Click here to go to: Financial report or
Eastbourne Historic Vehicle Club Award
or Our new project 1638 or S15 to
King Arthur conversion details
| Chairman and Chief Mechanical Engineer |
Ray Bellingham |
| Treasurer | Steve Pilcher |
| Directors | Rodney Packham, Mike Frackiewicz, George Binns, Felix Cope, David Jones, Adrian Pinkess, David Pinkess, Barry Smith |
Unfortunately, Mike Floate has had to give up producing the Newsletters in order to concentrate on other interests, such as the videos, and I have been asked to step in. I would like to thank Mike for all his good work, particularly the last Newsletter which was very impressive and which will be a difficult act for me to follow. So will members please note the new editorial address:
Ian Hawkins - Newsletter Editor
18 Hazlemere Road
Whitstable
Kent
CT5 4AN
My first effort as your editor comes at a time when, after the successful completion of 847, the society is looking for a new challenge. You will read more about this in the Chairman's Report and in The Next Project. I hope that, when members have read the articles, they will feel encouraged to attend the forthcoming A.G.M. and make their views known. This is your opportunity to meet your Directors and to discuss with them matters of interest to us all.
I am pleased to say that 847 has been running very well since returning to steam in April and its appearance is a credit to the society. The society has
Page 1
won a highly commanded award from the Eastbourne Historic Vehicle Club for the restoration of 847 and received a useful cheque for £250. In addition 847 won the cleanest engine award at Bluebell's May Spring Gala and was in service on the Golden Arrow diner's train.
The completion of 847 has meant that the society has entered a new phase. We have always been a dynamic society and not one to rest on our laurels. We have established a good relationship with our hosts, the Bluebell Railway, which has been reflected in an offer by the railway to loan U class 1638 to the society for 50 years, for us to restore it to working order. This is an interesting project as the loco. is in reasonable condition, (for an ex Barry loco), with few missing parts and subject to funding could be restored in say roughly three years. Work has already started and we are keen to complete the project see article for further information.
Thank you all for your support over the years and I hope that you will continue to help us with this new project. THINK POSITIVE - THINK 1638.
Ray Bellingham
Enclosed with this News sheet is a set of accounts for 1992.
You will notice that the accounts are in more detail than before and that the auditor's report has a different form of wording. Our auditor's have confirmed that they have standardised the accounts to a form which they apply to all their limited company clients.
The society had an income of over £4,500 for the year, which was good; we had received a lot more the previous year as a result of the cylinder liner appeal. Expenditure exceeded £9,000 as a result of the purchase of the new cylinder liners which cost approx. £5,600 and various other materials were required in order to complete 847. The society therefore incurred a loss for the year which was funded by the loans made by various members.
I am pleased to say we had a very good response to our Christmas appeal for funds to repay the loans which have now all been cleared.
As mentioned in the report on 1638, work has already started on restoring the loco. and we want to restore it as quickly as possible. We will launch a fund raising appeal after the A.G.M., once we have formed a programme for the restoration work. In the meantime any donations towards the work of restoring the chassis will be much appreciated. Cheques, made payable to the Maunsell Locomotive Society, should be sent to the Treasurer, Steve Pilcher, 312 Riverside Mansions, Garnet Street, Wapping, London El 9SZ.
Steve Pilcher
Page 2
Subscriptions have kept me very busy over the last few months. We are, of course, very pleased with the support that we have received from the members, but, if your subscription is still outstanding, don't delay, send it now to 132 Church Road, Swanscombe, Kent DA1 0 OHP.
It is with regret that I have to mention the deaths of the following members; Bernard Wright of Esher, Charlie Pyne of Horsted Keynes, Mr.E.G.Lock of Lymington and Mr.S.C.Chapple of Guildford. Bernard and Charlie were strong supporters of our society and will both be missed.
Charlie Pyne had supported the society for many years. Indeed, when we were based at Tenterden with 1618, he met Ray Bellingham and myself and helped persuade us that the time was fight for a move. The rest is now history but we will always remain indebted to Charlie for his support during the restorations of 541 and 847.
