See http://www.friendsoftherail.com/phpBB2/ ... 26&t=11567 for details of the steam trip on 26 October 2013.
On 14 October, Kevin wrote:As of this afternoon we have moved the steam locos around with the help of a 93 class diesel. 5918 the Garratt was towed out into the sunlight around 1.45 this afternoon, the first time she has moved since early 2012. Followed by 3020 and then the two locos were coupled together and moved back in the shed with 3020 on the outside. Tomorrow pm the boiler man arrives to inspect the water passages and if that's ok we hope to get water later tomorrow and fill the boiler and part of the tender and fire up on Wed. Meantime a cleaning gang arrive tomorrow morning with buckets, cotton waste, brushes, diesel and water to start the filthy job of getting the loco in some sort of semblance of being operational.. Pix to follow..
On 16 October Kevin wrote:A good day yesterday saw four of us start the dirty job of cleaning two years of dust, dirt, oil and grease off the loco. A trip to Nakumatt yielded the important items like a hose pipe, buckets , soft brooms, rags, brillo pads and of course the ubiquitous OMO. Apparently I was told no cleaning gets done with out it !!! However I also bought diesel and that cut with water gives a great finish. The boiler man came and inspected the boiler cold and I cracked a couple of plugs on the firebox and then one lower down to be drenched with a great gout of water, Who said the boiler was empty ??? After all the cleaning we discovered the firebox had been filled with wood by the last team in 2012 so we added 3 lts of diesel to help it and connected the hose to one of the top plugs with instructions to the security guys to switch off when it got up to the mark on the sight glass. So by 6 pm last night the loco was looking like it ought to. A bit more cleaning today should see it gleaming.. . However some one has nicked the sight glass drain pipes so that's got to be sorted this morning.. otherwise there's a lot of steam and hot water on the foot plate. So today once the water is up to the mark and I can find some copper pipe we should throw a match into it and stand back and watch the first signs of smoke lazily roll out the funnel / chimney !! Wood firing is a bit slow but as there is no compressed air this is the only alternative and having wood fired the Garratt twice in times past this should be old hat. The Garratt with its 72 sq ft fire box ate kuni like there was no tomorrow and we had passengers and crew alike gathering sleepers, tree trunks etc.. Bonfire night was never the same after that... Pix are mounting up but using the NBI Club's computer is a pain as there is no facility to USB pix on to the system. However a possibility on the PC at the railway museum.. More tomorrow...