Toddington’s BR ‘Standard 4’ No. 76077 rewheeled
THE restoration of Toddington Standard Locomotive Limited’s (TSLL) BR ‘4MT’ 2-6-0 No. 76077 passed a major milestone on June 17, when the driving wheels and pony truck were installed under the frames for the first time in more than 30 years. The rewheeling was carried out in just 90 minutes in a well-planned and slick operation at Locomotive Maintenance Services (LMS) at Loughborough. A considerable amount of work, carried out by both volunteers and the professional services of LMS, preceded the event: not least refurbishment of the heavily corroded frames, a brandnew fabricated rear dragbox, considerable new metal in the front dragbox, new buffer beams and buffers, new platework in the cab area as well as new horn stretchers. The pony truck has been completely rebuilt, reversing damage sustained following a suspected derailment. The wheelsets have been overhauled at South Devon Railway Engineering.
Andrew Meredith, engineering director of TSLL and a member of staff at LMS said: “Although thanks to Covid-19, this has happened about six months later than planned, it is nevertheless a tremendous step forward in the loco’s restoration.
Operation
“The newly-overhauled axle boxes were earlier fitted on to the driving axle journals and they slid perfectly between the refurbished horn faces. Similarly, the frames dropped on to the pony truck perfectly, albeit with a minor adjustment to the steam heat pipe which had previously been fitted under the frames.” Work will now press ahead with completion of the chassis, including honing the valve and cylinder bores, assembling the valve gear and braking system – plus assembly of the cab and smokebox – for which a new door and chimney have already been delivered. Meanwhile, the boiler – which remains at Toddington on the Gloucestershire
Warwickshire Steam Railway (GWSR) – is due to be professionally inspected later this year to assess the scale of work needed for its overhaul.
“All this future work will need funding, of course,” said Ian Crowder, TSLL marketing director. “We will shortly be launching a push to attract new shareholders while our successful component sponsorship scheme remains open. This enables investors to choose and ‘buy’ any of the many remaining parts needed to complete the engine.
“We are using the best possible skills to see the engine overhauled to the highest standard for eventual use on the GWSR. Provided we continue to attract investors then it’s not unrealistic to expect that No. 76077 will be running in about five years.”
■ Information about becoming a shareholder or component sponsor can be found online at www.standard76077.com