A6071 Tank Wagon: 2014

Tuesday, 16 September 2014

Wooden spacers

Two new wooden spacers have been delivered (around a month ago)

These have now been trial fitted, with the holes now drilled. These are now awaiting priming before being inserted into the brake tension bars.

The two original have now been re-inserted and tightened. The pins will need a touch up however the west side is now complete.

Still awaiting to commence work on the lettering.

Wednesday, 27 August 2014

Small update

The buffer bolts have now been attached to the wagon and just need painting to match the rest.

The wood has arrived for the brake spacers. These need marking out, drilling and then protecting for the elements.

The final paint livery has been sent to our new member and work should start on the livery in a couple of weeks.

The other work of split pin replacing is going to start during the colder months as this can be done without the weather playing an impact.

Wednesday, 6 August 2014

Update 6.8.14

A sketch of A6071 done some years ago has been found with all the important details regarding the livery in which 6071 should go in. (thanks go to Ronnie for doing this and to Phil for finding them) Notice the A was dropped then. That's because it will now be known as 6071, the A was added later.

Hopefully, lettering will be seen in the next couple of weeks, depending on availability and weather. This does mean that work on other projects may be hindered, however now that the group are working approximately 3 days a week, work will continue elsewhere.

Also some key details:
The tyre rims are going to be painted white to brighten up the bottom half
The "BP" will have "-" either side

An End is really in sight for 6071. The prospect of it running in October is rather tight, especially as pins and Vacuum hoses need fitting as well as a FTR exam on the axle boxes, not to mention the fitting of new plates and wooden spacers in the brakes. A completion date is hopefully set for the January Gala. Keep checking back weekly for further updates.

Tuesday, 27 May 2014

Update

As some of you maybe aware, we have now sourced bolts for the buffer mountings, these will be fitted in due course. We have also got some gasket material on order for the discharge pipe. This will mean the pipework will have to come off to fit. We already knew we would have to do this and actually this job should only take a day to complete. Whilst the bolts are off, we will also drill holes into them and fit new split pins. This then crosses 3 jobs off the to do list.

A supporter of ours, Mr B Hallett has been in contact and has a book of liveries which may come in handy. He has advised us that normal household paint is suitable for sign writing and will of course give us any extra help in sign writing. A couple of useful tips were also learnt, which we wont discuss yet, we will let you find out what they are once we have completed this step. Writing should commence within the next couple of months, starting by applying the star and hopefully the Identification Numbers on the end.

Sunday, 13 April 2014

Almost finished

Sorry about the wait for an update. Due to circumstances work was put on hold however work has now resumed.

Work started off this week on applying coats of gloss to areas which we missed, including the ladder which had lost its coat due to being used.

Keith meanwhile freed the release valve, which had become stuck due to paint seeking into the thread.

Not a lot can happen now, its sitting in its final coat of gloss, awaiting the logos and sign writing to be applied, and a couple of other items also need addressing however these are awaiting the return of Phil.

Below are recent photos showing the newly applied "Overhead Live Wire" signs. They really stand out against a pure black back ground

Tuesday, 18 March 2014

Work Week

A bit late this one as work week occurred last week. And it proved to be a eventful week which has moved A6071 onto the home straight.

Tuesday:
Work was carried out on rubbing down the barrel so that it was ready to receive its second coat of gloss. All of the barrel was rubbed back as the photos show below.

Thursday:

Was a pretty basic day, took delivery off new 5/8 and 1/2 whitworth bolts. We now have spares for our other projects as well as bolts to replace none whitworth which are currently attached.

Friday:

First job of the day was to replace the none Whitworth bolts with the correct bolt. These included ones for the ladder, the pipe support bracket and some brake rigging. Below are photos of the newly attached pipe work. Note the west side is missing a release valve, if anyone has a spare off any tank wagon that will fit then please do get in touch.

The afternoon was spent glossing the North End face of the tank. Once again, the weather has maintained to a standard glossing is possible. The wagon had to be slightly moved to allow space for the ladder. It was then glossed within an hour. Below is a photo taken on the day

Saturday:

Once again the weather was fantastic gloss weather, allowing the top, and the three remaining sides to be glossed in the second coat. This took just over 6 hours to complete however has proven a wagon can be painted within a day if the conditions are right.

Below are photos showing A6071 in its second coat.

It does look like the same photos from last year, however these are current photos and shows the level of work which has gone into this project.