And an appreciation of Bernard Wright from Fred Card who writes: "Bernard died in February after a tremendous fight against an illness which had dogged him for a very long time. I first met Bernard in the late 1960's when he came to work at the firm at which I was then employed. We soon realised that we had a common interest in all things railway and in steam in particular. His knowledge of railways was encyclopaedic and it was unwise to be sloppy about facts and figures in his hearing, but this was not mere pedantry. His commitment to railway preservation was total and he gave his time and effort unstintingly. Though he had a robust sense of humour, he was never malicious and, in practice, was a very generous person. He was very competent in many fields including photography, modelling, sketching and in writing he had a style all his own. He was a big chap in more ways than one and will leave a bigger gap in the lines of us who knew him."
Rodney Packham
847 Post November 13th. 1992
Although 847 was outshopped on Nov. 12th. and performed superbly, there were still a small number of unfinished tasks to be completed, nearly all being out of sight and therefore unnoticeable. The eagle eyed amongst you might have spotted that the valve end covers were not complete for example.
The working gang have therefore been busy over the winter completing these tasks and putting right the slight teething troubles that are bound to occur. The cylinder and valve end covers were the first job tackled. Although the originals were used, they were not all from 847. Some were quite wasted in parts but we had welded in sections to suit. The biggest problem was the diameter. In BR days, behind the covers had been a layer of asbestos ¼ in. in thickness. We used fibre glass matting which compressed more, so a gap was left. This meant a lot of slicing and welding to reduce the gap. Very time consuming but the end result was worth the effort.
Page 3
Axle box covers were also prefabricated along with rubber grommets around the lubrication pipes. These prevent water and muck from entering the axle boxes during a wash out. The covers were our own design as the originals had rusted away long ago. Axle brasses were also machined up in the workshop and fitted around the axles where they meet the axle boxes. Again this was to stop grit and muck causing unnecessary wear. A bracket was made to support the control rods for the drain cocks and this was fitted to the side of the ash pan. Vibration from the motion of the loco. caused the rod to flap against the ash pan side. This created quite a din, noticeable above the soft beat of the loco.
Another two day job involved sorting out the sanders. When operated from the control lever in the cab, the right hand side came on before the left. This could have had a disastrous effect if used at speed, with the possible result of bent rods. When the sanding controls were stripped down, one was found to be 21° out of phase. The connecting lever between the two sanding valves was bent to allow for this and the whole assembly put back together. The sanders now perform well and are often used through the wet Sharpthorne tunnel.
Two other small jobs tackled concerned the shovel plate in the tender and a lever to operate the rocking grate. The former had to be trimmed to size as it was sitting too high and allowing some coal to get caught beneath it, thereby causing it to ride up. For the latter, a new lever was machined and fitted, and the borrowed lever returned to 1618. Also a cover has been made to fit over the chimney when the loco. is not in service. This stops rain and dampness from attacking the smokebox; a definite improvement over the dustbin lid which is normally used.
Since 847 has been in traffic, the steam control valve to the injectors has become very stiff. This resulted in the loco. being withdrawn from service on Monday 12th. April. Ray Bellingham dismantled the valve and machined off 4 thou. A superb result was achieved. To date the loco. has performed well even a Bulleid man was heard to say she looked good. In my view she is the pride of the fleet. Take a ride this summer and see for yourself.
Other jobs
830 and 1638 Some working members have done some preventative work on the boiler of 830 to try and prevent further deterioration. Further thought is being given to turning 830 into a King Arthur class (an article on the main locomotive frames appears later in this issue). Loco. 1638 was moved from Turner's sidings at the beginning of May and is now in No. 5 road outside the loco. shed. The concrete has been broken out from the smokebox and the bolts fixing the boiler to the frames have been either drilled or cut out ready for lifting. The boiler was lifted from the frames on May 19th. and Camelot's boiler was re-united with her frames on the same day. Steve Pilcher and his support crew can now complete the task of lagging Camelot's boiler and fitting the cladding and so receive the final payment of £1000.
Container and van We have obtained a 20' container which we have painted inside and out over the winter. David Jones has lined it out in typical Maunsell
Page 4
tradition. Racking and a bench are now in place and it is rapidly being filled up with pieces taken off 1638. The idea is to use the container for storage of parts for 1638 and the van for 830's. The van has been tidied up after being emptied of all 847s parts and some parts of 830 are stored here already. The roof is in need of urgent attention. This should prove to be a summer job for some of the working members.
