Newsletter of the Thompson B1 Locomotive Trust
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B1 NEWS Newsletter of the Thompson B1 Locomotive Trust NUMBER 70 www.thompsonb1.org APRIL 2011 Another great shot of 61264 leaving Liverpool Street, probably taken at the same time as the photo on the cover of our August 2010 newsletter (c. 1950s). An unidentified Britannia waits in the background – very apt for this issue given that the two preserved examples (70000 Britannia and 70013 Oliver Cromwell) have recently returned to steam. Both locos, like 61264, have undergone boiler repairs at LNWR Crewe in the last few years. Now that they are completed, it is hoped that repairs to our boiler will move on apace, with the promised completion date of August 2011 looming large (see reports in this issue). 1 In this issue: Chairman’s update – FUNDRAISING, any way we can!...................................................... 2 Engineering update.............................................................................................................. 3 Secretary’s report ................................................................................................................ 7 E-mail and website .............................................................................................................. 7 Wanted ................................................................................................................................ 8 Original works plate ............................................................................................................. 8 North British News ............................................................................................................... 9 DVD review........................................................................................................................ 10 Harwich and Dovercourt - the photographs of Alfred Smith............................................... 10 Donation from Bombardier Transportation UK Ltd............................................................. 11 Tribute to Gerald Boden..................................................................................................... 12 Financial update ................................................................................................................ 13 150 Club ............................................................................................................................ 13 B1s in the press ................................................................................................................. 13 B1s on Lincolnshire duties................................................................................................. 14 Chairman’s update – FUNDRAISING, any way we can! Mike Cobley As you will see from the Treasurer’s Report, the ten-year overhaul has depleted our bank balance, but we remain in credit - just! From reports on other locomotive overhauls, some costing in excess of £1 million, we have done exceedingly well to have spent our hard earned funds as sparingly as we have so far. We have received several sizeable donations to the funds recently, and five members have offered loans to ensure that the work can continue without further delay. The revived sales team worked hard at the Brambleton Model Railway Exhibition in Harpenden in January. We had received a collection of books and railway literature from the late Peter Bland’s family, a collection of model railway equipment from John Smith of Brentwood and the entire stock from Mike Rudd to sell on a 50/50 shared basis. In just the one day we took in excess of £2,500. As the items were donated we are able to claim Gift Aid as well. Many thanks to John & Mike and to the sales team’s efforts. The Boiler Stay appeal still gets donations and that fund has raised so far £6500. Thanks again to Robin Aylett for his continuing efforts. On a personal note I am pleased to announce that my working career has ceased, with effect from 21st April, having been made redundant. As I approach 65 it does mean that I can enjoy summer 2011, and having spent half of my life involved with the B1, I can now make myself available for the rest of my life keeping the loco going! I have washed the old overalls and polished the steel toe caps of my boots and hope to be invited to the Tuesday Old Boys’ Club at Barrow Hill. 2 Engineering update Chassis and tender – Steve Andrews On Sunday 8 th January, Paul Kaufman, with his son’s trailer, picked me up, and we journeyed to GCR(N) at Ruddington. Here the new smokebox door was being stored. It was then loaded on to the trailer for onward transport to Crewe. We had a good look around the site at Ruddington. The Model Engineer’s track and facilities are most impressive and put many full-size preserved railways to shame. With their new platform now fenced, the lighting installed and the track layout nearly finished, it is looking very good. Well worth a visit. The new smokebox door has a bit of history behind it. In the early 1980s, four loco boilers were discovered at Boulton and Paul