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Loco Workshop Working Group
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This page reports the activities of the Volunteer Loco Workshop Working Group, who assisted the workshop staff in undertaking the overhaul, between April 2006 and October 2007, of the SECR C-class Locomotive No.592.
Starting in November 2007, the group moved on to work on SECR P-class No.178, then SECR P-class 323 'Bluebell' and SR Maunsell Q-class No.541. |
Subsequent projects:
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Formal re-launch of the C-class - 3rd November 2007
The first photo above (from Phil Stoneman) shows the C-class moving out from the loco yard for its re-launch. The second (from Nick Talbot) shows the two SECR 0-6-0s together at Sheffield Park, O1-class No.65 and the slightly larger C-class. The former was being used on the vintage train that day, with the C hauling the LNWR Observation Car as a special to mark the relaunch.
Below we see the team (from Rob Faulkner), and (from Neil Glaskin) Fireman Russ Hubner and Driver Ben Weatheral with 592.
More photos of the event were (until the demise of fotopic.net) available from
- Rob Faulkner,
- Phil Stoneman,
- Nick Talbot,
- Neil Glaskin.
Return to service of SECR C-class No.592 - 8-9 October 2007
The C Class was steamed on Sunday 7th October - lightly at first then up to full working pressure. The new valve cover has been fitted and it appears to be ok. In the evening the engine was run from the yard to the headshunt a couple of times and then from the headshunt to the advance starter and back to the yard.
There were a few minor issues that needed to be dealt with but everything
was then set for the engine to undertake the Monday shunt.
The photo on the right from Ray Wills shows the C-class shunting at Horsted Keynes on Monday 8 October - this was its first day in service.
Having performed that duty without problems, the following day it was used for its first passenger service after overhaul, on the Autumn Tints special (in the rain), as seen in the photo below from John Sandys, showing it running round at Kingscote. More of John's photos of the loco at Kingscote on 9th October are available here.
Update on progress towards re-launch - 4 October 2007
Over Bluebell 125 weekend in August the SECR C-class No.592 was in light steam at Sheffield Park (photo right from Nick Beck). However, it still needed some mechanical work to complete the overhaul.
It was hoped that the loco would undertake the Carriage & Wagon department shunt at Horsted on 4th October - this would have been a good shake down for the loco, but sadly this didn't happen as the valve-setting is still being done. But we expect to see it running soon!
So far as the volunteer Loco Workshop Working Group is concerned, there isn't another loco in similar easy-to-fix condition, but a plan for another loco project is under discussion.
Steam Test - 8 August 2007
The photo on the right shows the loco backed onto a train which happened to be standing in the platform at Sheffield Park - but it has yet to undertake any loaded test runs.
Preparation and Painting - 8 July 2007
It's great
to see, after months of hard work by the workshop staff and the working
party, that the loco is now in the final stages of its overhaul.
However, we are not there just yet and there is plenty still to do!
The volunteer team spent much of Sunday rubbing down the boiler cladding - as ever, the secret of a good paint finish is in the preparation.
The second photo above shows the new cladding around the firebox, and the third photo on the right shows the gleaming paintwork on the tender, which now awaits lettering and lining.
More photos taken on that day from Rob, showing the smokebox door, worksplates, and cab/boiler backhead.
Cab in place - 17 June 2007
Phil Stoneman's photo taken at the end of the day show the progress made by our workshop staff during the week since the last photos, with the cab and cladding in place.
More of Phil's photos are available here.
Boiler now in the frames!
The loco's boiler is now in the frames - it's tempting to write "back in the frames" but then one remembers that this is the "spare" boiler, being fitted to the loco for the first time. Good to know it fits! These photos from Rob Faulkner taken on 10 June 2007, show the boiler, and its newly made smokebox in place, and the lagging and cladding work which was undertake by the volunteer working group on that day.
More photos taken on that day from Rob, showing the lining out on the new front buffer beam, and the cab in the works for repairs.
More photos taken on that day from Rob.
More photos taken on those two days from Rob.
More photos taken that day from Rob.
As of 28th February, Russ Hubner reports the encouraging news that the boiler tubes are going in. It is hoped to have the boiler full of water by the middle of March when we are due a visit from the boiler inspector.
Photos from Rob Faulkner from the working day on 18th February are now available. The axle-boxes were being cleaned up. Since then, the wheels have been sent away for turning.
The following photos from Rob are from the working day on 4th February. The loco is being re-assembled!
Cleaning and painting of the brake gear (second photo) was one of the areas progressed during the day, along with cleaning up of the drag-box.
Further photos taken by Rob Faulkner that day are available here.
Work is progressing on cleaning up the motion, and as seen above, the wheels.
Further photos taken by Rob Faulkner that day are available here.
On 25th November 2006 there was another volunteer working day. 592's frames and tender are now back in the workshop, work continues on the replacement boiler (photo right), and the wheelsets have been removed from the frames. Work is progressing on replacing corroded plate work and overhauling the steps.
Rob Faulkner's photo below shows the frames now minus the wheels.
Further photos taken by Rob Faulkner that day are available here.
On 5th November 2006 some members of the group met up, and amongst other things, cut the boiler tubes to length.
Rob Faulkner's photo on the left shows the overhauled ash pan ready for fitting to the boiler (which is seen next to it, in the works).
Further photos taken by Rob Faulkner are available here.
The working day on 13th August saw the replacement boiler, now in the works, being prepared to receive fittings, the ash pan being cleaned up, and the loco frames being cleaned down.
Further photos are available from David Pratt and Rob Faulkner
Photos: right: Replacement boiler, by Rob Faulkner.
below: Ben pressure washing the frames, and the barrow of rust that Tim has cleaned from the ashpan (behind) by David Pratt.
By the end of July the old boiler had been lifted from the frames, and is seen here (photo by Rob Faulkner) in the works being stripped of re-usable components.
The smokebox and cab have of course been removed, and the frames are now under cover in the old shed, and should be entering the works.
More photos from Rob Faulkner, from 30 July 2006.
On the First working day, 30th April 2006, Phil Stoneman is seen needle-gunning the spare C class boiler. The boiler is on the boiler trolley. The spare boiler is being prepared since the one currently on the loco is life expired.
Some of the group painting the tender top with bitumastic paint. This tender is also the "Spare", fitted to the loco at its last overhaul.
See more photos from the first day of the working group, and also Photos from Rob Faulkner of the second working day, 28 May 2006.
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Text provided by David Pratt, Phil Stoneman and Richard SalmonPhotos © Stephen Lacy, David Pratt, Phil Stoneman, John Sandys, Ray Wills, Nick Talbot, Neil Glaskin and Rob Faulkner.
Last update 13 November 2007 (and 19 December 2011) by Richard Salmon.
Reformatted 17 April 2022
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