P&O was on display on the Toddington unloading road during the 2007 Cotswold Festival of Steam. Thanks to Darin Fryatt for the picture.  

Hard work by our contractor has seen the final fitting up of the last of the big sheets of the boiler cladding.  In addition, the cover over the dome was positioned and work was completed on the boiler bands and their tensioners, and the whole assembly was put in place. The loco looked very smart indeed and is clearly recognisable as a rebuilt Bulleid Merchant Navy. The undersides of all the cladding have been painted up to and including a final gloss coat, which will keep any corrosion from the inside to a minimum.  The outside surfaces are still in grey primer, as the final finish of the loco will be judged by the quality of the paintwork on the boiler cladding.

With the boiler raised for completion of the cladding, we took the opportunity to have a final fettling and tidying of all the large copper pipe work between the frames.  These pipes supply steam to accessories such as the steam brake, sanders and drain cocks, etc. There's just one small lubrication pipe run remaining to be completed between the frames. Machining of the new belly plate is complete and it is ready to be fitted up to the underside of the boiler.

However, in early January we had to urgently prepare the loco for moving out of the David Page shed, because of the major civil engineering works being undertaken in Toddington Yard, and changes in the use of the four roads within the shed.  The first priority was to get the boiler back down on to the chassis; lowering the boiler was hard work but relatively straightforward.  The main difficulty was to try keeping the boiler aligned with the chassis during the descent, and much jacking and adjustment was needed before the boiler landed on the correct spot.  Once the boiler was down, the cab could be slid back into position.

Before the loco could be moved we had to oil up all the moving parts.  The loco hadn't moved for three years since the cab was re-fitted, so all the bearing surfaces were very dry.  Lubrication was a lengthy process, but once the wheels had made one full revolution the chassis glided along smoothly, indicating that all was still well with the axle bearings.

Anticipating a possible eventual loss of our covered accommodation, some time ago we purchased a set of custom-made tarpaulin covers for the loco, and these have been brought out of store for use in keeping the worst of the Cotswold rain out of the vulnerable parts.

Since the loco was moved, the late winter weather has severely curtailed any work on the chassis, but inside the workshop we have a volunteer 'trainee' who has taken on the painstaking task of preparing the mating surfaces on the steam manifold in the cab.  This is a job we've put off for some time, so we are grateful for the work being done. There are nine surfaces on the manifold, each of which requires to be made perfectly flat to effect a steam-tight joint with the fitting that goes there.  Using gaskets here would be very risky, since if one blew the cab would be instantly filled with scalding steam at full boiler pressure, with potentially disastrous consequences for anyone on the footplate. By the time he's laboriously completed all nine surfaces on the manifold and their corresponding fittings, our 'trainee' will definitely be an 'expert'!

Work on the tender brake system has continued throughout the winter, and we were very pleased to make contact with a specialist fabricator who can make up the vacuum reservoir cylinders for us.  We had the 'dished' ends made some time ago, and these have since been provided with their pipe fittings. This next part of the job will be undertaken off-site where the cylindrical part of the reservoir will be rolled to shape, seam welded, then have the ends welded in place.  When in service, condensation builds up inside the cylinders, so each will have a drain hole and fitting welded into the bottom.  Finally, the whole assembly will be treated with a process similar to galvanizing to prevent internal corrosion. We are hoping to have all three completed cylinders back in the next few weeks.

Whilst the hurried move at short notice from the David Page shed was a disappointing development, we have had to look at the opportunities that the move presents, and plan our work accordingly.
P&O on display at the Festival of Steam

We have known for a long time that restoration work on the boiler cannot be completed at Toddington, and the loco would have to be moved outside for the boiler to be lifted off the loco for taking off site for fitting of tubes, etc., and undertaking a steam test.  So we have obtained quotations from several companies for carrying out the work to complete the boiler restoration, and we are now negotiating with a boiler engineering company to fit a full set of tubes and complete all the work required to carry out a steam test.  If all goes to plan, the boiler will be taken from Toddington in mid-summer for this work to be carried out, and meanwhile we will then be able to fit the centre ash pan (impossible with the boiler in place), and also hopefully fit the inside connecting rod.

Eventually, later this year a fire should be lit in the boiler for the first time in over forty years. This will not complete the restoration project by any means, and the large hole in our finances created by this work will need filling again.    However, it will certainly be the most significant development in this long-running restoration for many years, and a positive step in the right direction, clearly demonstrating our serious intention to have this splendid locomotive running again.