Cappy
Would be Luthier
- Messages
- 334
Hi
My current project at the railway is the fabrication of a new chimney base for our loco No.14.
Built in Leeds by Hunslet the 2-6-2 Side Tank was built for the Sierra Leone Railway back in 1954. When the railway closed in 1974, SLR No.85 was repatriated by the Welshpool and Llanfair Light Railway and renumbered No.14. It has never been named and still carries the SLR plates and still referred to as SLR85 by many of the crews.
Over the years the chimney base has been rebuilt (doubled over on the inside) a couple of times but the hostile environment of soot and damp corrodes the material quite quickly and it is now paper thin in places. The material looks to be about 4 mm (probably 3/16” in old money) but we have decided to go for something a bit thicker this time, like 8mm. So far we have had two rings made, one the base diameter of the chimney barrel, and a second one the diameter of the chimney base, which is also curved to fit onto the smoke box top.
The plan is to locate the two rings in their correct juxtaposition and form the compound curves between the two rings using strip material, as we do not have the skill or facilities for heating and manipulating 8mm plate to form such complex shapes.
The photos show the jig that locates the two rings and one of the first strips in place. When all the parallel strips have been put in (where the arrows are) the idea is then to infill with tapered strips. After welding is completed then it’s a bit of an angle grinder job.
Thanks for looking (if you have )Watch this space
My current project at the railway is the fabrication of a new chimney base for our loco No.14.
Built in Leeds by Hunslet the 2-6-2 Side Tank was built for the Sierra Leone Railway back in 1954. When the railway closed in 1974, SLR No.85 was repatriated by the Welshpool and Llanfair Light Railway and renumbered No.14. It has never been named and still carries the SLR plates and still referred to as SLR85 by many of the crews.
Over the years the chimney base has been rebuilt (doubled over on the inside) a couple of times but the hostile environment of soot and damp corrodes the material quite quickly and it is now paper thin in places. The material looks to be about 4 mm (probably 3/16” in old money) but we have decided to go for something a bit thicker this time, like 8mm. So far we have had two rings made, one the base diameter of the chimney barrel, and a second one the diameter of the chimney base, which is also curved to fit onto the smoke box top.
The plan is to locate the two rings in their correct juxtaposition and form the compound curves between the two rings using strip material, as we do not have the skill or facilities for heating and manipulating 8mm plate to form such complex shapes.
The photos show the jig that locates the two rings and one of the first strips in place. When all the parallel strips have been put in (where the arrows are) the idea is then to infill with tapered strips. After welding is completed then it’s a bit of an angle grinder job.
Thanks for looking (if you have )Watch this space