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Build Diary entries for March 2014

Here are the diary entries for this month. You can use the forward and backward links to see the next or previous months. Most photos taken before 2018 are small size. From 2018 onwards, most photos you see below will have a link to a full size image by clicking on the photo.

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3rd March 2014 - Horn guide welding (1)
05/03/2014
  pic
  Arthur Stephenson Engineering have started welding the horn guides into the frames at their works at Atherton.

The Frames and hornguides were first set up level and square on a bed plate.

   
3rd March 2014 - Horn guide welding (2)
05/03/2014
  Highslide JS
  Setting up
   
3rd March 2014 - Horn guide welding (3)
05/03/2014
  Highslide JS
  Next the horn guides were set centrally in the frames and checked, the black line in the photo
   
3rd March 2014 - Horn guide welding (4)
05/03/2014
  pic
  The dimension which was checked with the gauge in the foreground.
   
3rd March 2014 - Horn guide welding (5)
05/03/2014
  Highslide JS
  The horn guides were then aligned in the centre of the cut out in the frames, wedged and tack welded in place
   
3rd March 2014 - Horn guide welding (6)
05/03/2014
  pic
  Here you can see the wedge
   
3rd March 2014 - Horn guide welding (7)
05/03/2014
  Highslide JS
  The horn guide and the frame plate was pre-heated to 200C controlled by thermocouples (the thin yellow wires). This taking around 1 hour 30 minutes
   
3rd March 2014 - Horn guide welding (8)
05/03/2014
  pic
  The root weld and support runs were then made

To achieve the minimum distortion the next steps are to rotate the frame, grind back the root weld from the opposite side, preheat the assembly and repeat the root welding process. The frame assembly will be rotated again and the final welds made, before rotating the assembly and completing the process.

Photos and descritive text courtesy of Mike Beswick of the engineering team.
   
First components sent for machining
14/03/2014
  Highslide JS
  The first components are being sent for machining at S&E Engineering in Scunthorpe. They include :

1 x Bogie Bolster (SL/DE/19621)
1 x Combined stretcher and brake cylinder support (SL/DE/21990)
2 x Feet for Trailing Frame Keep (SL/DE/21645)

It is hoped to have these components returned in the next couple of weeks. This marks the start of the next chapter in the project. Up until now we have been acquiring the raw castings and fabrications required to assemble the frames. We are now in the position to start machining these components ready for the big push to errect the frames in 2015.

As always progress is only constrained by the funding we have available. If you would like to see a Clan on the mainline in 10 years please consider joining the project and/or donating. Every penny goes to the locomotive build!
   
Last Combined Stretcher is Cast and Delivered! (1)
14/03/2014
  pic
  The last combined stretcher / spring hangar with President Jim Baldwin (on the right) and Engineering Committee member Chris Jones.

The last combined stretcher has been cast, and what a beast it is! This brings to the end a drawn out process that has taken two years to complete due to the complexity of the castings. Although the castings share similar features such as the spring hangar 'legs' other parts are unique to each casting. Rather than have three separate patterns made Brian Oldford made a pattern that could re-use the shared parts and change only the unique parts of the pattern. We'd like to thank Norton Cast Products for their help with these castings as other foundries turned the work down due to the complexity and the fact that each casting is a unique one-off job.

The combined stretchers will be sent to Stephenson Engineering shortly for machining.
   
Last Combined Stretcher is Cast and Delivered! (2)
14/03/2014
  pic
  The final cast stretcher