THE COMMUNI C A T ION CORD No. 23 Summer 2011 Alan Weaver Alan Resplendent in her new Brunswick Green livery, A1 60163 Tornado crosses the River Ouse at York en-route to Scarborough with a test train. 18th May 2011. BACK INTO TRAFFIC By David Elliott and Graeme Bunker Thanks to a fantastic effort by our long way to ensuring that the components Overall the engine went back together volunteers and contractors, the locomotive removed from the locomotive when the fairly easily, although the ash pan proved was fully re-assembled, inspected and given boiler was lifted were in a fit state to to be difficult as following from the an Engineering Acceptance (EA) certificate go back on directly. We hope that Chris foundation ring repair, the lugs which in time for the light engine test runs to is up for a similar role in future major attach the ashpan to the firebox did not Scarborough on 18th May – a date set engineering jobs. line up perfectly so some subtle adjustment in the project plan once the boiler had The schedule did not allow time for the was necessary. Also the modified damper arrived back at York on 8th April. engine to be moved back to the paint shop door arrangement which operated freely A key element of this achievement has for the final painting, so Ian Matthews aided when fitted off the boiler, was now very been the part played by Chris Walker by volunteers had to fit painting round stiff. Use of an angle grinder and welder since he was “volunteered” for the role the engineering work in the NRM, along freed up the door. of project planner and supervisor at York with his other contracts which included A further problem arose when the boiler from February onwards. Chris’s capture painting Flying Scotsman’s tender in wartime was lowered into the final position. When of the individual jobs to be done and black and the superb Garter Blue paint job the ash pan was removed in January the mobilisation of our volunteer labour force done on the A4 Dominion of New Zealand exhaust steam injector sensing pipe which to work alongside our contractors went a (formerly known as Bittern). takes steam from the RH main steam pipe ➤ 1 to the injector to tell it when to change From the chair by Mark Allatt over to exhaust steam mode was scored where it had come into contact with the s you will read see a letter ashpan. A repair was made to the pipe and elsewhere in recently the pipe slightly re-routed, however when A this issue of received the jacks under the boiler were removed, TCC, Tornado is now from Mike the firebox was slightly high on one side, back in traffic on the Holmes, the ashpan resting on the connector that Network Rail main Principal had been used to repair the pipe. The line and has several Engineer, Rail drastic step was taken to cut out the entire successful tours under Vehicles at length of sensing pipe under the ashpan, her belt, albeit a little later that planned the ORR, and thanks to the prompt attendance of due to not working with Train Operating in which our plumber/coppersmith, Tom Snowball, Company West Coast Railways. he states, an new section of pipe installed following a We regret that it was not been “I consider different route. Great Northern Steam of possible to reach an acceptable working that Tornado is complying with Darlington assisted by rapidly making the arrangement with West Coast Railways your maintenance plan and policy. The extra LNER pattern pipe unions that were in spite of many attempts over the past repairs and modifications have been needed. With this impediment out of the three years. Tornado will continue to completed to the relevant standards way, the boiler and firebox sat correctly on be operated on the Network Rail main and appropriate quality control has been their supports. line by DB Schenker, which has worked applied.” It is well known that the steam successfully with the Trust since the As you know, we are seeking locomotive is a corrosive environment and locomotive’s completion in 2008. additional main line work for promoters although ours is quite new, almost all the Unfortunately, this late change has who use DB Schenker and heritage bolts and nuts removed from the ashpan resulted in a significant re-working of railway visits. We have therefore been and smokebox areas required replacement Tornado’s tours diary. As a consequence delighted to visit our friends at the – in the end around £1,200 of new bolts, of not working with West Coast North Yorkshire Moors Railway, Didcot nuts and washers were required. Railways, Tornado did not haul ‘The Railway Centre and the West Somerset On the 14th April, a mere six days after Cathedrals Express’ on Thursday 26th Railway and to have started our the boiler had been craned onto the May, Saturday 4th June and Saturday programme of ‘Torbay Expresses’ a week frames, the engine was moved outside, 11th June promoted by Steam Dreams. early. For the latest news on Tornado’s the boiler filled and the fire lit for the Although Tornado was ready for traffic 2011 programme please keep an eye on un-lagged steam test. This was successfully for 26th May, her first main line train in www.a1steam.com. completed the following day under the her new Brunswick Green livery was As usual we are still looking for watchful eyes of the VAB boiler inspector ‘The Canterbury Tornado’ on Saturday volunteers across all disciplines. It John Glaze and the insurance company 18th June from Poole (Tornado from takes a lot of people to keep Tornado boiler inspector Alan Ratcliffe. Once the Willesden) to Canterbury and return on the rails, not just those who travel boiler had cooled down (a chance for promoted by Pathfinder – see ‘Tornado with the locomotive as support crew the team to take weekend off), it was on Tour’ for details. or merchandise team ‘trolley dollies’ drained and the engine was back into the As stated in my letter that but also those in the back office doing NRM workshop. This was followed by an accompanied the last issue of TCC, administration, marketing, finance, intensive period of work to put everything all maintenance and repair work on engineering support etc, the list goes else back on including renewing all the Tornado, including the re-boring of the on – and there is always so much more lagging and completing the annual C exam. cylinder liners, has been carried out that we could achieve with the right On the 9th May with some of the paint in accordance with the Trust’s Quality volunteer with the right skills and a still tacky, the engine and tender were Management System. This is the same can-do attitude. Please email re-united and slowly propelled onto the system that was used to support the [email protected] if you turntable in the Great Hall of the NRM in construction of the locomotive and has think you can help. front of a sizeable audience of Covenantors previously been subject to Notified Body And finally, thank you all for your and supporters to be seen in the BR audit, as part of the certification of the support during this difficult time. Your Brunswick Green livery for the first time. locomotive, leading to authorisation as kind letters and emails have certainly After this event the locomotive was drawn a ‘new locomotive’ under the European helped to keep the team motivated. I out into the car park to be on display and Railways Interoperability Directive by hope to see as many of you as possible to enable work to be completed. On 12th the Office of Rail Regulation (ORR). I out on our trains over the next few May the fire was lit and over the following thought that you might be interested to months. TCC weekend the engine remained on display in light steam whilst various systems New editor for The Communication Cord including blower, injectors, air pumps, I’m delighted that Peter Shakespeare has volunteered to turbo-generator and whistles were tested. take editorship of TCC from the next issue. Peter is a career It had been intended that the locomotive journalist, editor and publisher, currently working in the freight would be returned to the workshop once transport and logistics industry, Peter has had a lifelong passion the fire was out to enable the weighing and for all things steam and has been an A1SLT covenantor since final inspection and checks on the work 1999. Working mainline with 73096, 34016, 35005, 70000, done. In the event this did not happen due 60019 and now with Tornado, he is an experienced support to congestion in the Yard (Dominion of New crew member and Mid Hants Railway fireman. Good luck Peter! Zealand complete with two tenders and support coach plus Duke of Gloucester with 2 support coach were in residence). Geoff Griffiths One consequence of this was that the weighing (spring setting) had to be carried out in the preparation bay. Shortly before the appointed date for this work the North Yorkshire Moors Railway (NYMR) electronic load cell weighing equipment developed a fault which would take at least a week to repair, and no-one else with suitable gear could do the work in the required timescale, so the decision was made with the agreement of the VAB to use an alternative method which involves lifting each wheel in turn with a small 20 ton hydraulic jack fitted with a calibrated pressure gauge.