Week Three

On Tuesday, we cut up lengths of round bar for the pivot points for the blowdown valve linkage 

which were then machined to size 

along with the banjo unit for the valve.

The wedges at the rear of the boiler were also milled to fit.

The brackets for holding the flue baffle plates in place were cut, heated, bent to the required shape and now just need welding on.  The water tanks continued to be rubbed down ready for their repaint 

and all the locks were refitted to the Wickham’s doors now we’ve had keys made to fit them.  The final closing strips for the cladding were measured, marked out and then cut.

On Friday, lifting bars were made and fitted to the ashpan in preparation for it’s trial fit to the boiler.

the remaining bolts holding 4270’s smokebox to the saddle were finally removed after a lot of heating

and more rubbing down of the tanks was done.  All the 4253 cladding sheets were moved around to access the outer sides which were then cleaned down ready for spraying.

On Sunday, we continued with the smokebox work on 4270 by chiselling out the concrete around the blast pipe to make sure the sacrificial plate is free for the boiler lift.  

Once done, we hoovered out all the muck then removed the cover plates to stop any chance of snagging when the boiler is lifted and replaced them with rags into the blast pipe and steam pipe holes.

 A full inspection was undertaken to make sure nothing could catch when lifting the boiler which showed we needed to remove the injector feed pipes that pass through the frames to stop them catching on the ashpan. Other work was on the Wickham for the RVR doing a mechanical inspection and changing all the oils getting it ready to go into service with the P Way at Robertsbridge.

We also stripped and cleaned out one of the quick release valves on the air brakes which was so full of muck that the air release was anything but quick,

Work on 4253 was finishing the lubrication pipework that runs from the hydrostatic lubricator on the backhead, along the boiler to the smokebox. It’s now all bent to shape and just needs the ends made.

The cover for these pipes at the smokebox end has also been modified and trial fitted.

Week Two

The week started with finishing off the crinoline and cladding band modifications for 4253

 plus riveting the injector pipe brackets onto the cladding sheets.

After that, all the cladding sheets were cleaned down and undercoat applied to the insides.

With the boiler cladding removed, we could get on with shaping the pipe runs from the cab to the lubrication shut-off valves on the smokebox as these travel under the crinoline bands while also needing to avoid any rivet heads.

The ashpan was marked out for where the grate holding brackets are attached to the foundation ring 

after which the necessary sections were cut out.

On Sunday, the cab had the remaining sections of paint rubbed down prior to receiving its repaint,

The next job was to trial fit the flue baffles and bottom plate to the blast pipe which will hold the spark arrester for a clearance check and then the baffle plates were drilled and dressed for a correct fit. 

The cladding sheets were all given a spray coat of gloss on the inside to seal them.

Other work included a full check over of the 9129 (Wickham) people mover ready for its trip to Robertsbridge for the P Way guys to use as the track extends

plus a dismantling of all the door locks so they can be overhauled and we can have new keys made.

Week One

This week started with some extra work on 4253’s boiler cladding and crinolines.  With the cladding all now removed, the holes to access the washout plugs were enlarged to enable the surrounds to be fitted.  Also, we have modified the crinolines so that the horizontal supports nearest the firebox can be removeable without dismantling the rest.  This is to allow room for the lifting strops when the boiler is taken out.  The bars were cut out, 

extensions cut and welded on 

which were then drilled and tapped/countersunk so the sections can now be bolted in place.

The cab was turned upside down so we can strip off all the fittings ready for its repaint 

and, following replacement of the window hinges for heavier duty items, the original mounting holes were welded up and dressed back.

Other work included making a start on the machining of a banjo fitting for the blow-down valve as there is insufficient room for the standard elbow fitting which would be in conflict with one of the eccentrics.

Work on 4270 included stripping and cleaning the smokebox door hinges and rod which were exceptionally stiff, 

running dies down all the studs for the backhead fittings and inspecting them.   This revealed that two of the four studs for the blower were ‘necked’ with a third starting to go the same way so all four were removed and will be replaced.

The nuts that were deemed reuseable were all tapped through to clean the threads and packed away.

Finally, here’s a photo of 4270 prior to its restoration courtesy of Dave Scott.