Working members With all these projects under way, now is the time to join our working parties. It does not matter if your skills are limited, there are jobs for all. If you have the odd Sunday free, come along and have a go. All are welcome! You too can be part of the next decade of the Maunsell Society's history.
Adrian Pinkess
While the restoration of 847 was drawing to a close, considerable thought was given to what project should be tackled next. The society's operating agreement with the Bluebell Railway involves the railway maintaining the society's locos once they have been restored from scrap condition, so quite naturally thoughts have turned to other ex Barry locos. There is a choice between U class 1638 and S15 class 830. 1638 had been purchased by an individual and donated to the Bluebell Railway; 830 had been purchased by a Director of the Maunsell Locomotive Society and arrived on the railway on the basis that it would be used as spare parts for the Brighton Atlantic project and for 847. There has been considerable interest among some of the Directors and members to restore 830 as a King Arthur but there are a number of obstacles to be resolved:-
i) of the two locos it is the one in worse condition and lacks many more parts.
ii) it would be considerably more expensive to restore and a significant amount of money would need to be raised before any major work could start.
The Bluebell Railway has indicated that it is prepared to offer 1638 to the society on a 50 year loan basis provided the loco. stays on the railway and on the basis that the society undertakes the restoration of the loco. The society's directors met in May and agreed that this was a good offer as it provides a useful loco. to work on, which could be completed within a reasonable time scale at a modest cost. In addition the directors agreed that they would like to pursue the King Arthur scheme for 830 as a long term project. This will firstly require negotiations with the Bluebell Railway to agree the scheme and proposals prepared for fund raising etc.
Although work has started on 1638, and the boiler has already been lifted out of the frames, it is still a bit early to assess fully the costs and time scale for the project. However the following is a brief summary of its condition etc.
Condition
Cylinders and valves complete, including crossheads and slide bars and some of the motion.
Page 5
All springs and brake rodding still on the loco.
Pony truck complete.
All of the brass fittings already obtained, although some need machining.
Correct chimney available.
Correct tender chassis available.
No known major defects with the boiler that can be seen at this time.
Missing
Coupling and connecting rods.
Boiler cladding.
Main jobs to be undertaken
Overhaul the chassis, send springs away for overhaul and wheel sets away
for attention to tyres and journals.
Fabricate new tender tank.
Re-tube the boiler.
So that is a brief summary of the work. Come along to the A.G.M. to hear more details. Hopefully we will produce another News sheet in the Autumn with details of progress and no doubt an appeal for funds. So to conclude what is better than a U class loco? Two U class loco's of course!
Steve Pilcher
This years A.G.M. will be held on Sunday 4th. July, starting at 10.00 am, at Sheffield Park Station. The venue will hopefully be in the temporary classroom in the car park, if available, or alternatively in the ground floor bar, in the Buffet block. All members are very welcome to attend - come along and hear more about the next project.
In this second article of the series we consider the main locomotive frames, probably the next most expensive outlay after the wheels (outlined in the Winter 1992/93 Newsletter).
Because the King Arthur wheels are 12in. larger in diameter than those on the S15, it follows that the axle boxes need to be 6in. higher off the ground. The centre line of the boiler and the height of the running plate are the same on both classes which means that the depth of the frame sides is less on the King Arthur. They are, however 10½ in. longer to allow for the larger driving wheel diameter. Dimensions from the rear of the frames to the rear coupled wheels and thence to the centre driving wheels are the same for both classes being 6'9" and 7'6" respectively. This gives the impression that the rear two wheel sets are too far apart on the S15
The main dimensional difference is one of 9in. between the front and centre coupled wheels; 6' 3" on the S15 and 7' 0" on the King Arthur. However, as
Page 6
mentioned above, the frames are 10½ in. longer, so where is the other 1½ in? The extra is needed, of course, because of the difference in incline of the cylinders between the two designs, that on the S15 being 1 in 24 whereas that on the King Arthur is almost horizontal at 1 in 110. Dimensions from the front of each design to its respective bogie centre, chimney and smokebox door are the same, the extra being taken up in the length of the smokebox which must be increased by 10½ in. The length of the boiler is the same.
