With disruption caused by two Bank Holidays and a visit to Didcot to fit in, the blog has lost its regularity. Apologies, but here is a summary of the latest happenings.
Furness Railway No. 20 successfully completed the last of its nine steamings at Didcot on Monday, 1st May. For this weekend it was paired with two Great Western Railway coaches of a more modern vintage than previously.
John Dixon and Sam joined Tim on the 1st May to prepare FR 20 for its forward movement to the Pontypool and Blaenavon Railway. This included loading the coupling rod that had been acquired for No. 4979 Wootton Hall.
Sam then received it in the tender.
Back at Preston, last Wednesday saw Caliban’s cab being fitted onto the frames courtesy of Ribble Rail’s recently acquired Road Rail Vehicle (RRV).
Once this had been achieved, it was time to remove 5643’s cab roof.
And then the tanks.
Back in the FRT shed, with the tanks removed, Keith has been cleaning oil and grease which is now accessible.
Sam has been cleaning the firebox top cladding.
And Ron Crowe has been polishing the injector pipework.
Work has continued apace on fitting the new kitchen in Great Eastern Railway Royal Saloon No. 5, with Phil taking a deep breath before cutting the all-important holes in the one of the worktops.
The good news is that the new sinks fitted beautifully. Phil is now off to find a tap!
John Davis has been working in the guard’s compartment, seen here fitting some veneer to replace that which had previously been water damaged. It is to be hoped that we can soon arrange for some carpets to be fitted in the saloons, although this will have to wait until the chaise longue upholstery has been completed.
Most of the work to release the cab, tanks and bunker on 5643 has been accomplished and arrangements are being made for lifting equipment to remove them in the not too distant future. Injector pipework has been cleaned up, annealed and is now ready to be polished.
Ed has been cleaning the water balance pipes, which had proved to be a challenge to remove.
After Keith’s visit to Didcot over Easter, where he was able to examine two ‘Hall’ class locos there, he has been forming new copper pipework to connect 4979’s dump valve with the engine’s vacuum cylinder. As can be seen, it is a very long pipe with twist and turn! Keith was also delighted to find a spare ‘Hall’ class coupling rod for which a deal was done. It must be a ‘fit’ as it is actually marked ‘4979’! Just need to get it back to Preston.
Outside, the recent better weather has allowed John Dixon and Ade to remove Caliban’s cab roof, which was definitely the worse for wear through rust.
First of all, FR 20 was coaled up in the old fashioned way from the Didcot
FR 20 worked the “Branch” on Sunday, offering the opportunity for a photo alongside the broad gauge replica Fire Fly.
The trainshed also produced an atmospheric shot of days gone by.
Sunday afternoon and evening was taken up by an organised photo charter.
This involved some physical exertion for Tim!
As can be seen, FR 20 looked very much at home in the shed.
Back at Preston, John Davis has grouted the tiles in the kitchen of Great
Work is well advanced on preparations to enable 5643’s tanks, cab and bunker
As planned, Furness Railway No. 20 was loaded onto a Reid Freight transporter on Wednesday morning before setting off on its journey to Didcot Railway Centre, stopping off at Stoke overnight. After unloading at Didcot yard on Thursday morning the loco was the subject of an ultrasonic examination of its axles and a fitness to run examination before being shunted across the main line into the Didcot Railway Centre on Friday.
There was just time to take a photo of FR 20 posed alongside Great Western Railway ‘Castle’ Class 4-6-0 Pendennis Castle before it was shunted under cover. Alan and Alison have set off to Didcot from Preston today as the advance party although departure was somewhat delayed owing to the failure of the car battery. We hope that their luck improves! Sam, John Dixon and Keith are also heading south to Didcot this weekend.
Meanwhile, the work to dismantle GWR 0-6-2 No. 5643 continues. John Dixon has been uncoupling the steam heat pipework under the bunker.
Sam went into the smokebox before attending to the superheater elements. We are pleased to be able to report that, after a bit of a struggle with one of them, the elements were successfully removed.
Keith is pictured at work with one of the injector water valves.
Work has also continued in Great Eastern Railway Royal Saloon No. 5 where Matthew gave the toilet sink a much needed clean.
Last Wednesday morning saw Ade moving Caliban’s boiler around to the running shed for a washout, using the fire pump and water syphoned from FR 20’s tender. It took a little while this time to get the fire pump to start, but we had assistance from old friends Neil Glover and Jonathan Dixon to help us along.
The boiler had not seen any water for thirty years, so the first blast from the hose jet revealed some very dark brown fluid. However, after plenty of flushing out, the water finally became clear.
Work on dismantling GWR 0-6-2T No. 5643 has continued apace. John Dixon is seen here draining off the last water from the side tanks, which took rather longer than anticipated.
Fred resumed his familiar role of cleaning pipework and other dirty components.
The second work top for the kitchen in Great Eastern Railway Royal Saloon No. 5 has been cut to shape and installed by John Davis (pictured) and Phil Bell. Meanwhile some structural work on the chaise longue has occupied Phil Burton. The toilet compartment has now received attention from Tim’s paintbrushes and is now ready for the lower woodwork to be varnished.
Furness Railway No. 20 took part in the Ribble Steam Railway’s Spring Steam Gala over the weekend along with three other locos from the RSR’s home fleet. FR 20 looked well with the demonstration freight train that was operated at the beginning of each day. Sam and John Dixon have kindly volunteered to work tomorrow to prepare FR 20 for its departure on Wednesday morning to Didcot Railway Centre, with Reid Freight due to arrive at 09.00.
