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Keeping 26043 Alive BCRW "Birmingham Corrosion Rust and Wastage"


pheaton

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Lockdown couldn't come at a worse time....26043s engine was in a stripped down state, and as a result the crankshaft (whilst protected) was exposed to air (due to the absence of the pistons) whilst protected I would have much preferred to have been able to go up to be able to keep the engine fully protected but national rules meant this had to be kept to a minimum, 26043 was also out in the yard at the time, and the engine had to be carefully sheeted over.

 

During lockdown I took the decision to replace 4 of the liners with brand new ones, this was a difficult decision costing over £3k, I took the decision because based on advice from others the liners were really too far gone to continue using them, and when I learnt another group had commissioned a Spanish company to cast liners according to the original Sulzer drawings I tagged along which had the benefit of increasing the order...and reducing the cost. Those liners arrived in the UK on Monday at which point the engine rebuild will continue at pace...

 

In the meantime however 26043 us starting to look very tired in the paint department, the paint Is past its best, and several areas of the bodywork wanted attention, so while we were waiting for engine parts, the decision was taken to resolve these issues with a view to a repaint in the current livery, correcting several mistakes such as the incorrect font on the numbers....

 

This is when skeletons in the closet are found.....

 

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Exploratory cuts are made into a problem area (boiler compartment B side) the reason for cutting here was there were 3 scars (well rust blisters) which were the cause for the investigations....the amount filler present indicates all isn't what it seems...

 

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At this point it was found that severe water ingress under the floor has started to rot the locomotive out from the inside with the trough below the skin water to around 20% of its original thickness

 

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Another view

 

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a close up showing the extent of the corrosion, in the void between the trough and the outer skin

 

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Cutting away the trough upright reveals galloping rust. What you are seeing there is the cable troughs (which are 1mm mild steel) going full circle in the circle of life and turning back to iron oxide....

 

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Cutting further up...reveals another skeleton...historic accident damage with part of the bodyside framing badly bent by an historic side-swipe the outer trough has now been cut away for replacement and the detritus vacuumed out. The yellow cloth is an oilskin covering for the wiring loom which also carries high voltage traction motor cables.

 

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A close up showing the extent of the impact...the frame is of I beam construction of 4mm thick steel, its not trivial....

 

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a new I beam fabricated and welded in place to replace the distorted section, the pipe in the foreground is the cause of the corrosion....

 

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two views of the cable trough adjacent to the area recieving attention, normally this would be covered by the engine room floor but this has been removed for inspection...and rectification. Note the hole in the top view.....its deliberate....have you ever wondered why 26s and 27s have an opening bodyside window....its because you could put a steam water crane through window to fill the water tanks the squares on the body side steel was where the water pipework bolted too....this is a the reason for the sheer amount of corrosion in this area....the pipework leaked under the floor and the water was trapped.. this wasn't corrected or addressed during the class 26s last HG repair in the mid 80s...and as result the rot just sat there quietly eating the locomotive away from the inside...

 

HOLY JENOLITE BATMAN....

 

So why is the corrosion so bad......26s are one of the oldest of the pilot scheme locomotives 26043 is this year 62 years old, however 26s like most type 2s had a design life of 25 years, and as such they were built to a price....IMG-20210506-WA0026.jpg.fabb0abf1edf5eae8155566d4ce7e4c4.jpg

 

26s like all type 2s have cant-rail grills, the purpose of these grills is to allow filtered air into the engine room....such are is then used in the engine, and traction motor blowers....without this the engine would choke on its own oil mist (before anyone asks no 26043 doesn't have a bent chassis its odd feature of my phone camera :) ) anyway....those grills let water in....internally 26043 has a gutter...which takes that water away and out of the locomotive....if your gutter works properly...all is good....water escapes through several drain pipes however what you cant see if the Botton 3 or 4 inches of those pipes....

 

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A pipe with extensive corrosion which has been leaking water into the underfloor void...note the contrast between above and blow the floor....

 

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this has also started to attack body supports further back

 

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tidied steel which is still sound ready for rust proofing and treating

 

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Replacement steel awaiting welding.

 

The structure of the class 26s, like the 33s and 27s have a load bearing under frame....in that you could strip the body away completely with all of the internal components in place and not suffer any issue, so the frame you are seeing being repaired is not load bearing, it simply supports the body skin....contrast with a class 47 which is of stressed skin construction and a slit right down the centre of the body from the cantrail to the floor...would cause the locomotive to collapse in on itself....

