'The Capital Christmas Express'. 23rd November

i wrote the original post trying to be helpful to a fellow member. If you think you can give a better explanation feel free. I do not intend to comment on furthur posts on this issue

 

Oh go on. Sunday lunch approaches and no doubt the beer will start flowing soon: probably already has.

Could do with watching a good old Nat Pres punch up while my lunch cooks.

 

Don't ever recall hearing a noise quite like that from any Bulleid.

 

Depends on whether mechanical defect is suspected or something else not adhered to in maintenance/operating standards is the cause, if the latter it woulden't cause a fleet wide stop I'd have thought.

 

Flat Tops always seemed to have that echoing big-end knock, particularly on the overrun, even 50 years ago! As one of the (very) few at Wimbledon last evening for the down journey it certainly sounded 'right', knock and all.

Let's hope they sort the loco soon - it made it back to Acton yard so did it then go on to Southall, or is it still at Acton? Possibly easier to load it onto a road trailer at Acton than Southall?

 

It sounded more of a clicking to me, that is the noise that was new to me. I've heard many, many clanks in the past!

Maybe just the way it came out on my laptop sound system.

 

When watching some videos of the outward run yesterday afternoon I mentioned to my Father that something didn't sound right with the motion on 34067. He agreed with me and he knows what Bulleids sounded like in their final days on the SR as he regularly used to sit on Woking and Basingstoke stations watching them hammer through. He said they used to knock but 34067 was clearly suffering a distinct thud in the motion movement.
Glad that no one got hurt as a result of this incident and SWT helped with getting the passengers back home.

 

I once seen and heard clan line clanking but not as badly as that and it had shut off the power for a speed restriction.

 

A picture at Winchfield in the morning.

 

Stood by the side as Tangmere passed many times in the last few years in many running situations, it does have a distinct clunk but last nights "clank" was different - different enough for me to think it was not normal at the time.

 

Nice shot.
Is it me or is there rather a lot of oil splashed over the rods and the wheels?

 

that knocking was most likily the knuckle pin that goes though the crosshead moving in and out, if for some reason the nut securing the small end starts to un screw its self there is nothing to stop the pin coming right out so either the split pin, or wedge ( cant remember if its held by a split pin or a taper wedge) had broken and fell out that would in turn allow the nut to loosen then unscrew its self leaving the connecting rod to work its self off the remains of the pin.

 

I said "I WONDER!". As usual you pick holes on anything I post on here. Is it a little hobby of yours? You might be a (senior?) mod on here but that does not entitle you to keep belittling other people.
You don't know me from Adam, so what's your issue?
Thanks for ruining my Sunday!

 

Immediately after the connecting rod became detached from the crosshead, the big end would have still been in its normal place on the crank. What I believe can happen in that situation is that the free end of the rod sticks into the ballast, the rod lifts the wheel as in a pole vault, and the loco derails. In this case we're told that the rod fouled both the live rail and the adjacent track, which means that it must have come off at the big end as well. It will be interesting to hear, in due course, how it managed to do so and what damage occurred to the big end and the crank.

We're also told that the loco was eventually able to be moved in light steam. If that's correct, then with the connecting rod missing you would have to do something to stop the piston ramming the ends of the cylinder. One possibility would be to somehow lash the crosshead in place somewhere in the middle of its travel. On most locos another possibility would be to somehow fix the RH side valve gear in mid-gear, but that would be seriously tricky with an unrebuilt Bulleid. I would have thought it would be easier not to open the regulator at all.

 

MellishR, the only way the rod can come off is if the internal circlip that holds the big end in place comes off to do that there must be fore and aft movement on the rod in relation to the position of the crank pin
to hold the valve gear at mid gear you insert wooden packaging at both end s of the crosshead and lash them in place, that prevents the piston from moving

 

Please excuse my ignorance, because I know very nearly nothing about the topic, but if it were possible would the right thing to do be to remove the final connection between the valve gear and the valve so that there was no movement in the valve chest for the affected cylinder? Maybe by taking down the connection between the rocker and the valve?

 

For starters you would not open the regulator with any part of the motion disconected except for maybe the rearmost coupling rods. the engine would be in light steam only to lubricate the valves and pistons and provide vacuum . people get confused with what" in light steam" actually is, its in steam only to ensure lubrication, not to provide any motive power

 

Looking at this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8L2n5w_ykYo
It appears that as Martin has said the crosshead has been lashed in mid gear with the wooden packing pieces and the connecting rod disconnected.

Also another video shot earlier in the day shows a fairly violent slip at Poole. Nothing that unusual for a Bulleid perhaps, but something that I am sure will be looked into during the subsequent investigation to see whether there was any connection with the later incident.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9R3a4L_6WM