Of ninety-nines
28th January 2024
Only 935 mles this week, my, how lazy I have been!
For a change it was a not-so-early start on Monday and southward to Chasewater. You may remember that we took Hudswell Clarke 0-4-0ST Waleswood to Ribble and back last year and its owner had decided afterward to relocate the loco to Rowsley, where it will fill the gap left by Eustace Forth. I arrived just ahead of Phil, running with my trailer (T1) again after its pressure switch debacle, to find the gate at the main road still closed and on making enquiries, that the key had broken off in the lock. Mark Sealey and Tom Dakin arrived just after we had extricated the remains of the key and they opened the gate for us all to get on.
We had to wait for a Hunslet 0-6-0DH (once No.4 at BNFL but nowadays pretending to be NCB) to draw the saddle tank out and then we set up and got it loaded so that we could all convoy north to Rowsley. The loco came off and we packed up to head back to Chasewater.
I should really have started this a little earlier in the morning, as daylight was at a premium, so much so that as we set the ramp up for a second time there that day somebody walked past in the gloom saying 'Hi Pete' which out of courtesy I acknowledged but had no idea who it was until I spied the firm's van parked nearby. Our second load of the day was the Baguley 0-4-0DM from one of the Burton breweries, and being only 15tons gross, kept us under the minimum weight to be classed as an abnormal load and hence we had no restrictions retracing our route back to Rowsley. Too late to unload that night, Phil parked up at the station and had time to look around as Mark and others were already filling the HC's boiler.
Tuesday at 8 a.m. I was back with Phil, unloading the Baguley which was drawn away by E1 in distinctly wet conditions. We packed back up, Phil set off and after getting some essential paperwork out the way at home, I followed. By mid-afternoon we were at Bitton, where two vehicles were sat waiting our collection. The first was a GER box van, which was an easy load and after height-sticking it and the bridge, it was determined that we could head west from Bitton under the adjacent railway bridge where the AVR crosses over.
So I put my headset on and steered the trailer as Phil backed down, then controlled traffic for a bit as he got ready to set off. He had a rather circuitous route to take, so would park up and finish in the morning. I also had a circuitus route planned, but only to avoid the Bath ULEZ and get to a friend's house for the night.
Wednesday, and we met up again at a private storage site whose location I had best not disclose. The box van was lifted off with a container-sized forklift truck and I had time to look around before returning to Bitton.
Phil had given me an ETA between one and half-past, and being without sustenance and there before him, I ordered a ham panini and chips for lunch from the Buffet only for Phil to arrive while I was waiting. This time it was the turn of the 07, formerly D2994, that was to come to Rowsley for repair. We winched it on and at 42 tons it is right on the limit for Phil's tractor and on height-sticking too high for the rail bridge, so this time we had the car park barriered off and started to turn round.
Just the moment you want the trailer steering to pack in. It didn't take long to discover that the pump wasn't 'on' though it should be, and a few more minutes to tighten up all the connections around the contactor to restore function. Phil completed the jack-knife turn, and we went to the bottom of the entrance road with him facing eastwards.
Because of abnormal load embargoes around Brum he went as far as Strensham services that night, while I headed home, passing him near Gloucester.
Thursday and again there was little point in him leaving Strensham before 09.00 or he'd have had to wait near Nottingham. I met him at Bakewell, but with the 6x2 and T1 he could negotiate the roundabout properly and I chased him to Rowsley. The 07 was unloaded and put on the headshunt by Bagnall the Barclay and Phil set off for HFS base to swap his 6x2 for the 8x4, and head north to overnight at Wolsingham.
Friday and once again it was an 06.00 depart from home. I'm getting the hang of this, 07.30 passing Leeds, 08.30 Scotch Corner, nine-ish at Wolsingham. This is the last 08 to uplift for RMS: it's not freezing, (but we are once again working in a big puddle) and by 11.00 Phil is setting off south. I dash into Darlington to do a exchange of things with my daughter, and pass him southbound on the A1. Traffic isn't as good as last Friday and he gets in to Chesterfield at about half-three. We line up and assemble 23feet of track in 75lb rail to butt up with RMS track, winch the loco as far as gravity will take it and then repeat the rope-under-the-loco- snatch-block-on-back-of-forklift exercise with the second forklift there to push. The first forklift has a crate of lead-acid batteries to assist in mass, and still gets pulled back but bit-by-bit the loco is taken forward onto its personal track panel. We strip everything down and head home.