joinery in Maldon, Essex. Hoping that one of them was a B1 boiler, I went down to look. Unfortunately they were 2 off GNR Ivatt Atlantic boilers, 1 off GCR and 1 off M&GN. Nonetheless, one of the GNR boilers had a very good smokebox door, so a working party was duly arranged and we brought the door to the GCR at Loughborough. However, at that time we didn’t realise that 61264 was fitted with a 52” door and the Ivatt door was a 57”. Around the same time, Alan Grice, the GCR loco fitter, had ordered a new door for the N2 tank. He offered to swap doors, as the Ivatt door would fit straight on to the N2. And so, the N2 has run with the Ivatt door ever since. In 2003, we fitted a new 52” door at the GCR(N) (MkII). Bill Owen purchased the very thin and worn out old door (MkI, ex-N2 tank), filled in the holes, made some new door straps, fitted a smokebox numberplate and shed code plate, and sold it to a Model Engineering society near Aldershot. It is now mounted on their clubroom wall. The new 57” door of 2011 (MkIII), which we are having made, will be fitted to a brand new door ring and smokebox. It will have a deeper lip, making a stronger door, and less likely to pull away from the bottom of the smokebox. Don’t worry Ken, you’ll have the old door (MkII) later this year! To return to the story, Paul suggested that we take the new smokebox door to LNWR Crewe. So on the Monday, Alan Scott with myself and Paul delivered the door to Crewe, then we picked up the old ashpan and delivered it to Hill and Webster in Ashbourne. Here it will be used as the pattern for a new one in 8mm Corten plate [This has now been completed – Ed] . We then returned to Crewe to pick up the top half of the cab, intending to take it straight to Barrow Hill. But we only made it as far as Paul’s back garden. Of course it rained all day. The mileage was 200! On the following Sunday, Paul delivered the cab to Barrow Hill. Mervyn Alcock was going to forklift the cab and place it by the shed doors, but his slinger suggested we place the cab on to a spare P-Way trolley. Thus we started the 03 shunter, pulled the Class 40 off the turntable road, rolled the P-Way trolley with cab on to the turntable, turned and pushed it on to 61264’s shed road, right up to her buffers. It was a lot of excitement compressed into a short time, but it rolled perfectly into place, just in time for lunch. The cold weather both before and after Christmas slowed work right down, Barrow Hill being a place where you open the shed doors to let the heat in . When work re-commenced, Dave and Yvette finished off scraping the loose rust from inside the tender; a rather horrible job but somebody has to do it. The large electric fan placed under the manhole at the bottom of the tender was of great benefit, by keeping a 3 good air flow going through the tank. Five wheelbarrow-loads of scrapings were carried away. The tank has only got to last another 10 years, which it should do. The new tank will have two manholes in the sump, one at each end, both of which will be big enough to get through. It will incorporate all of the modifications carried out over the years on the existing tank. Work continues on the right-hand side foot plating where loose rivets have been drilled out. The metal around the rivet holes was repaired by welding. A slight change of plan will see us returning as many of the boiler crinolines as possible from Crewe, whence we can repair them in comfort at Barrow Hill, with access to tea, biscuits and a good lunch. The top half of the cab has also had rivets drilled out, where the bottom beadings around the side windows were quilted by rust. Some sections of the cab have been cut out and flattened, and are now welded back in place. Eyebolts have been fitted into existing holes, so that the cab can be lifted more easily in future. The Tuesday gang re-rivetted the side window beadings back together, about 40 rivets in all. Arborseal was squirted in between the beading and cab side. When clamped together, this should fill any small indents in the metal, and should stop the quilting from happening again. The cab sides are now reasonably straight, at last! The top-side window runners, which were made out of brass strip (about 20 years ago) have suffered from the effects of smoke and soot and are corroded and embrittled. These will be replaced by stainless steel runners. We have unfortunately mislaid one set of cab windows and are planning to make a replacement set, with a modification to incorporate a second deflector window to assist the driver’s view when running tender first. But if anyone has the missing window set lying in their shed, please get in contact. The reverse sanders have been tweaked, so that they don’t need to be taken off when the boiler is lifted. They are being refitted by volunteers – another job which won’t now have to be carried out at Crewe. In summary, work on all aspects of 61264 is steadily going forward. Volunteers have done 95% of the work at Barrow Hill, using very little paid labour, most of the money that has been spent going on materials and bought-in parts.