The plan was always
to throw all resources at removing the boiler because that’s the
major part of the overhaul (unless we find any nasty surprises
elsewhere). Having completed the last day of operations on 1st
January, the loco was withdrawn from service and overhaul work
started on 2nd
January. Working in discrete teams, parts were removed, thoroughly
cleaned, and stored away securely.
By the end of
Saturday 4th,
these items had been removed:
Spark arrestor,
petticoat, brick arch, brass bonnet, steam pipe cladding, superheater
elements, most of the backhead fittings, half of the boiler cladding,
safety valves, clack valves, water feed pipes, whistles, blast pipe,
and the steam pipes.
By the end of
January these items had been added to the list:
Superheater header,
blow down valve, backhead cladding, mudhole doors, washout plugs, the
remainder of the boiler cladding, cylinder cladding, backhead
fittings, cab windows, cab roof, damper linkages, boiler tubes,
regulator, ‘tea tray’, and the cab side number plates.
A start was made on
needle-gunning and painting the boiler, and this was completed in
February. The cylinders received the same treatment, as did the
steam pipes, and many other parts. Also during February, the ash pan
was removed, by cutting it up in situ. Into March, and the con rods
were removed, and a start made removing the inside motion.
Prioritising the
boiler work meant that we were ready to remove it from the frames
well ahead of plan. The boiler overhaul work will be carried out at
Riley & Son. We contracted a haulage company known to Rileys to
maximise the chance of things going smoothly. The loco was shunted
out onto the line in Toddington car park on Wednesday 18th
March. On the 19th
a lorry with a 20-ton crane incorporated arrived at Toddington some
time before 9am. It ‘simply’ lifted the boiler from the frames,
and by 11am was on its way. It arrived at Rileys either the same day
or early the next.
You’ll probably
notice that this happened just before the country went into lockdown.
So we are very relieved that the hard work has paid off and we’re
in a good position for the work to continue once the lockdown rules
are relaxed. However, our team, and the team at Rileys, are now
‘stood down’ until further notice.
So what’s the
impact on us? The restoration has effectively gone on hold. There’s
still activity around setting up contracts for work, and this
includes the loco wheelsets going away to be refurbished and tyres
re-profiled. But the bigger impact to us is on fund raising for the
overhaul, because normally we’d expect our ever popular
bootscrapers to be selling fast, and other fundraising initiatives to
be in full swing, but the lockdown means that this can’t happen.
So please visit the pages on this web site and see how you can
help.
We’d also like to
send our best wishes to the GWSR and all volunteers at this
difficult time. It’s clear that the lockdown will have serious
implications for the railway and other heritage railways across the
country, and indeed the world. We’re sure that the GWSR is in good
hands and will come out of the other end of this pandemic raring to
go.
All the best to you
and your families from Cotswold Steam Preservation.
Steve
