Invest in a borescope. Mine cost a whopping $48.00 on Ebay, fits through a 5MM hole, and it projects a full-screen image on my laptop with nothing but a USB plug-in and a disc in the DVD drive. It's got variable-intensity LED illumination and a mirror accessory for looking around corners. I can also capture screen shots directly to my "pictures" file with one mouse click if I want to study a screen shot in detail.
Jerry
Got a link to the model you chose? A search of Ebay comes up with an overwhelming number of options...some actually even cheaper than that.
What kind of quick and dirty inspection can I do of the rods, mains, etc? I might even be willing to invest in some measuring devices, as those will be useful later even if these motors are junk.
