45149 Restoration: 2009
 

JANUARY 2009

Early this month we spent the time preparing the locomotive and the area around it in readiness for Alan Jones to do some welding. This involved cutting out any rotten steel from the nose end and the nose cap.

2 overhauled valves for brake frame were also re-fitted; one had its breather pipe blocked with paint which wasn’t helpful! It was also discovered that one of the valves on the brake frame was the incorrect one but fortunately we had a spare correct one in our container.

The impeller on the traction motor blower was also re-fitted whilst the mesh cover was wire wheeled and primed before being sprayed ‘aircraft grey’.

New clamps for the roof section have also been manufactured as well as 12 new plates for the power unit bolts which meant that the engine can now be bolted down properly.

Work on the roof section continues – this time we fitted the freed-up hinges in readiness for the doors to be fitted. The said doors have now been primed and are ready for fitting when the clamps have been fitted.

The traction motor blower snail has now been refitted to the nose end and fastened down to the frame whilst more of the pipework (such as the conduit for the AWS) and valves in the same area have also been refitted. Now that the snail was in position it meant that the remainder of the motor assembly could be re-fitted, i.e. the actual motor and the impeller.

Later in the month the newly manufactured clamps were welded onto the roof section which then saw the aluminimum doors re-fitted which included riveting the door sections to the hinges and the securing pins put in place to hold it all together – see photo on left.

On the locomotive itself, some of the areas which have been cleaned and genolited were painted with etch primer as well as the lip where the engine roof section will go – this was treated to a coat of gloss.

Some injectors which were recoved from 47146 which was being scrapped at Booths were cleaned and fettled for testing – 3 of 45149’s original ones had previously failed. It is hoped that we can tag these onto the ones from 47376 which the BT4F are sending away for testing.

The sound proofing replacement is also in the process of being re-fitted in the nose end of the locomotive at the number 2 end. This also allowed the instrument panel and lampholders to be re-fitted to the bulkhead.

FEBRUARY 2009

“Jones the Steam” undertook some major welding and fabrication work on the Peak early this month, this included rolling 2 sheets of steel and welding to the frame, work on the nose end cap in which he made this extremely complex work look terribly easy and weld a new piece of steel to the bodyside hatch access area on the Stow side of the loco. Following all this work, the areas were grinded, filled and painted with primer to protect them. The work done looks fantastic!

Several items that could be re-used from 45128’s cab have also been salvaged – this includes nose end cap lights, conduit clamps, pipework and the window glass/frames.

Continuing with the restoration of the number 2 nose end saw the inside being wire brushed and needle gunned followed by more primer and on the following day – a coat of undercoat. Attention was then turned to the silencer box roof section which received the same treatment (wire wheel -> needle gunning -> priming).

Attention has also recently turned to the rain strip area on the loco. The rain strips which run along the top of the loco body have been cleaned down and etch primed. It seems the loco is now mostly in green primer rather than the BR blue we are used to!!

The water temperature probe on the combined fuel/water tank at the free end has also been tweaked as it fell apart during the power unit lift last August. All associated conduit has also been sorted out as well as refitting the outstanding pipes and hoses which means with the exception of the water tank gauges, the water system is now complete – that’s another job off the list!

The instrument panel re-wire at the number 2 end is also progressing nicely and also on the electrical side, the first set of bus bar links were offered up and seem to fit very well which is very encouraging.

Now that the rain stip has been attended to, a major push on the section above these (between the rain stip and the roof hatches) has been the focus of our attention over one weekend. The usual combination of needle gunning, wire wheeling and a coat of etch primer gives a result which looks absolutely fantastic. The underside of the silencer box has also been treated in the same manner and it has been found that we need to manufacture two new feet for this as they have broken off at somepoint in the dim and distant past.

On the electrics, the load regulator has been looked at and a start made on wiring it up whilst the flooring in the engine and ETH rooms have been bolted down using 8mm screws. The governor and a general tidy up of the wiring in the cubicle has also ensued whilst the AWS sunflower bracket has been re-fitted in the number 2 end cab.

The mechanism for headcode blinds have been acquired (without the letters/numbers) which gives us the option to re-instate these in the future if decided 45149 had a centre split headcode box at the number 2 end (as seen on 45112, 45125 and until recently, 45108) during its working life on BR so we’re keeping our options open.
 

MAY 2009

The power unit was barred over after a spraying of oil/diesel mix and after the de-compressors were removed. This is in readiness for setting the tappets. We didn’t know how the barring of the power unit would go as it hasn’t been done for a while but to our relief it went effortlessly! All remaining pipe-work is ready for refitting to the heads and injector pipes etc. Copper washers have been purchased ready for the pipes. The last remaining 2 injectors have been returned from overhaul - 2 original ones off 149’s engine failed on test so 2 of the spare injectors were sent for overhaul (along with some from the Brush Type 4 Fund).

Other work on the engine block for the future will include reconnecting the sump drain chain and pipes to allow sump to be filled with good oil. A pipe between the sump drain and a brass junction ‘T’ joint is all that is needed. This was previously damaged during a power unit lift in 1997.