 

the rot is pretty much confined to the outer 2 inches of the floor pan the main chassis of the locomotive is as strong as the day it was built...

 

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if we go back to this picture the other cause of the rot is directly below the outside of the cant-rail grills, these grills are of aluminium construction, and as a result cant be welded to the steel body skin, which means they have to revited...with pot rivets, over time these rivets fail causing a crack to appear at the base of the cantrail grills and the internal louvres, this means water can run down inside of the body and collect below the floor...accelerating the rot further and because this hasn't come through the louvers themselves its not caught by the gutter.

 

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a repaired and re-enforced body frame upright IMG-20210505-WA0011.jpg.9241743e11669c4d3e989188ada24c05.jpg

 

Moving further back along the locomotive reveals more accident damage from he same sideswipe this I beam has been twisted almost 90 degrees!!! broken away from its original position allowing water past it and to pool underneath the floor.

 

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another view of the damage note the odd chequer plate welded in to "hide" the damage.

 

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the battery isolating switch with the cover removed revealing damage to the paint behind from flash damage when the BIS is pulled out the BIS will have to be removed so the skin can be repaired behind it.

 

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new steel welded in and primedthumbnail_20210505_144805.jpg.323501606bb0d7d979856c78a057b3d6.jpg

 

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A side (which is in substantially better condition) being rubbed down ready for repainting...

 

so we can see accident damage...and design flaws...have a big impact on how a locomotive fares throughout its life...

 

12 weeks and counting...until completion....

 

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Edited by pheaton

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8 Comments


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Holy Jenolite indeed!  Good luck with repairs and thanks for the detailed posting.

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Congratulations on your commitment and workmanship.

Having seen classic cars like that, it seems a case for jack up the buffers and replace everything between!

 

Mike.

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Good grief Simon what a mess you must have been wondering what was coming next! If it’s any consolation I think the Derby/Darlington type 2s are just as bad if not worse, a number seem to be shunted in to a quiet siding and left to die so more power to your excellent work in keeping this super little loco alive. Can’t wait to hear that heathy Sulzer 6 cylinder splutter again... 

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Fantastic work and a comprehensive report on what is being done. Given the propensity for water to to collect internally and create corosion, is there anyway that additional drainage can be introduced at the various 'hot spots'?   

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Looking at the work you are doing to this loco just illustrates the input the all gets covered up when the loco is up and running. I have followed what you have achieved with this 'end of life' locomotive right back from when you first acquired it and I was part of a team that came over one very cold freezing day to take some measurements for the Heljan models. There were quite a few holes in it back then but you have had it up and running and at least it has covered accommodation, which is very important in keeping the elements and water out of the places where it can't drain away, but even then condensation can wreak havoc with any metals that aren't adequately protected.

In a similar but slightly smaller vein I am currently trying to curtail the similar 'galloping metal gangrene' on a more recently, but still 38 year old, Leyland Olympian bus which I thought was a good idea from being scrapped. Unfortunately not being able to fully inspect it before purchase has led to a lot of unplanned expenditure in the metal department which my dear wife constantly reminds me about!............as they do!! The next job is to replace the front offside chassis perimeter frame which has just fallen apart due to bad initial design and inadequate maintenance in that area over its life. I suppose like D5343 then this bus was only designed to last the same period of time so it is all our fault for trying to save them. Uphill all the way I'm afraid and there are many days where I have felt like walking away...................but after a few beers the 'challenge spirit' takes over and the problem is no longer a problem but just another expense!

Well done all of you at Toddington and in the preservation movement as a whole......it keeps us off the streets! 

239 OSF perimeter frame August 2020.jpg

239 OSF perimeter frame with stress panel rmoved August 2020.jpg

239 NSRF outrigger before removal 6-2018.jpg

239 NSRF outrigger removed for rebuilding 6-2018.jpg

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@Phaeton correcting several mistakes such as the incorrect font on the numbers....

 

So... what transfers do the full-size loco painters use?

 

A really interesting report, thanks!

 

Ben

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14 minutes ago, pheaton said:

Believe it or not.....

 

 

FOX Transfers!

Life imitating art? That's brilliant. Need a large washing up bowl to float them off the backing I guess.

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