods slide in and out of the cylinder on one side.  I really don't want to disconnect the rods because that's one of the things I like most about steam locomotives.  I can't see the hole in the cylinder that the rod's supposed to slide in, and it's giving me a bit of a fit trying to loosen them up and get the rod back in the cylinder.  I had the rods back together once, but they were still locking up due to the rod in the cylinder.

Anyone have any suggestions, or is it just a matter of fiddling with it until I can get it right?

Thanks in advance for any advice,
Shannon