Swanage Railway General Discussion

Isn't a lot of this topic a little academic now? LSL are fitting retention tanks to their MK1s, so they must have found a way around any technical difficulties and they must also have done some measurements as previously suggested in order to establish the tank size. No need to reinvent the wheel if LSL have done it before!

Keith

 

You don't need a vacuum toilet, older units such as 317s and 321s have normal flushing toilets and tanks underneath. What they do have, and which may be interesting to try and fit on coaches used on preserved lines, is heating elements within the tank! Not high temperature, but hot enough to stop the contents from freezing so they can be emptied.

 

The design for Mark 1s is pretty standard. There was a conference/ show & tell about it a while ago hosted by WCR at Carnforth.

 

LSL have found a way to fit retention tanks to mainline MK1s. Preserved railways will probably never have a need to fit retention tanks to their mk1s.

This talk of having to build a brand new design of coach to solve the problem is getting into the realms of fantasy.

Back on topic, any news of when the bubble car and 117 will return from Eastleigh. I recently saw a photo of two of the vehicles outside the works and looking virtually finished.

 

When the last batch of 158's were rebuilt to 159's retention tank toilets were fitted, the bogs are pretty 'low tech' unlike a 166 and (appear) to just drain into the tank

 

http://www.southern-locomotives.co.uk/34072/34072_RAF_Squadron.html

 

My friend and I spent yesterday evening on The Wessex Belle. Fabulous food in a lovely atmosphere, and wonderful staff. We would both like to thank everyone for making it such a great evening.

If you're thinking of giving it a try, I would definitely recommend it. We will certainly be back for more!!

 

Is still no news on 34072?

 

Fitters from SLL and SR continue to work on the loco to make it ready to enter traffic. Obviously keeping the operational fleet operational has to be the higher priority but I understand the job list is getting shorter. I'm not aware of a date sorry.

 

well that's fine. But I just thinking that if the Boiler Test took place back in October 2016 that's 19 months of the ticket nearly wasted...

 

But also 19 months when the boiler and the mechanical parts (P&V, axle boxes etc) has been subject to no degradation or wear and tear. So not really wasted.

I sometimes think the "ten yearly" assumes mythical status it doesn't quite deserve. Locos get used, things wear, sometimes things break and it is worth repairing them, sometimes things break and it is no longer worth the repair, at which point the loco is stopped. Hopefully, you get to that latter point round about the ten yearly point when the boiler ticket would expire anyway. But if you really worked a loco hard, you would likely get to a point where it was mechanically worn out before the end of ten years.

So if 34072 spends two years "in ticket" but not working, one option is to just work it harder for the remaining time available. Maybe you aim to do 8,000 miles per year for eight years rather than 6,500 for ten years, but the end result is the same - the loco does 65,000-odd revenue-earning miles between overhauls, giving to all intents and purposes the same repair cost per mile. You achieve that by running it more days in service - perhaps aiming for an average of 125 days in traffic per year rather than 100, which in turn takes pressure of other locos in the fleet.

If it stayed out of traffic for several years, you might get worried. But providing the SR currently has locos to cover the current diagrams, I wouldn't be getting overly concerned at this point.

Tom

 

Well four engines sounds good but the U boat was out for some time in readiness for its 'Great Briton' tour and the T9 is currently still out with its hot box, so I was worried as that only left 80104 and 34053 for a small period. 31806 is now available again I guess now it's main commitments are done for now.

I'm still smarting over the cancellation of the Class of 68 Gala in part due to because 34072 wasn't ready so I am slightly concerned out the amount of time it's taken...

 

Is there any hope of 31874 being completed this year?

 

Hope? Yes!

 

Expectation?

Steven

 

BUT....you can repair many of the mechanical components that wear out "on the fly" even with a Spamcan. Once every ten years the boiler has to be stripped for a major inspection by law regardless of how well it is maintained in the meantime. 19 months from boiler test to first use is not the end of the world but it is hardly desirable either.

 

10 year boiler strip down is a misnomer. The boilers as pressure vessels have to be checked and inspected annually.
257's boiler was in service for 12 years last time round.

 

Is it not the case a full internal (gutted) and external (out of frames) examination has to be conducted at least every 10 years though, in addition to an annual pressure systems examination of the boiler as in use? Perhaps a Written Scheme of Examination would not be compliant without such a proviso?

 

How would that explain the quoted case of 257 going 12 years? obviously with the full approval of the boiler inspector?

 

43106 is another, I don't think the 10 year ticket is as set in stone as some people think.