4079 Pendennis Castle Overhaul

Saturday was another working day, although I did spend most of my time helping the County group with a few things, when I did get back to Pendennis (after lunch) we were back working on the TPWS sensor bracket, this time actually drilling the plate that the sensor screws onto.

Other work I saw being done was the continuation of cladding being painted in primer, and the cylinder bores being measured;

(not my picture)

Also the Summer raffle was drawn and I was lucky enough to be the person to pull the first ticket out of the bag and make someone £1000 richer! I don't know if I'm allowed to say how much was raised or who won, but a fair bit was raised! Which should see the front end finished at least!

I do have a few photos, and I will post them later.

 

I cant help but feel that using a man as a measuring implement (I think generally I would resort to the more conventional tape measure or ruler!) cant be all that accurate, unless of course he is a calibrated man?:tongue:

Chris

 

Maybe even Whitworth?:whistle:

 

Hi All,

This photo was sent to me by the society photographer with the caption:

"Shock & Horror - Pendennis Castle Eats Man!"

The amount of chief engineers that I loose this way is ridiculous...

All the best,

Team 4079

PS: Chris is both Imperial and Metric.

 

Its nice to know that at least a few people on the forum still have a sense of humour........!!:dance:

 

You could run a caption competition for that..

Top London Gynecologist restores steam locomotive through a cylinder bore.

 

Whoops! I had a little bit forgotten about this :s Since last update the TPWS bracket is almost ready for installation, just requires a bit of welding and drilling and then the equipment! Recently I seem to have borrowed by the County lot to lend a hand on a few things. In the time that I was at work week (Thu-Sat), we moved each and every Super heater tube from on top of a shelving unit and put into a more suitable place. I also had the fun task of refilling the oiling pots around the engine...4 cans of oil later I had just about finished. I feel sorry for the drivers of the Castle's, I found it a mission without the boiler in place! I also lent a hand to Chris who was measuring the bores of the cylinders. And finally I also had a cab ride in the 08 & Rat

As this Saturday is my last work day for quite a while, it will probably be my last update (unless another member of the team continues it for while I'm away?) but I wouldn't be gone for good

 

According to the latest Steam Railway it has been more or less confirmed by Didcot that 4079 will not be ready for the 9th of May 1964 re-run in May 2014. It is hopeful 7029 will be though.

 

With the start of the 7029 Clun Castle thread I thought that I would give this topic a huge bumb, too see if anybody knows where we are in terms of Pendennis's overhaul.

 

I don't have any info on 4079, but hopefully things are progressing well and she will be ready for the 2014 re-enactment. As any Norman invader in 1066 might have said.......'there's no such thing as too many Castles'. :bounce:

 

Pretty sure I have read somewhere that it has been confirmed that she will not be ready for 2014, I have seen quite a lot of information regarding relining the cyliners but that seems to have been going on for sometime - sure someone vastly better informed than me will update.

 

Hi All,

Thanks for the interest in Pendennis Castle. Things have been progressing slowly but surely with everyone's favourite Castle. There was a bit of a set back when a cylinder liner failed to seat properly. The only issue with this is that we think it has cost us the 2014 run. Still, we would rather present No. 4079 in the best possible condition for future generations to enjoy. Oh well...

In other news, the smokebox is due to be removed in the next few weeks so that the repair to the dry extension (where the smokebox is riveted to the boiler) can be carried out. The team has removed the smokebox door and the chimney in preparation for this. The rest of the boiler is close to finished and is waiting a retube and a number of other minor repairs to finish.

There has been a lot of mainly invisible work to replace the pipe work to the injectors that was modified in Australia to accept the Gresham & Craven hot water injectors. This advanced plumbing is now beginning to show fruit. The last few bits of new motion parts are coming together. The bearings on the knuckle joints for the outside valves are next on the replacement list and then its is the split bushes in the piston glands to be remade. To say that the holes in these are a little elliptical is a bit of an understatement! New springs are also in our possession for the all the steam tight glands. Painting and refinishing continues and much of the various bits of cladding have received attention with the back head parts next on the agenda.

The next item on the list will be a first fit of the motion and then the boiler and then all the ancillary bits and pieces. So the up shot is 9th May no, but there are a good few other anniversaries to come for her in the not too distant future and by the time we have finished the NRM might have also finished a certain Pacific that she has a little history with...

Consider her not ready for immediate use but definitely on the 'coming soon' list!

All the best,

Team 4079

 

Thanks for the update, will be good to see Pendennis finally done, hopefully in the not too distant future. Just curious as to why the injectors were changed in Australia? Were the originals retained?
Cheers,
Daniel

 

Looking at photographs of 4079 on the Hammersley Iron railway, it towed a water tanker in addition to the tender. Australia can be a tad on the hot side so I suspect (I am guessing here) that the water in the tender and tanker got so hot so as to make the UK type injectors unreliable in service. So they were replaced by a type designed to work with hot water?

best regards

 

Hi All,

MG 7305 is correct Daniel, the major issue they had was with hot water and GWR injectors not liking it very much! We have the Gresham & Craven units still in store and they were of the in cab hot water type. The irony is that there is a chunk of No. 4079 on the main line at the moment. Have a look at No. 5043s exhaust injector next time you see it... It came home from Australia way before Pendennis Castle did!

We have decided to fit a pair of GWR pattern live steam injectors to No.4079 as the cost of manufacturing new exhaust injectors is very high and you can't really see it unless you are really looking hard (they are mounted inboard of the cab steps). As a result the team are mirror imaging the live set up under the driver's side cab on the fireman's side.

All the best,

Team 4079

 

Thank you for the reply. I hadn't expected that quantity of water to heat up so much purely due to the Australian heat. I pressumed then that Australian engines generally have hot water injectors, something I hadn't ever heard of until now. Whats the difference between a hot water injector and a normal injector?
Thanks,
Daniel

 

Hi All,

Just wondering if there is any further news on 4079 at all?

Many thanks

Chris

 

With all the castle fun we have been happening how is Pendennis doing?