Thanks to all who wrote on this subject.  I can say after reading the
messages and having taken the motor apart, this is how it is:

The lead wires are not crumbly, just the old braided cloth-covered
stuff.  I'd feel better moving, bending, twisting to rewire in the
junction box if it were new, but the wires are not so bad they _have_
to be replaced, as far as I see right now.  Internally there are four
lead wires and, in the junction box on the motor, they are spliced into
two wires which went to the fuse box or starter.

I grabbed the starter.  I took the back plate off the motor, flushed
out and cleaned the bearing and the old oil.  The bearing is in good
shape.  I took the cover plate off with the rotor, inspected the stator
and saw no burned, oil soaked, damaged or obvious defects, so I left it
alone.  The brushes are new, and the copper commutator bars are dirty
but not at all scored, pitted, scratched or worn.

I cleaned out the greased bearing, with it's multitude of different
colored greases, and I'll flush out the other oil bearing.  The shaft
where the bearings are looks good.  So probably I'll just finish
cleaning it, new grease and oil, reassemble and then a coat of paint
and call it good.

What kind of oil and grease should I use on this?  Obviously they no
longer sell "dynamo oil", as specified on the label. :)  I assume a
non-detergent straight oil like SAE 30 or heavier ?

Richard Vance wrote:

> ... you might find a replacement that would match the originals
> performance exactly, and be just as quiet, for less money.

The only problems there I am aware of is that the existing motor is
1165 rpm, but I only saw 1140 rpm as the closest off-the-shelf motor.
I have only single-phase residential power, and happily this old motor
_is_ single phase.  Pricing motors with similar specs, I saw some in
the $1200 range!

Lastly, of course, is the motor shaft length.  I've never seen a new
motor with a shaft like these; they all have a short shaft.  I'm sure
they can be adapted, but when I go back and look at what all has to be
changed to replace the old motor it gets kind of ridiculous --
everything from the mounting holes to having to fabricate a mounting,
to dealing with changing the shaft length, the RPM will be slower
meaning slight loss of air/pressure, and then the initial purchase
price on top of all that.

I plan to keep the existing motor, I like the nostalgia.  :)

Randy