I have never found a mass-produced radio that was properly aligned.A
good first step is to tune the ferrite antenna to the maximum gain. The
oscillator coil is usually the one with a red core. Tune the radio to
about 570 for white noise or a weak station. Then adjust the oscillator
coil for maximum gain. You may have to follow the weak station up or
down the dial as you look for the signal peak. Next find the rf trimmer
and adjust it for maximum gain at 1500. Then go back to the red-marked
oscillator coil and readjust it for peak. It should not need much of an
adjustment. Do this several times until the gain is ok at both 570 and
1500. For dedicated knob-twiddlers you can also ajust the oscillator
trimmer to extend the range to 1700. I have found that careful
alignment so increases the gain that further mods are not necessary.
You will probably have to adjust the dial pointer mechanism to get the
numbers right. No test equipment is necessary but you should have a
proper screwdriver to avoid cracking the coil core.