News Archive entries for August 2020

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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Centre Plate below Smokebox Door
03/08/2020
	A small part arrived on site today which is the large flat plate. The front of this plate sits on top of the front buffer beam between the 2 frame plates. The lower central lamp iron has been painted in primer and has been placed to show its position. Behind tha is the bracket that will support the central footstep. The Britannias and the Clans were originally fitted with 2 foot steps either side of the central plate with a gap in the middle. The Britannias were modified by removing these steps and replacing them with a central step, ostensibly to assist with fitting the headboard. It probably makes it a lot easier to clean out the smokebox as well. We have decided to adopt this modification for Hengist.
Axle Centre Buttons
17/08/2020
	One of the interesting aspects of building a brand new locomotive is to encounter parts that you never knew existed. On each side of the frames, either side of the hornguides, are a pair of axle centre buttons. They have a small countersink in the face which is the reference point. The buttons help to identify the axle centre line. Midway between a pair is the vertical centre line; horizontally they mark the horizontal line from which the cylinder inclination is measured. Here Mike is using a rubber mallet to drive home one of the the axle buttons. There are 6 per side. The assembly shop is very full at the moment; the blue item on the left is a different project.
Small Parts
17/08/2020
	Small parts continue to be manufactured. These are the 2 steady plates (triangular) and the guide plate (rectangular with U slot) that support the regulator rod. The regulator is essentially the throttle on a steam locomotive. A lever in the cab is attached to teh regulator rod which goes forward alongside the full length of the left hand side of the boiler to the regulator on the front of the boiler barrel - as part of the superheater header. The rod is in 2 halves with an equalising lever half way along. The first part of the rod is supported by the steady plates. The top surface of the rectangular guide plate will be welded onto the bottom of the regulator rod. The steady plates are fixed to a bracket on the firebox.
Small Parts Continue
24/08/2020
	Another batch of small parts received today. On the left are 2 oilbox mounting bars that will be welded to the frame across the front lightening holes, 1 per side.The oilboxes serve the bogie centre slide lubrication. The steam brake connection bracket is fitted to the hind beam of the engine and carries the connection for the steam brake pipe that runs from the engine to the tender. The U shaped bracket is for the carriage heating connection on the front buffer beam. The right hand brackets carry the grease nipples for bogie lubrication. They will be welded to the ends of the bogie stretcher "arms".