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| Newsletter - August 2002 The major development in the workshops recently has been the arrival of Yankee Tank 30075 from Swanage. Work on this loco is to be given priority since the owning group, Project 62, already have the necessary funds available and significantly less work is required on this loco than on the E1 to get it back into traffic. The target is to complete the overhaul toward the end of next year, ready for the 2004 season. The appeal has been progressing well and has been boosted particularly by the inclusion of appeal leaflets with the last issue of ESRA Cuttings which has resulted in a good response from the members. The total collected is now over £2,000. This of course still leaves us a long way to go to reach the £20,000 needed for the E1 so efforts will now be made to approach other groups who may have a specific interest in the loco.
The drilling of the firebox stays with the mag drill was completed and the crown stays cut through.
Activity is now likely to pause on the boiler for a while since work on the Yankee Tank will take priority.
The valve seat cutting machine has been modified to overcome the problem of lack of stiffness in the tool holding arm. It is also now driven by compressed air so that it can be left to run on its own - a great relief to all as much muscle power would have been needed with the manually operated design. The machine is now complete and is only awaiting the return of the gantry crane back into the workshop to enable the seats to be cut. There is a certain fascination in watching the machine operate and demonstrations of it by Steve are now compulsory for all workshop visitors (whether requested or not!). It is very satisfying that a number of visitors from other railways have expressed an interest in borrowing the machine. The slide bars have been taken down to enable horn guide bolts on the leading axle to be renewed. Work has continued on reaming the holes and fitting replacement bolts. Various parts of the motion have also been cleaned and repainted by Malcolm and set aside ready for refitting. The weld repair to the cracked expansion link was remade by John using higher strength welding rods and preheating the link. To our great relief this appears to have been successful. We are currently looking for a brass foundry to cast new big end brasses. It is hoped to avoid the expense of making patterns. Following the steam cleaning last year, the frames and wheels have been completely cleaned of the last traces of grime. The frames have also been rubbed down and repainted which gives the loco a much improved appearance.
The Yankee Tank arrived at Cranmore in July and was immediately set upon. The boiler is on a Lowmac wagon in the shed which will make it easy to work on. Little work is expected to be required on the frames and motion which are being steam cleaned prior to being checked over.
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