December 2017 Engineering Report

Infrastructure
Outdoor week was well attended with the main jobs being re-sleepering and the renewal of quarry west point. See Keith Theobold’s report elsewhere in this edition of the News for details. The track gang have been out assisting with tree-felling in Wharf Cutting, which was made possible by the availability of Dave Jones, a volunteer with chainsaw experience, and Robert Frost. In addition to this the outdoor gang have carried out many diverse tasks in all weathers such as tamping, gauge maintenance, clearing line blockages and performing vehicle movements. They are good guys and it is unfortunate for us that Mike Carpenter, one of the most long-standing members of the outdoor gang, has handed his notice in, but he intends to come back occasionally as a volunteer.

Steam Locomotives
We are now into the annual locomotive exam season. We have a plan showing dates for Nick Fieldhouse’s working party dates and the boiler inspector dates. This winter we are also taking the wheels out of Loco No. 4 Edward Thomas for new crankpins and tyre turning. This work was deferred from last winter and needs doing.

Loco No. 1, Talyllyn, has been in regular service. The in-line filters have been cleaned out from the water tank. The Fireman’s side injector has been pickled, checked & cleaned. The engine has been running well and finished the last day of the operating season with sister engine Loco No. 2 Dolgoch on a double-headed train for the narrow gauge get together.
The locomotive will be used during Christmas and half term and is available for traffic until midnight on the 20th of March. Dismantling will begin for the ten year overhaul on the 24th March 2018. This ten year overhaul will be carried out at Pendre.

Loco No. 2, Dolgoch, has been performing well since the last report. The whistle valve has been stripped, cleaned and refitted. The left leading coupling rod brass was found to be loose in the rod eye which was dealt with by adjusting the cotter.
It had been found that the regulator was blowing through slightly. The regulator pipe has since been removed from the smokebox and checked. The regulator lubricator has also been cleaned out and examined and the regulator valve has been withdrawn from the boiler and inspected. It has now received a new nut and taper pin.
The cab end holes were cleaned up and fitted with new taper pins. The regulator gland has been re-packed. The main and pilot valves have been checked and lapped-in. This engine is one of the locomotives that will be operating over the Christmas period.

Loco No. 3, Sir Haydn, is at Aberystwyth where the major overhaul continues. We are supplying parts and information as required. The boiler is taking shape and new blanking plates for the old clack valve positions under the boiler barrel have been made and fitted. By the time you read this the firebox should also be fitted. The cylinders and valve faces have been machined and refitted to the frames. The front buffer beam is back on and the frames have been painted. A new axle for the leading wheelset has been provided. The rear buffer fixing arrangement is being changed to enable them to be removed without removing the buffer beam.

Loco No. 4, Edward Thomas, is running well and has had a few minor issues with the modified air pump. It completed the season up to the 4th November. The following week the motion, brake gear, running plates and wheels were taken out. The driving wheelsets are going to Statfold Barn Engineering for fitting of new modified crankpins, checking the quartering, and tyre turning. The boiler has been stripped for the annual exam. New brake hanger pins are needed and Ian Griffiths has designed and is making improved brake hanger links for us. We will re-metal and machine the rod bearings and check and adjust the valve setting.

Loco No. 6, Douglas, was running well up to the 4th November. It is being stripped for cold inspection early in December. The air pump has been changed for a re-conditioned unit. The pump that came off will go to Aberystwyth for fitting to Loco No. 3 Sir Haydn.

Loco No. 7, Tom Rolt, finished running on the 12th September after which it was the first loco stripped for cold inspection, which it passed in early October. The tanks have been off the loco and have been cleaned out. New stainless steel flanges and bolts have been fitted and new stainless strainers to prevent weed getting into our injectors. Clack valves were removed, pickled, checked and re-fitted on both sides. The regulator box was removed from the engine for the face to be machined and the valve had a skim in the lathe too. The shut-off valves were re-packed.
The cylinder pressure relief valves were stripped and examined. The fireman’s side one was ok, and was re-fitted with a new gasket. The driver’s side valve was re-machined and the valve face was turned over to use the good face. A new packing piece was made to go behind the new valve. All horn guides were removed and checked. The springs were inspected for free-height and cracks. A rear driving axle spring was found fractured one morning in September and was replaced.
The in-steam exam was done on the 2nd of November. Mr Eryl Jones, our boiler inspector for 23 years, performed the test and it was his last due to retirement. We have enjoyed working with him and we are grateful to have had his assistance and help for many years. Our new boiler inspector is Peter Hawkins of Hawkins Inspection Services.

Diesel Locomotives
Loco No. 5, Midlander, has been in service following Martin Turner changing the head gaskets, and has been running well, although we intend to buy a new battery for it.

