PRESERVED SHUNTER NEWS
In mid-October the team restoring Class 03 03179 at Rushden Transport Museum focusing on the other side of the loco’s underframe, now all in its first coat of green. Once painting has been completed the sandboxes can be refitted and the floor can hopefully be put down. The other side of the underframe has had its final coat applied to the pipework and is now ready for the tank and sandbox to be fitted. A start has been made on the doors by cleaning up the framework, woodwork and windows.
Two coats of the grey undercoat have been applied to the other side of the loco and a coat or two of black gloss will follow, weather permitting.. Other jobs include reupholstering the seat and arm rests in a proper moquette colour. The Provincial Blue moquette first applied was temporary until it was possible to find some original Blaize Blue. Thanks to eBay and a kind donation it has been possible to source enough fabric to cover all of the driver seats and the cabinet bench. All the material is new.
The team has also undercoated the cab door for a second time and it will hopefully get another coat soon, followed by one top coat before it is fitted. The inside of the door has also been treated and is ready for two layers of undercoat and two of gloss, after which it will be possible to put the window back in and rebuild the door. The small cab air tank is ready and more pipes have been painted in white gloss ready to be fitted.
Devon Diesel Society’s Class 04 2246 at Buckfastleigh had its repaired start contactor refitted in mid-October and the ancillary equipment now functions correctly. Further bodywork preparation has been made, with the cabsides sanded back and bare metal treated with anti-corrosive spray. Further commissioning was undertaken on the DSD and air systems and so far all are working within normal limits.
At Moreton-on-Lugg, progress on the restoration of the ex-HNRC Class 04 D2302 continued throughout August, despite a couple of acts of vandalism having to be dealt with, although they fortunately didn’t involve any of the group’s locos. Work was mainly in and around the cab area, with the lower instrument panel containing most of the gauges needing attention. The raised middle section of the cab roof was also taken off to allow the cleaning and repainting of the area underneath.
The loco’s dynamo had returned following refurbishment, along with its repaired cradle, although the latter still wasn’t quite accepting the dynamo properly so was taken away and fettled until it did. Work also started on replacing some of the rotten metalwork around the left-hand cab door. The group’s painter began applying the final coat of gloss to the bonnet tops sections and side doors, as well as the bonnet framework.
As briefly reported last month, Ruston Class 07 07001 has been offered for sale by the Heritage Shunters Trust at Peak Rail. It was acquired by John Wade for the HST from HNRC in 2012 and moved to Rowsley that December. It was returned to traffic and repainted into BR blue. With other recent acquisitions around the same time, this meant the HST had examples of Classes 01, 02, 03, 04, 05, 06, 07, 08 and 09, so the sale of 07001 will break that collection. Originally numbered D2985, it was the first of a small build of 14 such 0-6-0s acquired by British Railways specifically for working at Southampton Docks. It was one of six of the fleet upgraded with dual brakes and this means the loco could have appeal for industrial use.
More progress has been made on the thorough overhaul of Class 11 12099 at Kidderminster on the Severn Valley Railway. The loco has been cleaned and the threads on the studs that accept the engine covers have been greased. Volunteers have also primed the top of the side frame. The faces of the engine block have been flattened to accept the coolant manifold and the studs greased. Another Kidderminster-based shunter, 09107, has had a service and oil change.
At the Caledonian Railway, 08046 has received repairs to fix a radiator leak and the loco is now ready to be reassembled after several months out of traffic.