There was another move of rolling stock in the FRT shed last Wednesday which saw Caliban temporarily basking in the outside fresh air for the first time in quite a while. Caliban’s boiler is now positioned near the exit to the shed and it is planned to bring it around to the RSR running shed on Wednesday for a washout using FR 20’s tender as a reservoir for the fire pump. Time is of the essence as FR 20 is due to take part in the RSR’s Spring Steam Gala this weekend before leaving Preston next Wednesday for Didcot Railway Centre.
Whilst road 2 of the shed was empty during the shunt operation, the opportunity was taken to clean up the accumulation of dust and other unwanted items that had built up on the track over the past few years.
The other major task at the moment is of course the dismantling of Great Western Railway 0-6-2T No. 5643 to enable its boiler to be lifted for overhaul. We will keep a photo log of the dismantling process. The observant will notice that the dome cover has been removed along with the clack feed pipes.
Needless to say, whatever comes off the loco usually needs some cleaning. The above photo shows a small pile of components waiting to be cleaned.
Finally, John Dixon has kindly bought us a replacement pump for the parts washer which had previously failed, and John is seen putting the revitalised kit to good use.
Back at Preston, 5643 was finally placed in the FRT shed on Wednesday, 8th March. No time was lost in starting the long job of undertaking the ten-year overhaul on the boiler.
The cab floor was soon removed and Paul Balshaw is seen here cleaning up some of the coal dust that had fallen between the wooden floor planks.
Phil Bell has been in his element since Keith, with his long experience of servicing industrial machines, managed to repair the table saw that had previously been donated to the FRT by the RSR joiners. Phil has been making up wooden mouldings for the kitchen in Great Eastern Railway Royal Saloon No. 5 that is currently being fitted out.
Anne and Phil Burton have continued their work on the chaise longue in the east saloon of the royal coach, despite Anne having recently suffered a broken finger at home. The moquette for the back of the chaise longue has now been fitted, having been buttoned onto the backing material at home by Anne and Phil.
Finally, FR 20 successfully underwent its 14-month steam test examination by the boiler surveyor at Preston last Friday. John Dixon, Matthew and Sam are seen giving the loco a clean and polish whilst Alan kept an eye on the fire.
The main job last Wednesday morning was the planned wash out of 5643’s boiler. Jonathan Dixon, who was a LRS member from many years ago and who has long experience with fire pumps, kindly joined us and managed to start the FRT’s own fire pump first time! Sam again volunteered to be the man on the hose and the job was completed in time for lunch. We are pleased to say that Jonathan has now joined the FRT and we hope to see him and his dog Max again before too long.
Back in the FRT shed, Alan has been repairing Cumbria’s regulator quadrant, making a new stop for it, which we hope will be more robust than the original.
John Dixon has made strides with the task of inserting a set of window support scissors on one of the doors which, for some reason, were missing.
Finally, you will all be pleased to learn that Ade finally managed to get his hands on some of Alan’s birthday cake! (See last week’s blog if this doesn’t make any sense!)
5643 finally arrived home to Preston on a very damp Thursday morning in anticipation of its 10-year boiler overhaul.
It was transferred into the RSR running shed where Keith soon set about removing the washout plugs and mudhole doors on Saturday in readiness for a planned washout of the boiler this Wednesday.
Work continued this week on the overhaul of Great Eastern Railway Royal Saloon No. 5. John Davis is seen here staining some new mouldings created by Phil Bell. Meanwhile John Dixon worked on the tricky job of inserting a replacement set of window scissors, which had been found to be missing, underneath one of the opening door windows.
Last Wednesday saw a concerted effort to tidy the FRT shed in readiness for the forthcoming rearrangement of rolling stock. This necessitated the movement and safe storage of a spare engine for the RR Sentinel diesels. All in all, a very useful exercise.
Sam has been cleaning up components from Caliban’s replacement manifold using the sand blasting booth.
The outcome of his work can be seen on one of the valves.
John Davis spied the opportunity to hang some bird feeders alongside one of the FRT messroom windows. Unfortunately, none of the local tits deigned to make an appearance for the photographer!
Finally, Cake Watch: there were plenty of cakes in the mess room this week as both Keith and Alan celebrated birthdays. There was also a celebratory gathering at Longridge on Sunday with yet another cake. The engine number gives a clue as to Alan’s age.
Ade had to leave before the cake was cut to catch the last bus home. The good news is that Tim took some cake home to bring in on Wednesday. The bad news is that Tim’s trailhound, Della, found the cake in his rucksack where it had been placed ready for Wednesday!! (Don’t worry, Ade, Alison will see you right this Wednesday!)
The boiler surveyor visited Preston last Thursday to undertake the 14 month dry examination of FR 20 and Sam is seen working in the smokebox on Saturday when the safety valves were also fitted in anticipation of a steam test in the coming weeks.
Work has continued at Preston on Great Eastern Railway Royal Saloon No. 5 where we have a first view of the new moquette being fitted to the chaise longue in the east saloon.
A new ceiling has been fitted to the guard’s compartment and the kitchen ceiling has been painted. Phil Bell has been re-fitting woodwork in the kitchen to marry up with the newly installed tiles whilst John Dixon has been re-installing panelling in the royal lavatory compartment. Tim has been scouring the internet to locate suitable sinks and a gas hob that will fit within the tight dimensions of the kitchen.
Finally, talking of kitchen accessories, the FRT’s mess room suffered a near disaster (!) recently when the PAT testing man condemned the kettle! Fortunately, John Dixon was on hand and kindly rushed off and purchased a new kettle to maintain this vital service to our volunteers, and it is to be hoped that this new piece of equipment will pass scrutiny when the PAT man visits again this Wednesday.