This weeks progress:

The first task was to get a stubborn bolt into a tight hole. A bolt which was not correct was replaced with a whitworth bolt however when being removed the holes became out of alignment. With a lot of help, Keith managed to get the bolt back into place and it is now secured into place.

Meanwhile, I undertook the job of applying the new "Warning Over Head Live Wires" signs to the sides of the barrel. It is an extremely fiddly job using nuts and bolts which can only be compared to Meccano. Out of the 8 holes to attach, only one nut was lost which when you consider the size is really good going. The job took an hour and the signs look lovely on the sides. They really stand out with a black back ground, of course this will change once writing has started to appear.

The afternoon was spent attaching the west side pipe work without the valve as we are still looking for a replacement valve. This proved slightly difficult as the bolts we used are to attach the pipe to the valve, not pipe to pipe. Once we have the valve, these bolts will be better.

We also placed the lid of the pipe onto its right position. However it is not connected to the chassis like the other via a chain as it is missing a link. We took a decision for a temporary solution to use some scrap metal and bent it into a chain and interlinked it between the two. It will last until we replace it with new chain.

Unfortunately the nice weather did not last, and work was called off before photos could be took however I will post photos as soon as possible.

As you can see, this week has progressed A6071 to an almost finished state. Apart from the sign writing, only small little things need to be completed and then it shall see service. Keep an eye out when passing through Swithland for our latest progress

Wednesday, 26 February 2014

25.2.14

This weather is getting more and more unpredictable, and actually its going in our favor. It started off a bit dull, with a light drizzle so work began on re-attaching the steam valve back to the tank. It was a frustrating job, with it being a tight fit onto the bracket. The only way it went back on was with the assist of a piece of scrap metal used as a hammer. Then it was bolted back into position, however its gone in without gaskets. This should not prove a problem as there is no plans to store anything inside as of yet.

With the weather clearing, and the sun appearing it made perfect conditions to apply more gloss. Over the weekend Keith has treated the ladder to some gloss, leaving areas un-done where appropriate. These areas have now been glossed and the ladder is now sitting upon the adjacent conflat in its lovely black finish. This will be re-attached hopefully next week.

Meanwhile, more gloss was applied to the east side of the barrel. As the photo attached shows, only the north east top end and just right of the ladder need their first coats.

On the extreme left of the photo you can see the re-attached steam valve.

The afternoon looked dull, so we went looking for the pipe work. All the parts we have are now together and again will be fitted in due course. The nuts and bolts do require our attention first though. Its also became apparant, apart from parts which we already knew need to be made, that there is also some other parts missing. Once work starts on A6581, we will be able to see if the parts are compatable, they should be as they are built almost the same, and we will get new ones made. Until then, a possible plan is to fit cork sheets to seal the pipe. Either that or leave them off, with nothing being stored in it the pipes are deemed surplus. However it would be nice to see A6071 in its former glory, with the pipes attached.

Still a list of jobs to do however a finish is so close. We feel we are actually closer then we originally predicted, however October is still the date we want to see A6071 in the freight train. Before would be nice though

Wednesday, 19 February 2014

More gloss

You would have to be in space if you haven't been affected by the bad weather which has currently hit the country. Some would say its been the wettest winter ever.

You'd be excused if you thought that also meant work has stalled. Quite the opposite. Work has progressed with a great step. It may have been wet, but its also surprisingly mild and when its not wet, its perfect painting conditions. That is what occurred yesterday, to the groups amazement. Weather forecast was more rain, not one drop fell in the yard.

This allowed work to progress on two fronts. Firstly, Keith undercoated the ladder upon the conflat. Can be a challenge, especially the steps and he has done a brilliant job. It looks almost ready to be re-attached.

Keith then moved to the barrel and undercoated underneath the walk way and the top of the barrel, areas in which he was not getting in the way of myself. Again, it applied with ease and gives advancement looks. Photos below show the advancement of undercoating.

Meanwhile I started the day by removing 4 screws which were in the OHLE support. These were melted in when the old signs were being removed and were a bit fidly to remove.

Once done, I then turned to glossing the barrel, areas which had previously been undercoated. Yes thats right, gloss is being applied in February. I've tackled 2 main areas, the first being where the steam valve sits, the other being the other end of barrel. Both are clearly displayed in the photos below.

This is only its first coat of gloss. We aim to apply a second coat all over during one day, so that all the black will be the same. Areas of the Solebar have also been touched up and A6071 is sitting in a freshly painted black.