Saturday. Andrew will be down later but I have Andy H and a large tank that I think will form the hydraulic oil reservoir on DL34. In truth it is bigger than I wanted but my regular supplier didn't have my preferred size in stock, so I ordered the next size up as in height and length it fits. We wangle it into place only to find that in depth it is too much so we take it down again. (Later Andrew eyes it up as 'just right' for a project of his, but my suggestion that he might 'buy it off me' goes down like the proverbial lead balloon.). After some other minor jobs are out the way, we march out to Pluto and release the casing side. The first thing we find is that the plastic knob on the fuel tap is broken and it needs to be operated with a small spanner, but whether this was the cause of our troubles isn't clear. But we succeed in bleeding the fuel pump and getting fuel at two injector lines and Pluto makes smoke and runs - briefly and without enthusiasm.
This points to a fuel starvation issue so we close off the fuel and remove the hose from the tank. I can't blow through it so we take it inside and set up the shed compressed air system to blow it out, with conspicuous lack of success. When I made these hoses up - 25 years or so ago - I used ordinary armoured hydraulic hose but nowadays I use fabric reinforced hose and have a length in stock. What I don't have are the two 90 degree ends so we cut through the ferrules on the old hose to recover them, and find that they are blocked solid, with? Whatever, we have to open them out with twist drills. I crimp up a new hose and we refit, re-bleed and Pluto comes to life again.
By now Andrew has arrived welded a patch on the underside of the forklift fuel tank, which we had extracted earlier and found several 'pebble dents' any one of which might be our pin hole. We need the forklift back in action as Tom Dakin is bringing Bagnall the Barclay down with the 07 and the jacking equipment that was taken up last week. The new lift pump Andrew has bought for the forklift fouls the air intake manifold so it is a race against time to get the forklift back together and down on the ground. It is ready for action about the time the train arrives, though still on its temporary fuel supply. With the 07 sat in the yard Pluto is fired up and a bit of a shunt follows before dark.
Sunday, and a bit of a shunt continues first thing so that we can get at a stillage halfway up the yard. Pluto pulls several locos and the Hatramm - more weight than it has had on its drawhook for several years and the smoke shows. We re-arrange things, particularly to get an EE off road 1 as its brakes seem to be dragging. Andrew has to leave after lunch, but I've got Jagger, Jake and Haden to keep me amused. Before he goes he points out a hose on the forklift - it doesn't carry any pressure but is an old, clear nylon one with criss-cross reinforcement and has come off the connector again. The plastic is so hard that tightening the jubilee clip is pointless, but some more of that hose from yesterday replaces it and - hopefully - will stay in its place.
After reading up the manual, I reset one of the parameters on the PIC interface on L173, which clears a problem that the 'Idle' detection was right on the edge of the engine's actual idling speed. But I still can't get the loco to engage drive, nor reverse its gearbox. Last week I thought this might be a loss of return electrical path, but with the air built up today I operate the manual overrides on the valves - at first Clutch In and Clutch Out function manually, but Gearbox Forward and Reverse next to them do not, and even with the delivery lines removed at the gearbox cylinder air doesn't come through. Next to them are Sand Forwards and Sand Reverse - nothing there either, and the last on the manifold, Horn, stays silent. I am forced to the conclusion that the manifold valves, after years of disuse, are stuck and being now obsolete, might require replacement.
Why the title this week? One cab window on the 07 is broken and has been rendered weatherproof using an advertising board for various ice-creams. Phil suggested that it should sell them. I pointed out that its original number was Dee-two-"99"-four: I can hear your groans from here. Ah well off first thing to uplift the last s.g. loco of RMS origin from Wolsingham after 3 weeks of slog, then month end, VAT quarter and lots else to entertain me. It'll keep me off the streets - or will it? Come back next week. See ya then.