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Pit to Port Project - June 2006 Update
 

Work on the parts of the loco remaining at Bodmin has slowed a little as we wait for various contractors to do their stuff.  The inner firebox tubeplate was delivered by Pridham’s to allow us to drill the tube holes and, task duly completed, it disappeared back to Devon courtesy of the Wadebridge loco group. When we next see it the wrapper and door plate will have been welded to turn the components into a new firebox. I understand that Pridham’s are in the process of moving their works – moving house is bad enough!

The wheel tyres are on order from a South African company but the saddle tank is under construction just down the road.

Right - Inner tubeplate being drilled on the machine shop’s radial arm drill.

Ashpan repairs (perhaps re-creation would be a better term as there was little left of the original) are well underway and the smokebox is now complete. Patch repairs to the cab are in hand, the mig welder and angle grinder being used to full capacity. Although we try to retain as much of the original as possible the only practical approach is to completely rebuild those parts that have a large amount of corrosion damage.

Right - The completed smokebox front plate

A full set of maker’s drawings has been obtained. These are fine examples of what, in this age of auto cad, has now become a lost art. Whilst general instructions on tolerances are given there seems a remarkable (by today’s standards) lack of specific attention to limits and fits and is, presumably, indicative of the amount of trust placed in the machine shop staff in those days.

All of the firebox side stays have now been removed, allowing entry into the boiler without the risk of impaling parts of the anatomy on the sharp edges left after the inner box was withdrawn. The younger members of the team have carried out the traditional boy’s job of crawling into small, confined spaces in order to clean them by transferring the maximum amount of scale and dust onto their overalls and faces.

Right - Firebox after inner box removed.  

All parts have been stripped from the frames, inspected for damage and painting and re-assembly will soon start. Our weekday team is currently concentrating on one of the society’s other Bagnall’s, ex Devonport Dockyard No 19 which we are hoping to have back in working order for Christmas. 

We are particularly lucky to have the services of a number of volunteer staff who are highly skilled and well experienced in their particular fields of engineering. Equally, the workshop facilities at Bodmin now allow a range of tasks to be undertaken that would previously have required a lot of moving of parts between various sites as favours were called in.

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