This is more like it, two railway visits in the space of a week. Having spent Saturday morning cleaning the B12 and ashing out the Standard 4, I knew that the B12 was going out of service the following Tuesday to be replaced by the 7F and I confidently expected to be cleaning the 7F when my next turn came, on Wednesday.
Now, one of the things you have to do when signing on is read the driver's reports from the past few days, to find out what has been happening. This morning, I read of leaking piston glands and juddering from one of the rods operating the valves in the drivers side steam chest. Not good. It was no surprise then to find Fitter Bob in the yard directing me to the Y14 with the news that the 7F was considered failed and would not be in service that day.
So, fortune appeared to be smiling on me that day. It was about 5:45 and I was the only cleaner rostered, so it fell to me to prep the Y14. Climbing aboard, I ran through the usual checks. I tested both water gauges by isolating them, draining them, closing the drains and watching the level come back up as I opened the water valves. The handbrake was on, the regulator shut, the reverser in mid gear and all the appropriate injector, blower and cylinder valves & cocks closed.
This historic engine was built as GER no. 564 and left Stratford Works on 22 February 1912. It spent most of its working life in Norfolk and Suffolk. In 1922 and 1936 it was allocated to Norwich Thorpe and also spent time at Yarmouth. After the 1923 grouping, the loco was renumbered 7564, then 5462 in November 1946. In October it was transferred to Lowestoft and stayed there for 13 years. In 1949, as a consequence of the nationalisation of British Railways, it became 65462. Both the LNER and BR painted the loco plain black.
65462 was allocated to Norwich Thorpe in June 1960 and then moved to Stratford in January 1961. In January 1962, 65462 was retubed at Stratford, before joining the few other remaining London based J15s on standby and Liverpool Street station pilot duties.
The last four J15s (including 65462) were finally withdrawn on 16th September 1962, when steam was eliminated from East Anglia, having outlived many other more modern types of locomotive. It was purchased by the Midland and Great Northern Joint Railway Society and ran for a while in the guise of a J15 locomotive. An overhaul by the Society costing more than £350,000 has seen it return to service in a condition closely matching that when it entered service as built by the Great Eastern Railway.
Pretty isn't it.
Here's the failed 7F, seen from the top of the coal heap in the Y14's tender, while I was checking the tender for water.
Here's the centre of operations for the next bit.
The loco has had a warming fire in it overnight - it's warm and there is still 20 psi on the clock:
By now, Third Man Nick has arrived and despite being considerably less than half my age he is the senior man; as I'm relatively inexperienced, Nick supervises me in preparing the fire and the next step is to clean the grate and light up. Through the fire hole, I used the rake to work through the remains of the warming fire which was still pretty hot with visible glowing coals. The loose ash went through the bars, and I used the shovel to put a round of coal all over the grate until I had it fully covered; then, I use all the wood yesterdays crew have left on the footplate - probably most of a pallet, broken up, goes all over the top of the coal. Nick has assumed the cleaner's role for the moment and has fetch a bucket full of paraffin-soaked rags, which I distribute over the wood. With the last of the pallet, we prepare the torch - a long piece of wood with a wet rag tied to the end which Nick sets his lighter to, since I have not managed to locate my own for some reason. I apply the torch to each of the rags within reach and the wood is soon ablaze. We throw the torch into the firebox and close the door.
This method is called the upside down fire - because the kindling is on top of the fuel, opposite to most domestic fire lighting procedures.
So what did I forget? The smokebox is still full of yesterdays ash. We scrabble to clean it out before the fire gets too lively and we cannot see for smoke.
Next, it's back to normal duties. We have plenty of time, so I set to polishing up the Y14's paintwork, attempting to get it done before the boiler get's too hot. NNR procedures indicate this one has to be cleaned with Citrus fluid and wax polish, which is not fun if the paintwork is too warm.
That takes an hour or so, and we polish up the brass ring behind the smokebox and the steelwork on the smokebox door.
Then, it's over the pit for ashing out and then backing up for coal
Tea over, Fitter Bob finds me another job: cleaning the firebox and smokebox of the 7F. Here's my office for the next hour or so:
The B12 waits for it's next service, on the adjacent road:
First off, we'll have a quick look in the firebox to see what awaits:
No surprises there, the remains of last night's fire. Let's close up and go and clear out the smokebox first. Fowler designed LMS locomotives like this have these toggles closing the smokebox door, unlike the usual dart found on most other locomotives. You undo them with a spanner usually found in one of the tender lockers and turn them out of the way:
Here's the sight that greets us. The inverted V in the middle bottom is the two exhaust pipes coming up from the cylinders; this combines to form the blast pipe, which is directed up the chimney; the mesh cage around the blast pipe is a spark arrestor, designed to stop hot ash going out of the chimney and causing lineside fires:
When you are cleaning the smokebox, you put a barrow in front of the loco - you can drop the ash into the barrow from above. If you are careful, it won't go everywhere:
Next step is to pull out the baffle plate and the lower protection plate in the firehole and get stuck in. You can't see the back of the grate without getting inside, which is dusty, hot and dark. You can see the dust in this shot and you can also see the hole - this is the drop grate.
I put a short shovel inside the firebox and move all the remaining ash into the hole, so it can fall into the ashpan below before closing the grate. Needless to say, I was filthy when I came out.
Here's a footplate view of the tender:
I'm not yet sure what those valves are.
Next, the 11:35 train is due in from Holt - I wait on the platform for it anxiously, since I have now been on duty for almost six hours and I am starving. This DMU is not it - it is waiting to go to Holt, and it's waiting for the Y14 just like me.
