Saturday 10th
Bruce
checked the issues log, and there were no issues from Friday's Fire
& Drive. So, there was not a lot to do. However, Bruce did remind
me that various crews had felt some sort of knocking from the loco. I
had heard a knock once, when walking along side as she was being shunted
in the yard. So, John T and I decided to clamber over her looking for
"shiny bits" (i.e. where something might have been knocking or rubbing
against something that it shouldn't).
Despite
a good crawl inside & out, the shiniest thing we found was a
rubbing wear on the right-hand lifting link. It is clear that the bolt
through the forward eccentric rod does catch on the lifting link.
However, there appeared to be a gap of about 1/8 inch. We waggled the
reverser; we heaved on the rods; but we couldn't move anything
significantly. There is a gap at each end of the reversing shaft, where
there is a collar to limit the sideways movement. Could this possibly
move enough to cause the bolt & link to collide? Bruce didn't think
so. Maybe it's just one of those things - when hurtling along at 25
mph, things oscillate and sometimes do 'high fives' with one another?
Either ways, when she's near to a power supply, we'll grind a bit off
the end of the bolt.
We think that there is a need to walk along side (as I had done previously) and listen to where this knock is coming from.
Eleanor
(not my daughter) had cleaned out the smokebox and the grate. It was
too hot to get inside the firebox and clean the grate properly. The
Wednesday gang will have to do that.
Bruce
was giving Eleanor a lesson in vacuums as I clambered into the cab. I
distracted him, and we took a look at the copper pipe with a crack in
it. There was no pressure on the 'clock', though some steam would pull
through the whistle. Guess what? There were drops of water oozing out
of the crack in that pipe! This despite that coil being closed off.
The consensus view is that the packing in the Y-splitter
expands/contracts dependent upon steam pressure, and under little
pressure it allows steam to squeeze past the on/off cock. Once pressure
rises, it seals.
Bruce investigated making a new pipe. There is no point in trying to silver-solder the outside
of a pipe that is under boiler pressure. The ends of the pipe are
formed (swaged). We have the technology, but not the pipe. I asked Gil
to order some 1/2 inch thick-walled copper pipe. He things it comes in
ten-foot lengths.
In
odd moments, John cleaned up a couple of rail chairs and chopped the
bolts of many more. I applied a top coat to 7 in the production line,
and then did some tidying up of the pile of rail chairs awaiting
attention.
Fred,
Gil, Geof and Bill were all working in the siphon. Geof & Gil were
forming the joints (tenons) in the new door frame. Bill was painting
the metalwork of the ceiling. Fred was doing something on the outside!
I was only calling in to get Gil's autograph on the cheque for our 100
Club winners. But guess what I spotted … two LMS chairs and one LNER ….
Sunday 11th
… which are now in the pile at Todders.
Down
there on crossing duty at the Diseasel Gala, I realised that (yet
again) no one had put the cap on the chimney! So, I did, of course.
Wednesday 14th
There
was only Bruce & myself today. We decided to try to fix the bolt
(strictly, it's a tapered pin with a castellated nut on the end) that is
making the shiny mark on the hanging link. Bruce connected up the
power - we had to run the 110V from the end of the pit down to the loco,
which was well past the pit. Then he read the notice that says not to
use the 110V in road 8, so he had to move it to road 9's pit. Finally,
after covering everything with cloths, I was able to angle-grind a
smidgeon off the end. Bruce, being today's gopher, brought the red
paint, and I applied a little to the end of the bolt and to the hanging
link. We'll find out on Saturday (after Friday's Fire & Drive
session) if they still have a spatial coincidence problem.
Gil
arrived, partly to deliver an invoice to me and partly to bring the
newly-purchased adjustable reamer … and then discuss with Bruce the plan
of attack.
Meanwhile, I painted lettering on seven boot scrapers and fitted a brush to each of six.
Gil
buzzed off to Winchcombe, so Bruce & I decided to wend our ways,
too. Bruce went home … to do some homework; I boxed up the six boot
scrapers and adjourned.
Today
we had to say 'farewell' to a faithful friend, who has faultlessly
carried out its duties for some 30-odd years. Someone noticed that the
shackle that has helped heave many an item up, in & out of 2807 is
marked "for recovery use only", so we are banned from using it to lift
anything! So? … We were only "recovering" the valve rods from the
cylinders …
Saturday 17th
Today was a 2807 Board Meeting (which means that little work gets done!).
Bruce
& David struggled past us in order to get some jobs done. They
began by preparing and welding the seam of the toolboxes on the tender.
These had been coming apart for a while. Having been spotted wielding a
welder, David was then co-opted into doing some welding for Dinmore
Manor!
Bruce
move on to removing the flange from the out-flow side of our blow-down
valve. JC had asked to borrow this in order to make a pattern for it.
There
will be a period of silence on the 2807 updates, because I am otherwise
engaged for a bit. Rest assured that I have not forgotten about you!
Roger
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