P2 Locomotive Company and related matters

Previously the A1 trust has had a very good reputation for its managing overhauls of Tornado, so what, and where has it gone wrong? this time round, have they taken their eye off the job, preferring to trust others, I don't know much about the firm who are doing the overhaul, but how long have they been going for, and have they been going long enough to have worked up a decent reputation, just out of interest, where did tornado receive its last overhaul?

 

I get the impression that things started to fall apart with the departure of Mark Allatt and the Ebor Flyer incident. I don’t think the Covenanters are being told everything.

 

It is difficult enough to obtain car parts in this allegedly post covid world. And the quality of what you do manage to source is open to question. Then you have the matter of what is in the box. Part number is correct and there are no alternatives used on the application in question. The test fit reveals all - what you have been supplied does not fit. Raise the issue, return the offending part and reorder. Replacement part arrives, you check the part number, carry out visual checks, try to fit. And you are back on the returns again. Eventually you source something and after quite a few days it is delivered. Part number is correct (again) but this time it fits. Something has gone very wrong with the supply situation and even in manufacturing. It is a though people who could be depended on in 2019 have vanished. It happened in the hospitality sector and heritage work is not seen as essential either.

 

Some interesting questions there.

 

"Tell me about it", he said angrily Especially electronic ones.

 

Well, due to changed circumstances here at Casa 9008 they'll have one less Covenantor after Christmas, I'm afraid.

 

From memory it was done at Leeming Bar, using a large chunk of the volunteers who were local to the initial build.

 

Thats exactly what we did at the patriot project and i dont need to say what happened next

 

More about the monobloc from the P2 Steam Locomotive Company:

The £250,000 component, manufactured at Howco, Irvine, is the first monobloc produced since the 1940s. The Trust is proud to have pioneered the fabrication process when casting of the complex cylinder was not an option, in a first for steam locomotive new builds & preservation.
The P2’s Monobloc weighs over 6 tons.

 

That is one very impressive fabrication! Well Done Howco.

 

Not sure it is all that bad. Lead times for materials are not what they used to be and a lot of work has been done.
One big difference is that having run in excess of 120000 miles the loco is not brand new anymore and just like other loco owners they are now finding more issues that arise as a consequence of all the hard work and high end performances the loco has been subjected to.

 

The monoblock is due to be installed in the frames this year and they are looking to raise £30,000 to fund it. This seems a lot of money but, in reality, I suspect the real cost is in getting all the securing holes drilled and reamed, fitted bolts made and all alignments checked. It is not just crane it up and bolt it in. (This information seems to have got lost in the Tornado thread).

 

Without a time machine it's hardly going to be earlier this year.....

 

It’s been sat there since last autumn. The boiler is years overdue. This is not what we long suffering supporters wanted to hear.

However I have posted it in the wrong thread …


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At last year's convention they pointed out that visible progress on the P2 would be slow this year. That is because reserves were drained to pay for the big ticket items last year, mainly the cylinder block and boiler. Considering also the unexpected expense and lack of income from Tornado, it's understandable that they need to be careful with expenditure, so they deserve a bit of slack.

My concerns are more about future engineering competence after the passing of David Elliott. There seems be less work completed at Darlington now. One of their long-standing and highly skilled contractors ceased working for them last year. More and more work is being farmed out, which carries with it the difficulty of maintaining an overview of quality. I get the feeling that the new works at Darlington may develop as an exhibition centre with an operating and servicing base, rather than a site where new construction and heavy overhauls can take place. I hope to be proved wrong.

 

Which year?

 

I see the Prime Minister visited DLW today.

 

I noticed they found some suitably short folk to pose next to him . Who was the bloke in military uniform - no mention of why he was in the party?


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Haven't seen the photo, but at a guess would it be the local Lord Lieutenant?

 

Hmmm - I doubt it …..



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