pheaton

They are indeed the same as a 33, i will measure for you this weekend

23 hours ago, readingtype said:

These photos are not only really interesting to illustrate the steps involved but also very handy if you happen to want to see some good close up details for modelling purposes. On that note, I wondered if you know the dimensions of the main front window screen glass - all four sides being seemingly different lengths, I guess the two diagonal dimensions would actually provide the answer (if the two bottom corners are 90 degrees).

I can certainly measure the screen for you, but just to confirm (because class 26s had two types of screen) is it the post 1975 screen you want or the as built screen? because they will be radically different.

On 25/12/2023 at 10:01, 37114 said:

Top job, it is looking very much like a class 26 again, wishing you a merry Xmas! 

 

Just one question, how will you manage to make the join water tight between the fibreglass dome and the new steal work, is there a particular sealant you use so it is flexible?

We use an oil based non setting mastic the non setting is key as it means that as things expand and contract it will still seal, being oil based it repels water as well.

1 hour ago, 37114 said:

That is some work! 

 

One question if I may, how do you get the windscreen surround the right shape/size/location, is it a case of offering up the window glass every so often to mark around it or do you have a specific template you use please?

 

I am confused by 1 thing, if the dome is not the one fitted to 26043 when it was in Dutch livery as per the photo which shows it when it was withdrawn, is the dome a preservation era fitment? I used to visit the GWSR a lot when 26043 was being first restored and can never recall seeing the roof dome off it but maybe I missed that.

 

So normally you would rely on the window frame for the exact shape, but 26s dont have the frame anymore, so it would be a case of knowingly building an opening that is too small for the window and then using the glass as a template...but allowing for the panel gap (the gap taken up by the glass and the seal). The problem here comes though in that you cant do this until you know what size you are using, which means you need to adjust the opening for the window to suit, and this because certain sizes are now special order, which mean you need to buy 30m of window seal when you only need 2 or 3m and this has a much inflated cost.

The actual positioning we would use No2 as a guide or look at another loco as in our case we have had to cut away the whole section.

i knew from my early days of working on 45149 (i only took over 26043 after it blew two traction motors after 10 years ago) that 043 had its dome swapped from a class 33, but i assumed it was the whole dome not just the secondmans side. The reason for this is at some point an impact had seriously damaged the roof dome and it had been patched up, and it was seen as a better prospect to replace the damaged portion, however its a difficult thing to measure accurately even in the best of conditions and as im sure you know life at toddington was extremely basic in the early days.

6 hours ago, 37114 said:

Thanks Pheaton, I follow the blog as a regular visitor to the GWSR diesel galas, really looking forward to seeing 26043 back on the run. I have been fascinated by the amount of collision damage you have had to repair.  Also was interested to see the power unit work, I have rebuilt a few engines but nothing on the scale you are working on.

 

I would be interested in learning more about the electrical side of things, particularly how things like field diverts work and how you maintain the electrical elements on such an old machine?

Field Diverts it is then 37114 keep an eye out for the next blog

all of you seem to be regular readers :)

im keen to not rabbit on about bodywork as it gets a bit repetitive for the readers, so I'm more than up to writing blogs about any particular aspect of 26s....anywhere on the loco just put a request or  question in. mechanical or electrical questions which are 99% applicable to every other loco.

@bcnPete @Halvarras @26power @figworthy @Rich Papper @young37215@Gordon A @chris p bacon@Robert Shrives

@JDW@50A55B@stewartingram@41516@Western Star @Mikkel @Tim C@Northroader@37114@Michael Hodgson @figworthy

@Covkid

27s had a large enough internal reservoir for dual braking as well as the tanks in the roof. 26s don't have the larger internal reservoir as built they only had the 6 small tanks in the roof, this was deemed to be unsuitable for air braked freight working so the additional tanks were added in the place of the boiler water tank.

The additional tanks would have exceeded the design capacity of a single D+M exhauster so a second was added in the boiler room (there was nowhere else it could have gone in the locomotive its likely it was put in there for weight reasons    also.

The fitting of an additional compressor presented other problems as well in that the 26s auxiliary gen was never designed to run 2 compressors (which draw considerably more current than an exhauster) as a result to prevent overload and problems with the AVR a delay relay was added so that the boiler room compressor doesn't start until about 15 seconds after the engine room one has (on air only of course) as a result also 26s do not have a compressor change over switch, which means if your in vacuum and the engine room compressor fails....you need to be recovered as the loco cant switch over to the other compressor like conventional locomotives do.

the 27 has a westinghouse compressor (as far as i know) and i think but i might be wrong it only has 1 but they are significantly larger. so could handle larger reservoirs.

Those are still on the loco Mike not yet removed the doors being loaded into the van are the ones 043 were delivered with 👍

23 minutes ago, rodent279 said:

Can't beat a bit of Hylomar! How resistant to heat is Belzona?

up to 150 degrees C under immersion

1 hour ago, Enterprisingwestern said:

 

Fabulous work and very interesting snippets of information.

Still say it looks nothing like 26043 though;

 

https://www.rail-online.co.uk/p64391015/hdcfa198f#h5740ee41

 

Reckon you've been sold a dud!

 

Mike.

Your not wrong mike....

26043 wasn't the one we wanted, we were after 26036, which was mechanically in better condition, and had slightly better tyres but more importantly was simply switched off, and from what I remember of the TOPS had a very very recent D exam...however after viewing it we were led to believe that Pete Waterman (remember him  ) was going to bid on it, being aware we didnt have the financial muscle that Pete had we didnt bother bidding....and bid for 043 instead for which we were successful....(it just needed to go through the MC metals quality assurance process  ) however mr waterman didnt bother bidding on 036 in the end.......and it went for scrap!

Believe it or not.....

FOX Transfers!

12 minutes ago, readingtype said:

Ignorant question, apologies, but has anyone in preservation contemplated re-engining a loco such as a class 26 with something else? Did the Sulzer model used in the type 2s develop further after the 1950s?

The sulzer 6lda and 12lda was built under license by electroputere in Romania until 1993, there are  quite a few sulzer 6ldas and 12ldas running around on the continent.

Sulzer engines didn't seem to follow the pedigree of say English Electric engines...so for example the class 20 8 CSVT can be traced all the way to the Ruston 16rk3ct fitted to a class 56....its an evolutionary development.

The 6lda series wasn't really developed beyond what you see made by Electroputere, and other than the fuel pumps and governor there isn't a lot of difference, and this primarily because the sulzer engines were marine engine based, and it worked well for the application, so to my knowledge wasn't developed further in that form. The English Electric engine however had a lot of work in standby generator applications,  so evolved to be gas powered for example. But also in the case of the class 56 had its heads modified to cope with the higher power outputs, advances in pistons were also made as well.

Re-engining no, TBH the heart of a type to is the sulzer engine...without it, it would be soulless. It would also be a major challenge mating the CP generator to such an engine, and maintaining the control of that generator....some which ill touch on in the next blog.

20 hours ago, Covkid said:

Many thanks indeed for sharing this blog and the fascinating yet time consuming work you do to bring us pleasure.

I always thought the LDA series engines had interchangeable components and those pistons prove it admirably.

Some components are interchangeable but not all