LSWR T3 563

Well done everyone, can not wait to see this in steam!!

 

Just saw the wonderful video. A lot of appreciation for the restoration work. Magnificent.

 

That would be for weighing

 

I would imagine the loco will need to be weighed also to adjust the springs, i would imagine, the engine will need to be at operating weight for that, with Water in the boiler, As ever hopefully it will be not long now before a warming fire is lit and 563 starts a few test moves around the station site, before venturing out on the main running line, it will probably at some point be put on the front of a scheduled departure as pilot, but i wonder what, U class or Bulleid,
It's a pity the T9 is out, because the t3, and t9 double heading, now that would have been a sight. but i guess that one will have to wait, if 53 does reappear in the same LSWR livery, that also will be a sight to behold.

 

Your first sentence is correct, Clan Line’s tender was recently filled and coaled for that purpose.

 

Lots of “I imagine …” in that post. We could just let the SR team come up with their own plan for commissioning (and communicate to whatever level they feel fit).

Tom

 

The T3 will not under any circumstances be appearing at the head of any normal passenger service prior to its official launch.

 

You beat me to it!

 

Like other heritage railways, the Swanage Railway appears to be addressing the issue as several vehicles have moved away this year.

Before test moves can be undertaken certain items to be created - such as the flexible water hoses between engine and tender (which couldn't be done as easily as now with the two items coupled together). In addition there will be usual 'snagging' work of course as well as weighing.
A lot of work to be undertaken in only a few weeks as the group hopes 563 might be available for a special steaming day for invited guests (supporters, donors, etc.) on Saturday 7th October. The first public day might well be Sunday 8th.

 

Glad to hear it The railway adjoins land with statutory protection and it ought to have a care.

 

From their Facebook page this morning.

563 Commissioning Update

It’s been amazing to see the response after we re-united the engine and the tender together last week. You will however need to keep that image in your mind for now as we have taken the locomotive back to Norden this morning and temporarily split it again so we can take just the engine to our engineering facility at Herston for some minor additional work that has arisen.

While we were moving the locomotive at low speed to its new home at Swanage last Wednesday, both coupling rods started to run warm. Before testing can resume, we’ll need to undertake precautionary checks and re-machine the coupling rods bushes but in the meantime we can still continue with some of the commissioning work at Herston while this is being done.

It’s important to stress this is not as bad as it might initially sound, the railway is simply limited by the fact it does not have direct access to its workshops by rail for this particular job. This should also be in no way a reflection on the Flour Mill either as they don’t have the length of line to undertake a rotation test and get the wheels moving for long enough. This is just part of the all-important testing process and considering the locomotive has now moved further than it ever has in the last 75 years, we were prepared to expect the unexpected but we already have a practical way forwards.

We are still making our preparations for October and do not believe this will have any impact on our plans. We subsequently hope to announce more details in the coming weeks so keep an eye out on your emails, our social media and the Swanage Railway website in the meantime.

The road move and additional work will inevitably mean the 563 Locomotive Group will have to incur some additional costs. We didn’t anticipate having to ask so soon for your support but any contribution would be greatly appreciated and will help us overcome this hurdle…

You can make a payment direct from your bank to the 563 account at the Swanage Railway Trust (account number 93757269, sort code 20-68-79) with your name and ‘T3’ as the reference. Secondly, you can make a payment online via the Swanage Railway Trust’s website at www.swanagerailwaytrust.org/t3-appeal or the 563 Locomotive Group website www.563locomotivegroup.co.uk Finally, you can send a cheque to 563 Locomotive Group, Swanage Railway Trust, Station House, Swanage, DORSET, BH19 1HB. Cheques should be made payable to the Swanage Railway Trust and endorsed ‘563 Locomotive Group’ on the back please.

Thank you!

 

Whilst obviously the Flour Mill were unable to test it properly, shouldn’t the cost to rectify it be covered by them? After all they have already been paid to do a job which they haven’t got quite right.

I’m just talking about the cost of the work itself,
not the cost of moving to Herston.

Overall a fantastic job by the Flour Mill and those at Herston with the tender. Hopefully this will only cause a short delay to it entering service.

 

Good morning,the T3 is on its way to Herston works,it passed through Corfe Castle on a low loader 10 minutes ago.

 

Just gone past my lounge window in Victoria Avenue whilst I was catching up on the Grand Prix from yesterday.

 

Firstly, I should say that I have no knowledge of what is specified in the contract between the Swanage Railway and the Flour Mill, so this is all just speculative.

Back in Victorian and Edwardian days, when many railways contracted construction of new locos to private builders, it was common to have a clause that delayed final payment until the locomotive had completed, typically, 1,000 miles in revenue traffic. Presumably that figure was considered a fair balance before which any faults were properly on account of its construction and should be fixed at the expense of the builder; after which they were more likely developing issues just from normal wear and tear. 1,000 miles would not be a long period, probably a matter of a couple of weeks, so it wouldn't leave the manufacturer out of pocket for a long time.

In modern usage, I think it would be difficult to enforce similar contractual terms, given the very fragmented issue of the industry. If you go to a supplier to provide new motion parts, but a different supplier to do the final erection, whose fault is it if they don't fit properly? (People who put locomotives together are called fitters for a reason). So if you push the point too far, the risk is you throw the baby out with the bathwater inasmuch as some of the cottage industry players may find themselves unwilling to bid for certain types of contract.

To me, the more interesting point is that it shows just how hamstrung the Swanage Railway is by its facilities (and lack of space). What should be a very minor job becomes logistically (and therefore financially) expensive by lack of facilities. Had the railway had a rail-connected workshop, it is likely that this would have passed essentially without comment - bearing ran warm, rods down, re-machine bushes, reassemble, carry on with commissioning process ...

Tom

 

Does the engine have to go to Herston works though just to re-metal the rods, couldn't it have been done on the pad at Swanage and the rods taken into the works, machined then returned, refitted, and testing continued,
What happened to the plan for a spur, to the works to give it rail access, it must be a nightmare if you have to take a loco to Norton every time it needs attention I would have though having rail access to be quite an urgent thing to get under way?

 

The railway is well used to sending locos to the works and it is annoying yes, but its the most efficient use of the time available. Lots of volunteers and staff are there, all the tools are there and we don't have to have fitters running to and from the works all day. It will be back soon.

 

Probably to avoid the person who painted it going off on one. "What, use it?? After all that painting??"

Looks lovely doesn't it? Can anyone tell me where the [brown] on the driving wheel splasher tops finishes and goes to [green]? I couldn't see an obvious place for the changeover given the flowing lines...

[Edited after reading the thread]In terms of snagging, it may well be a condition of snagging that the Flour Mill are given the right to fix/agree how it's done. It makes life much easier from a legal point of view if one party only has done the works and if you can't do that, setting out an agreed method statement for these final works, and sticking to it, is the right approach.

 

I think there were issues with the land owner not wanting to sell. Thoughts at one point vaguely turned to building a workshop at Furzebrook instead but obviously that comes with its own problems.