Progress on the Axle boxes

With the poor weather last weekend (7th/8th October) a start was made to remove the old white metal from the axle boxes.  This involved placing the axle box over a suitable receptacle and heating the white metal up to it's melting point to allow it to run out into the receptacle. The white metal was collected and weighed to give us an idea of how much will need to be ordered for replacement. The boxes will, in the fullness of time, be re-metalled and machined to match the journals on our wheel sets that were turned true last year at South Devon Railway Engineering.

We have also made a start on removing yet more of the fitted bolts and rivets on the old frames and fitting temporary bolts in their place (the blue ones!).  This enables us to keep everything together in one place until such time as we're ready to assemble the new frames!



Heating up and melting out the old white metal



Matt at the helm of the torch!

All the white metal has been melted out and now sits in the tray underneath.

By comparison our little axlebox is sitting on the right, the one on the left is from the Schools Class.

The frames showing the progress unpicking old fixings and putting in blue temporary bolts.

Horn guides ready to be removed in the future.

I have had a couple of pictures sent to my by Andy Beaton, ex fireman at Sheffield Park and now proprietor of Ragstone Models which show 27 in the (then) newly applied SECR livery in (it is believed) the summer of 1963.  The one below shows the loco at Sheffield Park.

Freshly repainted SECR No.27 at Sheffield Park in 1963 (Andy Beaton Collection)

Don't forget that this weekend you will be able to see the progress on the loco and be able to talk to the chaps doing the work (on Saturday).  We will be there on both days with the usual selection of goodies and a display of restoration pictures.  We hope to see you there.