45149 Restoration: 2003
 

No. 1 cab refurbishment is still ongoing. Driver's desk is complete and work is now concentrating on the 2nd man side. The cooker has been removed along with the cabinet which is in the process of being painted.
 

Electrical cubicle is now virtually complete and awaits testing.

The painting of the ETH room is ongoing and all resistance frames have been removed with no1 frame requiring rebuilding which is almost complete but needs a replacement resistor as one is burned out (someone bodged a repair in BR days by bridging it out with a piece of copper!).
 

The walls are painted and the pipework for fire circuits is being repaired. Replacement resistors (thanks to 45/1 group) for ETH cubicle have been sourced.
 

Some pipework has been cleaned down for the engine but apart from completion of overhaul of fuel pumps there hasn't been a lot of progress in this area of late (will probably start in ernest in the summer).

Air has been put into the loco (courtesy of 37324 and 20137) with only a few leaks found and almost all repaired. Got an indicated 120psi on main res. Managed to get all brake cylinders working from straight air brake. Drivers wiper motor runs in no1 cab! Horns are missing but a set of EPB horns were temporarily fitted to check the system - sounded peculiar! Water in air system flushed out using straight air brake and removing cover from auto relay valves on brake frame (not conventional but only way to do it). Haven't managed to get control air yet so no testing of EP valves done yet in main cubicle. Pressure relief valve on six way pipe set to wrong pressure so needs recalibrating or replacing.
Speedo circuits complete and this has been tested to 25mph using D2069 and 37324. Managed to through vac the loco as needed to tow a mark 1 behind it and needed the brake force with the 03 at the helm. Vac gauges work and chamber held.
Traction motors on no 1 bogie have had their coms cleaned and brush boxes removed for cleaning. Nearly all replaced and have had missing brushes fitted.
Loco will be lifted once more in the summer to shim up one axle and clean off no 1 bogie (no 2 was done last year). Also new insulation will be put on motor cables as some has perished.

The loco was indeed lifted on the jacks at the Carriage and Wagon workshop at Winchcombe during the summer of 2003 which allowed attention on the underframe and top of the bogies to be undertaken.

Second man's desk refurbishment also took place. The original desk had become life expired due to the days of the loco having no windows. A decision to make a new one with some surplus plate from re-plating of the cab side was made. A group member drilled the holes, made a new horn stem & knob, as well as making new identification labels and the overhauling of the window wiper controller.

A new Fire Alarm Test button has been manufactured with a new plate to replace the original which had become rather tatty. The switch was overhauled and after asking the manufacturer if they would provide spare parts and having never received a reply! If any other group would like a duplicate made please contact the group for details.

Later in the year, the locomotive had taken up residence in the new loco shed at Toddington, which at the moment is still in the possession of the P.way department. When the shed is handed over to operations the loco will be removed. The ETH compartment is in the process of being needle gunned down.

Work is also concentrating on the removal of the rain strip and the cab front windows to enable us to repair and replate damage from BR days. The door on the nose side is also to be re-fitted before the loco is removed from the shed, and plenty of priming is taking place to prevent any further deterioration on pipework that is accessible.

The cab roof has been needle gunned & painted. The windows have been re-fitted and attention will then turn to the inside of the cab behind the windows, which has also been needle gunned down and breaking with 'peak tradition' the insulation that was found around the cab windows has been removed and will be left like this for when the loco returns to service. No 1 end drivers side now has both handrails. One being lost in BR days.
We would like to take this opportunity to thank a chap called Pogo who very generously turned up out of the blue and donated to us an essential part of the power controller for No.2 end. Next year will hopefully see the cab completed some time around March and then the whole gang will join forces on the power unit.