A few minutes later, the train arrives; the crew exchange tokens with the signalman and I follow the train as it draws to a halt at the end of the platform.
Here's what I'm waiting for - a bacon & egg roll that has been sitting keeping hot on the loco warming plate.
Superb. Roll on next time, when I am a rostered cleaner. I've now completed my first 'shadowed' turns and am considered fit to be out on my own and will be looking after cleaners with less experience!
Who knows what peril that will bring...
Here's the failed 7F, seen from the top of the coal heap in the Y14's tender, while I was checking the tender for water.
Here's the centre of operations for the next bit.
The loco has had a warming fire in it overnight - it's warm and there is still 20 psi on the clock:
By now, Third Man Nick has arrived and despite being considerably less than half my age he is the senior man; as I'm relatively inexperienced, Nick supervises me in preparing the fire and the next step is to clean the grate and light up. Through the fire hole, I used the rake to work through the remains of the warming fire which was still pretty hot with visible glowing coals. The loose ash went through the bars, and I used the shovel to put a round of coal all over the grate until I had it fully covered; then, I use all the wood yesterdays crew have left on the footplate - probably most of a pallet, broken up, goes all over the top of the coal. Nick has assumed the cleaner's role for the moment and has fetch a bucket full of paraffin-soaked rags, which I distribute over the wood. With the last of the pallet, we prepare the torch - a long piece of wood with a wet rag tied to the end which Nick sets his lighter to, since I have not managed to locate my own for some reason. I apply the torch to each of the rags within reach and the wood is soon ablaze. We throw the torch into the firebox and close the door.
This method is called the upside down fire - because the kindling is on top of the fuel, opposite to most domestic fire lighting procedures.
So what did I forget? The smokebox is still full of yesterdays ash. We scrabble to clean it out before the fire gets too lively and we cannot see for smoke.
 |
| Later in the day, the Y14 pulls a train into Weybourne Platform 2 |
That takes an hour or so, and we polish up the brass ring behind the smokebox and the steelwork on the smokebox door.
Then, it's over the pit for ashing out and then backing up for coal
The Y14 now has it's full crew aboard, so I leave them to go and get changed for the day and return to yard duties which involve tidying the store, chopping up more cleaning rags from the old clothes, sheets and curtains donated by the public, and tidying up the yard.
During my yard work, the 7F has been hauled up and down the yard by the Class 20, while various people including the railway's Chief Engineer look at the various pivots and rods around the motion. I speak to the Chief Engineer later & he tells me that the problems are just an accumulation of normal wear and tear in the Walschaerts valve gear and he needs to speak with the owners - the 7F is not going anywhere for a while.
My last job is to clean out the ash pit, and then it is time for a tea break.
Tea over, Fitter Bob finds me another job: cleaning the firebox and smokebox of the 7F. Here's my office for the next hour or so:
The B12 waits for it's next service, on the adjacent road:
First off, we'll have a quick look in the firebox to see what awaits:
No surprises there, the remains of last night's fire. Let's close up and go and clear out the smokebox first. Fowler designed LMS locomotives like this have these toggles closing the smokebox door, unlike the usual dart found on most other locomotives. You undo them with a spanner usually found in one of the tender lockers and turn them out of the way:
Here's the sight that greets us. The inverted V in the middle bottom is the two exhaust pipes coming up from the cylinders; this combines to form the blast pipe, which is directed up the chimney; the mesh cage around the blast pipe is a spark arrestor, designed to stop hot ash going out of the chimney and causing lineside fires:
Under the spark arrestor is the blower - which is used to induce a draught through the boiler tubes when the engine is stationary or going through a tunnel. The two large pipes either side are the steam pipes leading from the superheater to the cylinders; you can see the smokebox tubeplate and the superheater elements in the background.
 |
| Fire in the cutting at Kelling Heath |
A broom and a shovel make short work of the ash.
When you are cleaning the smokebox, you put a barrow in front of the loco - you can drop the ash into the barrow from above. If you are careful, it won't go everywhere:
Next, we close up the smokebox and dispose of the ash and the barrow, and turn our attention to the firebox. This a 'between the frames' box and as such is narrow, but very long. We use the rake to draw the ash from the front of the grate into the middle; this rake is about 8 feet long and made of 3/4" round bar - it's pretty heavy outside the box and trying to manipulate the far end from outside is hard work.
The 7F has a drop grate - operated by this lever. The drop grate allows you to dump the ash directly into the ash pan by lowering a section of the grate. You pull the lever back to release pressure on the safety catch, kick the catch away with your boot and lower the grate.
Next step is to pull out the baffle plate and the lower protection plate in the firehole and get stuck in. You can't see the back of the grate without getting inside, which is dusty, hot and dark. You can see the dust in this shot and you can also see the hole - this is the drop grate.
Here's a footplate view of the tender:
I'm not yet sure what those valves are.
Next, the 11:35 train is due in from Holt - I wait on the platform for it anxiously, since I have now been on duty for almost six hours and I am starving. This DMU is not it - it is waiting to go to Holt, and it's waiting for the Y14 just like me.
A few minutes later, the train arrives; the crew exchange tokens with the signalman and I follow the train as it draws to a halt at the end of the platform.
Here's what I'm waiting for - a bacon & egg roll that has been sitting keeping hot on the loco warming plate.
Superb. Roll on next time, when I am a rostered cleaner. I've now completed my first 'shadowed' turns and am considered fit to be out on my own and will be looking after cleaners with less experience!
Who knows what peril that will bring...
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