April 2012

Over the weekend of the 8th April we starting putting back together all the AWS pipework in both cabs, now that all the new cab ceiling has been painted and looking excellent. After all the pipework was put back together we linked 37009 up to an external compressor to check for any air leaks on the system and also took the oportunity to check the operation of the horns and straight air brake operation, at Number 1 end the horns need to be slightly tuned up to make them work properly so this will be done in due course and the overhauled brake cylinders seemed to be air tight also which was a big relief. Check out our facebook page  for videos of the events.

March 2012 

Work continues on 37 009 at a steady pace with regular work being carried out now on most weekends.
Most recently work has been concentrating on re-assembly of the bogie brake rigging and replacement/re-fitting of all of the loco's brake blocks. This is an important job and one of the last of the major "Boxes that needed ticking" regarding the restoration of the loco to working condition.
Over the last few years the bogies have seen a huge amount of time, effort and energy spent upon them with all of the brake rigging being removed and de-seized (and repaired as and where necessary), replacement of missing "Slack Adjusters", replacement of a "Traction Motor", repair and replacement of rail head "Life Guards", a full examination and re-greasing of all of the "Axle Boxes", and fitting a replacement "Speedometer Drive" and it's associated "Wheel Wear Compensator". We are now at a stage where we can say that the bogies are thankfully 99% complete with only "Footsteps" and an "AWS Receiver" requiring fitment before another restoration job is completed.
Away from the bogies, work has also continued inside both Cabs, which are now fitted with new hardboard roofs (or ceilings as I've been told they should be described as, as apparently the roof is "outside"). The roofs/ceilings are now in the process of being painted (when time and winter temperatures allow) in gloss "Rail Grey" paint.
Also at the "Number 2 End" of the loco, the framework of the electrical control cubical (which forms a bulkhead between the Engine Compartment and the Cab) has been stripped back to bare metal and is being repainted "Rail Grey" to match the roof/ceiling (and pretty much everything else inside the cab). 

January 2012 

Both Cabs have now had the new roof lining fitted making the cabs look totally different, work is now pushing on with the rest of the cab work being done with the cab bulkheads having the rest of the old paint removed then a fresh coat of paint will be applied to complete the job. We have also had new wood cut to size for the flooring which has been laid down but still needs the covering on top once this is done we can get the cab seats back in place, then just finish off the painting of the desk area.

Both bogies have been getting attention to the brake rigging with adjusting them to the correct positions to make sure the brakes work as they should when applied, in the next few weeks all the traction motors will be getting connected up and final testing of them. Once all the work is completed the clean up operation will begin to clear up the engine room area of any dust build up etc over the years and the paint is on order to complete the paint job of the loco. Very soon there will hopefully be a loco start up and the checking of all the systems. **Photo galleries will be updated very soon** 

October 2011

Work has now commenced on the inside of No1 cab with the roof lining being rebuilt after the old one had become beyond repair, due to a leaking roof vent with years of open storage and the water leaking into the roof space.
The bodywork is also nearly all had filler added down one side now and will be rubbed down and then more of the loco will be painted into its new livery. Hopefully this will be completed over the winter months as time permits with other projects ongoing in the group.
Then once all this is done we can start cleaning the engine room areas before giving the inside of the loco a repaint also to make it brighter and cleaner, and to remove any dirt that can get into the electrical equipment.
 

03/08/2011

With so much work going on else where with the 20's, little work has progressed on our Type 3 loco recently, although there are some items of progress to report.

Now that all of the fabrication work has been completed, attention has turned to giving the body a smoother appearance than the patchwork look that it has due to the amount of welding repairs that have taken place. To this end we are now at the body filling and sanding stage of the repair, which is now being carried out steadily in the relevant areas. Whilst this is quite a time consuming (and not that interesting, unless you like being covered in white dust that is) it is a job that once completed will show that it was all worth while when the "Gloss Glory" time comes along, and the loco body work can be viewed in a status of "Restored" rather than "Battered".

At the same time we are also replacing the final missing exterior items, such as the brass grills that cover the horns, and also ensuring that items such as the sand box filler "flaps" are all working properly.

In the near future it may be necessary to lift the loco from it's bogies to facilitate the fitting of the missing sections of the loco's "Steam Pipe", in association with the refurbishment and installation of a Clayton Steam Generator that has was acquired some years ago. Hopefully there will be more news of this project to come in the future.

11/10/10

Our largest loco is 37009.
Work is continuing at a steady pace with the repairs of this loco. Once again we have contracted out more fabrication and welding repairs of the loco's bodywork to John Robinson who, in the winter carried out repairs to the loco's body sides and guttering to a very high standard for which we are very grateful for his assistance. With this in mind, and with ourselves being diverted elsewhere within our fleet we decided that this was the best way to go, to progress work on the loco without us actually having to be there.
John has now recently completed the re-building of number 1 nose end, and re-installing the skirting around the buffer plank area that was removed in the early 80's by British Rail. The bodywork of the "nose end" is in particular bad condition due to (for some strange reason) the ability of rain to get in, but not get out! This is particularly apparent in the areas that formerly housed the route indicator boxes, with the metalwork in this area being almost paper thin.
We plan to remove some of the internal equipment (traction motor blowers etc) now from the nose areas and to carry out a deep clean of these areas, to rid them of 20 years accumulation of rust, dirt and grease (and whatever other nasty items have found there way into the nose ends).
Progress with this loco is slightly slower than planned, but a return to service in the next 18 months (unless anything unforeseen comes along) should be manageable, (fingers crossed).

08/08/2010
The restoration progress on D6709 is progressing well with the rebuilding of No1 nose end has now had the route indicator boxes repaired along with the skirts have been reapplied around the bufferbeam area, attention is now being turned to the bodyside grills which have been removed due to them becoming corroded along the bottom, these will be rebuilt then refitted back into the loco shortly.

03/06/2010
With the May 2010 GCRN diesel gala now over, our attention has now returned to the restoration of D6709, we started lifting the new cab flooring in No2 cab, we had made to clear out the years of dirt that had gathered under the old floor, and the underfloor area will receive a coat of primer before we refit the flooring. The rebuilding of No1 nose end has been contracted out and the work should be starting very soon with the rebuilding of both route indicator boxes and the refitting of the nose end skirts, also in the nose ends a start has been made on cleaning all the auxiliary machines which will also include lifting out the traction motor blowers to gain access to the hard to reach areas, once this has been done the nose ends will receive a full repaint.

10/02/2010
With the work on 08220 now almost complete apart from a few jobs, we are now starting the job of rebuilding the No1 nose end, what work is needed can be seen from the recent photos added to the gallery, also we have found out how best to remove the badly corroded bodyside grills so these will now all be removed and have new metal sections made then refitted.

November 2009
The bodywork restoration has been continuing with one side of the body now in grey primer ready for bodyfiller to be added to certain areas to smooth out the bodysides. Also work has been progressing inside No2 cab with the cubicle doors receiving attention with the old paint being removed and primer added. The gallery has been updated with a picture of one of the cubicle doors.

July & August 2009
The bodysides of 37009 have been receiving a large amount of cutting out all the corroded metalwork and new sections have been welded into most of them now, with the massive help from John Robinson who does a top class job and we cannot thank him enough for his help on the loco. Also the nose end at No2 end has now been painted in primer ready for the next stage of the new livery.

21/06/2009
The No2 nose end had the horn cylinders refitted, and the brass horn grills have been refitted now which makes a huge difference to the look of the loco.

During a recent visit to Booths, we purchased some bogie steps and these have now been cleaned up and have started to fit them as they were missing from the overhauled bogies.