On the electrical side, floor-level cables from the generator to the electrical cubicle and been reconnected and the load regulator has been re-fitted to the power unit – proving to be a 2 man job when it came to getting the cover back on! The tail lights at the north (No.1) end were also refitted and sealed in place after a number of discussions as to which side the hinges should be!

Other work on the loco which has been undertaken this month include the freeing up, greasing and testing of the brake cylinders using a compressed air rig which was made up. The air filter pack has also received attention (whire wheeling/needle gunning then priming, undercoating and top coating) and is now serviceable after welding repairs were undertaken and new latches that hold in filters to it have been fitted salvaged from scrap 37s.

The silencer has been assessed and it was found to have two broken legs which required to be newly manufactured. Internally, the baffle plate was discovered to be cracked in several places and there was some concern amongst the restoration team that if this broke, it might shower passengers on the platforms with bits of broken metal so it is likely the baffles will be removed. Part of the silencer – the elbow joint (again damaged in the 1997 power unit lift) has gone away to a specialist firm in west Wales for a new bellow to be fitted.

Work is also continuing on the No.2 end nose which has seen new plate work welded into place and 30 holes drilled to enable the nose to be bolted back into place.

Externally the loco is appearing in more and more green primer as the bodywork is sanded, filled and primed – all good progress.

JUNE 2009

The fire system was looked at with some pipework and covers being painted in a new coat of red paint. The pull cords were also inspected and were found to be intact.

In the number 2 cab, various refurbished floor panels were refitted whilst part of the bulkhead wall around the AWS area was painted. Work is also continuing in the nose area with the cap almost ready to be refitted for the last time.

The silencer, which was mentioned in last months update was hoisted on top of the filter pack (which is where it sits when in the loco) so that the holes could be marked out on the new feet which required drilling (remember they were previously mentioned as broken and some new ones were manufactured) so the two portions can be bolted together once back inside the locomotive. After this was done, the filter pack was lifted into the loco and bolted into position on top of the generator.

The silencer roof section (the part that covers the silencer once it’s in place) had a few cracks welded up. After this was all done, the silencer section was painted with a high temperature-resistant paint.

Bodyside restoration continues at a fast pace with the Tewkesbury side almost completely in green etch primer following a programme of needle gunning, wire wheeling, filling and sanding. The strips which run down the body between the cab and the main body have also been removed, needle gunned and painted ready for re-fitting. The last rain strip has also been re-fitted to the outside of the loco.

The opportunity was also taken to remove some more parts from the cab of 45128, including the AWS change end switch, the cooker pedestal and the bulkhead door. In time these will be refurbished and re-used in 45149’s cab.
 

JULY 2009

Reconnecting the sump hasn’t happened yet due to ongoing trackwork at Toddington hampering our progress (we hope to be able to get the loco on a pit soon so we can work underneath easily rather than laying on our backs in ballast – not the most comfortable of positions!).

Inside the engine room, the last engine room floor panel has been repaired (an issue since 1993!!). This floor panel is the one over the main generator bus bars. It was twisted along with a support bar – both of which have been all straightened with a JCB & brute force. New threaded inserts had to be made by the group but its all finally sorted now!

As mentioned in a previous months update, the silencer elbow which was sent to a firm in west wales for a new bellow was returned to Toddington car of our Head of Department. This is now ready for refitting as an excellent job has been done on its repair. On the subject of the silencer, which appears to have received a lot of attention over the last few weeks, the spigots that hold the cover on top of silencer were found to be broken so 13 new ones have been made up by the group and have been refitted.

With the nose end back on at the number 2 end, attention has turned to the side doors (which allow access to the compressors etc). The frames have been stripped down, painted and refitted to the nose section which required the best part of 50 new holes to be drilled in the new metalwork on the nose to allow the frames to be bolted on.

In the cab, a start has also been made on the bulkhead wall insulation. Two floor panels have also received new aluminium trim.

AUGUST 2009

A good start to this month saw the refitting of all 5 gauges to the cab at the number 2 end; brake pipe pressure, vacuum gauge, bogie brake pressures, speedometer and ammeter. It’s starting to come together! Also in the cab the drivers dead mans floor panel has been refitted now that the air pipes which run underneath have been fitted. An attempt at fitting the sanding peddle came to nothing as the bush the peddle goes through requires some slight machining to enable it to fit.

With the flooring in the engine room now complete and the bus bars connected, a start has been made on connecting the cables that run out of the top of the auxiliary generator and over into the cubicle. This involved fitting some new paxolian tubing and a clamp that had to be straightened out.

Bodywork repairs are now underway on the ‘A’ bank side of loco (the side facing Toddington signalbox) with a different tactic to what was done on the ‘B’ (Tewkesbury) side. Needle gunning (rather than sanding) all of paint off before wire wheeling the bare steel then filling/sanding before priming. Interestingly, evidence of previous scrapes have been found!

Later in the month, a visit by Dave Owen (ex-BR CMEE Canton) enlightened all present in the art of setting tappets on the power unit. All A and B bank injectors were refitted and the associated pipework reconnected and wire locked were required between the fuel pumps and the injectors.

Now that the fuel pumps have been refitted, it was also opportune to refit the exhaust manifolds to both sides of the power unit. Getting these in through the bodyside hatches proved to be interesting!