Loco No. 9, Alf, is also running well but, at the time of writing, is marooned on the far side of Quarry Siding.

Loco No. 11, Trecwn, has unfortunately been moved out of the works to make room for Loco No. 4 Edward Thomas. We have progressed some of the work required for fitting of air brake equipment. It now has working sanders as all the sandboxes have been off and new actuators fitted. Modifications to engine door panels have progressed. We will be moving this forward as soon as labour permits in order to provide the railway with a 15mph capable air-braked Diesel loco.

Loco No. 12, St Cadfan, is in service most days being the “weapon of choice” for the outdoor gang. “A” exam sheets are now available in a ring binder in the cab and Drivers are requested to fill these in and note any defects for attention of the Fitters.

Carriage and Wagon
Carriage No. 22 has had the fibreglass roof recovered by Simon Jenkins. A lot of effort is going into completing this coach for use at Christmas. John Burton’s gang are working on various woodwork tasks and John himself is making replacement droplights and finishing off the air heating installation. The end panelling at the wharf end has been fitted along with the beading. The exterior paintwork is almost complete and a good finish has been obtained by our volunteers. The guard’s bench has gone back in and the painting inside the brakevan is done apart from the wharf end.
The window frame at the wharf end as been rebuilt by Mark Freeman who has also made new step boards for the platform side. Sarah Freeman is running evening painting sessions which are making good progress and enable the coach to dry out of normal working hours. David Jones and Martin Turner have adjusted the brake rigging and tested the operation of the brake gear, which is now complete. I’d like to thank all the volunteers and staff who have worked on this vehicle so far and urge everyone onwards for the final push!
We have the brake maintenance weekend coming up soon. David Martin’s gang will be fitting a new moisture trap to the brake pipework. Since changing the type of triple valve in use it is more important now to reduce the amount of moisture in the system.

Signal & Telephone/Electrical
Steve Thorpe, Railway Electrical Engineer, has had a good S&T week, with a total of ten people attending at various times. Wharf lever frame has had some maintenance having been stripped, inspected and lubricated. Point maintenance has been carried out at Wharf and we have identified a couple of necessary repairs. The lever frames at Pendre, Brynglas, Quarry, Aber and Nant have also had similar attention. New cabling has been laid between Rhydyronen and Cynfal, also Brynerwest to Brynglas. A detailed check of the interlocking at Aber has also been done. The blockpost power supply at Aber has been moved and a new data cabinet installed.
The new token machines for the Abergynowlyn to Nant sections have been refurbished, installed and tested. These replace the staff and ticket system which will make the rules test a lot easier to pass for all of us!
The S&T/Electrical department supplied the electrical equipment for the Halloween and bonfire events. There is also a function to provide building electrical maintenance repairs to the railway such as replacing faulty lamps at Wharf, and installing “no-volt release” equipment for the blue lathe in the works. Due to this large workload we have recently made an appeal via email for regular local volunteers with an electrical bias to assist and there have been a few responses. Please contact me if you are interested.

Works Equipment
The west end Bridgeport mill is being rebuilt. ‘Prolift’ vehicle lifting jacks have been purchased for locomotive and coach lifting. They are five ton each capacity and are vertical screw jacks operating from a 32 amp three-phase supply.
The plasma cutter has had replacement parts fitted following misuse. New one ton and three ton electric hoists will be fitted in the works soon.

Plant
The flail arm has been removed and new bushes & pins are being made. We are hoping to get this machine back in working order as soon as possible.
The trolley will shortly be leaving the railway for rebuild at a member’s factory. We will be assisting with supplying materials and transport. John Bate will be acting as “Technical Consultant”.

Staffing Matters
Building maintenance is now under Dave Scotson’s remit and Mick Loterew will be  reporting directly to Dave.
Through the assistance of Austen Coleman we have put some of the staff and volunteers through Bobcat and Forklift courses. Further courses will be planned for the new year including manual handling and operating hoists for both staff and volunteers.

Appeal for Volunteers
I have a desire to increase the amount of people volunteering in the Works at Pendre. Whilst a proportion of the work is skilled and suit those who have mechanical / machining / welding abilities, we can occupy those who are not. The main point is that I know the date upon which you intend to offer your services. I can then have a job ready for you. Knowing in advance when the labour will be available will assist me greatly in planning the work. Should you cancel at the last minute, that is no problem and the job will wait for the next suitable person. I’d rather have that happen than see people arrive unexpectedly as it is more difficult to find meaningful tasks when put “on the spot”!
Please email me and I’ll make arrangements to discuss your skills, abilities, potential availability and which types of work that you are interested in.

Chris Smith and David Jones