Week Three

This week has seen the completion of fabricating 4253’s steam pipe sections from the superheater header to the outside steam pipes.  Various bits of straight pipe and elbows have been measured, cut, weld propped and tacked together to join the two and all that remains now is to fully TIG weld them.

More of 4270’s pipework has been removed, cleaned up, 

labelled and placed in the new container, the cab has been removed and placed in the field 

and the main steam manifold lifted off the backhead after the retaining nuts had been heated and removed.

Dismantling work in the smokebox has continued with the nuts holding the steam pipes from regulator box to superheater header needing to be blown off with a cutting torch.  

Once off, the retaining flanges for pipe to regulator were easily pulled back but the ones to the superheater header were a different story.  The muck and crud between flange and pipe on the driver’s side was like concrete and took quite some time to chip away after which the flange was levered free 

and the pipe removed.  The fireman’s side was even worse as a leak had caused a huge amount of carbonised oil to form round the joint meaning the pipe and flange had to be removed as one and then worked on to separate them.

Once out, the header itself could be released and was then removed by dropping it onto the digger’s long forks and then reversing it out through the smokebox door although this required the header to be manhandled into a diagonal position to clear the opening.

It was then transferred to the field where it will be cleaned and checked over next week.

At the end of the day, 4253’s smokebox was fuller and 4270’s was pretty well empty.

Week Two

Work on 4253 this week has included checking all the studs required for the ashpan and drop grate brackets while the ashpan brackets themselves were marked and drilled to match the stud positions on the foundation  ring.

The fabrication of the last sections of the main steam pipes has started with elbow and straight sections of pipe being positioned, clamped and tack welded together.

The dismantling of 4270 (which is now in the shed) continues with the final superheater element being removed and stored away then, after some resistance on the part of the retaining nuts, the blastpipe was extracted 

and a wooden plate made to fit in its place to keep the muck out.

Trying to strip it to remove the jumper ring proved even more problematic, not helped by the fact that the ring was held solidly in one position by thick carbon deposits.  Most of the retaining nuts and bolts had to be cut off but the three holding the main plate to the pipe itself refused to budge even with heat so we are now drilling them out.

The main steam pipe elbows into the valve chest have also been extracted with, again, a fair amount of resistance put up by the retaining nuts.

While all the front end work was going on, in the cab the last backhead sheet was removed along with the tallow tray, firehole doors and operating levers.  The floorboards were unscrewed and removed, 

 the balance pipes were removed between tanks and the bunker as was the top tank strap from the front end and the whistles.  This shot shows the strip down of the backhead.

The cab fixings have all been undone, 

the injector pipes removed 

and all the backhead cladding sections numbered and steam cleaned.

Sadly, that last job was the final straw for the shed’s old steam cleaner which packed up so we’ve had to buy another one which was assembled and put into use on Sunday.

Week One

This week, the boiler house floor got its new coat of paint so as to keep the dust to a minimum when we start painting 4253’s cladding sheets.  

The front angle that fits on the cab was trial fitted, marked 

and drilled while the cab was off and at ground level to make the job easier.

Work has now started in earnest on dismantling 4270 in preparation for the boiler removal with all the backhead fittings removed (this is the hydrostatic lubricator being taken out) 

followed by numbering and then dismantling all the sections of backhead cladding.

In the smokebox, after giving it a good clean out with an industrial hoover, we starting to release the saddle bolts, removed the lubrication pipework followed by the first sections of the main steam pipes, released the bolts holding the superheater elements in place and the petticoat pipe was removed, but only after its retaining bolts put up a determined fight.

The superheater elements also resisted extraction but the first one was eventually released 

and, by the end of the week, there only remained one to come out.

All the parts removed were given a good clean 

before being labelled and taken to our new container that will be used exclusively for parts from 4270.

That container was delivered mid-week and work has started on building up shelving to store all these parts.

To ensure the container is secure, we also cut, 

bent to shape

and welded up a box to form a shroud round the padlock that will be welded to the door.