A few pictures from today

A quick picture round up from a short visit to the Park today

(All pictures by Clive Emsley)

Three of the four footstep waiting to be stripped, cleaned and painted

The footsteps are all inside the Villa and are in generally good condition.  Three are waiting to be stripped of paint and corrosion prior to being given a coat of rust inhibiting primer. the fourth one is in the painting area.

Right side front footstep undergoing painting

Also to be seen inside the Villa are the Guard Irons, which were given a coat of filling primer to restore a smooth appearance.

The guard irons which have been prepared for painting by Jim Turtle

The original pitted surface has been improved greatly by applying a couple of coats of filling primer  and rubbing down between them.  This fills the imperfections and pitting on the metal, leading to a smooth top coat of paint (a few weeks away!).

From the buffer bean, the hook used to stow the coupling when not in use

Even small items like the hook in the picture above need to be thoroughly cleaned and painted. This is one of the hooks used to stow the screw coupling when it is not being used. it will be repainted in Red where it is located on the buffer beam and black elsewhere.

The round piece of metal has been prepared to fit in the frames

The repair to the Right side frames will be carried out shortly by welding the round plug into the hole previously cut out of the frames.  this is situated just behind the middle axle. once this is done, the shallow weld on the left side can be attended to.

The anatomy of an SECR Bottle Buffer

One of the spare bottle buffers has been stripped down and is currently being surveyed by Matt Holloway with a view to creating a set for 27.  From the measurements and pictures a asset of 3D drawings will be produced with a view to having a set made. The buffers that the loco arrived on the railway with in 1961 were SR standard buffers, which in all honesty are too strong for such a small loco. In a way it is a pity that they were changed at Ashford just before delivery to the Bluebell as the loco up to that point had always (except for a short time on the SW division) carried the SECR buffers!  It will be good to be able to return the correct pattern ones to the loco.  The body is cast whilst the shaft and head are forged in one piece.  This may be a challenge to reproduce, but we aim to succeed!

Thanks for your continued interest and with your support we will get the loco working as soon as humanly possible.