We are currently seeking quotations for the manufacture of a pair of new frames 36' 6" long. Members will be advised of the cost in a future issue. We anticipate that the existing cross members from 830 will be re-used, as will the cylinder blocks which will be easier to bore out when removed from the frames. Thought was given to modifying the existing S15 frames by cutting and welding in a new section, as is often done when 'stretching' ships, but apart from doubts about lining up the two halves and the loss of strength, the existing cylinder block holes would be too close to the new ones needed for the different angle. The axle box cut-outs on the two rear positions still have to be 6in. deeper anyway, so new frames are the only practical solution.
The thickness of the plate from which the frames are made is 1¼ in. but the frames are not flat all the way along their length as there is a 1½ in. joggle just forward of the leading set of coupled wheels so that the cylinders can be attached and still remain within the loading gauge. The amount of joggle is the same for both King Arthur and S15. Although it may seem fairly straightforward, finances permitting, to reassemble everything using a new set of frames, the lining up and riveting of the whole arrangement, to the tolerances required, is something that needs a great deal of thought.
David Jones
The society was honoured to receive an award for the restoration of 847 from the Eastbourne Historic Vehicle Club (established in 1974), who run a scheme to encourage excellence in transport preservation. The award takes the form of a cheque for £250 plus a certificate, together with a plaque to be presented at the annual Festival of Transport Rally which is held every year at Hellingly near Eastbourne. This is one of the biggest events of its kind in south east England.
The E.H.V.C. award scheme has five categories:
- restoration by persons under 21.
- a group or society project.
- restoration of a structure (such as a windmill).
- mechanical non-moving category.
- a self propelled vehicle.
All entries had to be completed by 28th. February 1993 and had to be based in Sussex, Surrey or Kent. Rodney Packham entered 847 and, after due consideration, it was short listed by the judges for category 2 pending a
Page 7
thorough inspection at Sheffield Park. This category attracted more entries than any other.
Judging took place on Sunday April 18th. so 847 was cleaned extra well for the occasion. After many questions relating to fund raising, costings, number of volunteers and man-hours were answered, Rodney and I took the four judges over to see 830 to emphasise the condition of an ex Barry hulk, although they are very well informed at Eastbourne on all matters of vehicle restoration so fully appreciate the scale of projects such as ours. We then proceeded up to New Coombe Bridge and back, complimentary tickets being provided by the Bluebell, behind 847 in Maunsell coach 1309 to provide the correct atmosphere. The judges were then left to deliberate amongst themselves over lunch in the Bessemer Arms, with their notes and a copy of the January issue of Railway World containing Steve Pilcher's article.
Although we had hoped to win the £500 first prize in our category, this went to the Bredgar and Wormshill Railway narrow gauge saddle tank loco., whose group had done virtually all the restoration without recourse to outside assistance. The first prize in category 5) went to an Aveling and Porter steam tractor with the second prize going to a splendid single deck Guy bus. Other entries not successful were submitted by groups from Hollycombe, Amberley, Sittingbourne and Eastbourne.
It is hoped to have the certificate available for members to inspect at
the forthcoming A.G.M. In conclusion, part of the letter of congratulation
which reads:
"it was quite clear that the task your group had undertaken was
enormous in every way including size, complexity and cost, and that you
had achieved the end result at all from the original condition in which
the locomotive was purchased is a cause for considerable congratulation.
The standard of workmanship was exemplary and the locomotive performed as
well as it looked, indeed it made Freshfield bank look like easy work!"
David Jones
Felix Cope will be running his usual sales stand at the Bluebell Railway's Swapmeet on Sunday July 18th. Felix would appreciate any donations of model railway equipment etc. He can be contacted at Feldor, Grassy Lane, Sevenoaks, Kent. Felix is also still able to raise money from used stamps. These can either be sent to him or left with Ray Bellingham at the Bluebell Railway.
P.S. My thanks to all the contributors and to Jon Elphick for the printing. If you see any errors, blame me.