The above photo really does give a before, after look. A6071 is now sitting next to a similar wagon A6581. There are a few differences however they are also the same design, just built by a different manufacturer .

As you can see big progress is happening, and October is looking more and more promising. Please help us by joining the group, contact details can be found here : contactus

Tuesday, 4 February 2014

4.2.14

After a 2 week hiatus due to work and the weather, work resumed on getting A6071 complete.

Work has been concentrated upon the east side of the barrel. After the last session, it was sitting in primer. The west ladder was sitting upon the adjacent conflat. Small parts were in store awaiting fitting. Work was happening everywhere.

So we come to today. The weather is surprising as in dry, if not bit breezy which is surprising being in Feb. The first item of the day was the re-attachment of the opening wheel that sits on the top. For a job that should take 5 minutes turned into a half hour job. It had already been painted in gloss, which meant that the nuts were getting caught, however the job was done and it now sits proudly upon the top of the tank.

Keith resumed cleaning the ladder. Its a hard job to complete especially with the steps. Before today, the sides had already been cleaned and primed allowing the ladder to be turned and allow greater access to the steps. It was fully cleaned before lunch, and was fully primed within an hour.

Meanwhile, the east face of the barrel has received under coat. Well, the north east side has, from a line of gloss at the top where previously worked, right to the bottom where it meets more gloss, it now sits in the familiar colour of charcoal grey. It has been painted up to a weld line, which coincidentally we use as stopping points due to it breaking the tank into 3 sections, and a 2/3s under the east walk way has also been painted. This now leaves roughly a days work, could be 2 depending on weather and circumstances. Then when it is warmer the first layer of gloss can be applied.

The photo below shows the recently undercoated north east side. Hopefully the weather will stay good and work can progress rapidly.

Another view of the undercoated area, however note the wheel at the top of the re-attached open/ wheel.

There is still a way to go before A6071 runs, however it is getting closer and closer every session we spend there.

Work to be completed in the next couple of weeks includes:

Complete undercoating and glossing of east side
undercoat ladder and again gloss
re-attach the steam valve
re-attach all the release cylinders/ pipework on under frame
apply second coat of gloss
apply logos, writing
re-attach plates
attach wooden brake supports
touch up any areas

As you can see, there is still work to be done, however a finish really is in sight. Again we welcome any additional help, so do get in touch by emailing us on gcrwagongroup@hotmail.com and we will get in touch.

Wednesday, 22 January 2014

1 side black, the other red

Just a quick post, also this is what happened last week. Work commitments have taken priority, good timing with the latest cold spell.

The east side is now fully cleaned and is now sitting in a familiar red colour. The benefits of the primer is it works in any weather, rain cold snow sun. It does it job.It might also require a second coat however it does protect the metal from the elements.

Speaking of cleaning, the ladder has been cleaned in stages, as have its attachments to the tank. Hopefully the weather will get better so undercoat can be applied.

Pictures below show progress to date.

South East side

North East View

Keith applying primer to the ladder supports on the west side. Also notice how A6071 is now visible from any passing train, so do look out for our progress.

Wednesday, 8 January 2014

Happy New Year

The group met yesterday (7th Jan) for the first time in 2014. Anybody watching news, or even just stepping outside would know about the weather Britain has been having. Luckily for us at Swithland, the rain actually kept away until late evening.

And we are a group that takes full advantage of this. The east side has been receiving cleaning jobs, with just under 3/4's fully cleaned down. However due to the inevitable weather, we were never able to prime. The east side resembled more of an item from the famous Barry Scrap Yard then to a wagon receiving restoration work.

With the weather actually being settled, work resumed in cleaning the remaining areas of the east side. Keith tackled the top whilst I tackled the north end. The work included cleaning down old paint and the newly accumulated surface weathering.

Just before lunch Keith's area was put into primer. The photo below shows his progress. Notice what we mean about the weathering affect, a simple rub down removes this.

The photo below shows the progress on the north end of the east side.

This was primed at the back end of the session. The recently primed areas are clearly visible, being a slightly shiner variant

Whilst I was priming, Keith again more progress with the west ladder. This is currently on top of the adjacent conflat. Work so far has seen the two outer supports cleaned and primed, with work moving on to the steps them selves. The photo below shows the ladder upon the conflat.

As you can see work is still progressing well, and A6071 is moving even closer to being finished. A finish of mid 2014 is still on target and if the weather stays like this, the mixed freight during the Autumn gala may have a new vehicle. Keep your eyes peeled