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2022-2023 Overhaul – Latest news
Slough Estates No.3's boiler ticket expired in April 2021 and after nearly a year's wait for workshop space, dismantling started apace in March 2022.
Slough & Windsor Railway Society usually receive a monthly update from the Middleton Railway with the latest progress, and 2023 will hopefully see these become a regular feature of this page.
Further information: No.3 Potted History – No.3 News Archive.
1st January 2023
Update on progress with 1544 during December, reported by Steve Roberts, Middleton Railway:
View from the front with the bufferbeam and pistons removed
18 December 2022 – [Middleton Railway]
The front bufferbeam has been removed. To do this first required removal of the buffers and it was pleasing to note that both the buffer springs were intact as they are frequently broken on Hudswell buffers.
Removal of the bufferbeam enabled the pistons to be withdrawn for examination. There is slight wear to the cylinders but not sufficient to warrant having them machined. With the mileage the loco is likely to accumulate that should be many years in the future. The piston rings, however, do warrant replacement and we will get an ingot of cast iron to make some new ones. The piston rods have about 0.040" of wear over their length so will be trued up in the lathe. The gland followers and neck ring will be bushed to suit the new diameter.
View forwards from the cab, looking at the gaping hole for the firebox
04 November 2022 – [Middleton Railway]
Removal of the buffer beam has also allowed access to the badly cracked frame stretcher and a start has been made on removing this. It is almost certain that this will require replacement. All the bolts at the front have been free'd off and are ready to remove. Hopefully, the rear ones will similarly give up any resistance but have not yet been tried. Work is currently ongoing to drill out the very badly corroded fastenings along the top flange. These are beyond any attempt to get them out by any other means and there is reluctance to apply significant amount of heat to the castings.
The fabricated angle iron assembly that attaches the smokebox front to the frame stretcher was very badly corroded and a new one has been fabricated.
The horn guides have all been measured up to check for wear and work is ongoing to true them up and make them reasonably parallel. So far four of the six sets of guides have had attention from the grinder and are now considered to be satisfactory. Once the remaining two are done the cross bars can be set up on the axle centrelines to take accurate measurements of the horn guides relative to these and to work out what shimming will be required for the axleboxes.
The day of the boiler lift: transferred by a mobile crane to a waiting cradle in the yard.
28 September 2022 – [Middleton Railway]
The various bits of brake linkage previously removed have now nearly all been painted up to black gloss. A start has been made on needle-gunning of the frames to remove paint and corrosion but there's an awful lot still to do.
2022...
Further details to follow, as time permits...!
7th March 2022
The latest overhaul of No.3 has finally commenced, with the first stage of dismantling underway.
It has been found that the cab roof is in a poor state, almost rusted through beneath the transverse strengthening angle and the decision has already been made to replace the whole roof.
A crack has been found in the frame stretcher located forward of the valve chest. The stretcher may have to be removed and dispatched for specialist attention. This is not a "show-stopper" but certainly needs attention. Other nasties may come to light of course as dismantling continues.
No.3 in the yard after removal of the saddle tank and cab.
20 April 2022 – [Middleton Railway]
Dismantling commences: the saddle tank is lifted off by the rail-mounted crane.
20 April 2022 – [Middleton Railway]
Slough Estates No.3 – A Potted History
Slough Estates No.3 was the first all-new locomotive to be bought for use on the Slough Trading Estate railway. Built in 1924, it remained in service until 1973, when the estate railway closed. The two surviving locomotives were moved to preserved railways: No.3 to the Mid Hants Railway; and near-identical sister locomotive No.5 to the Embsay Steam Railway in Yorkshire. No.5 was restored to working order and used for many years, but is currently out-of-use, awaiting a major overhaul. No.3 had a more turbulent time...
At the Mid Hants Railway, after a couple of years, No.3 was dismantled for restoration, but found herself at the back of the queue for rebuilding. [...time passed...] The SWRS were granted custodianship of No.3 and rescued her remains, moving the frames and components to Slough, while the boiler was sent to Billingshurst for major work. Another ten years passed as SWRS members steadily progressed the locomotive's restoration. An enforced move to the Swindon & Cricklade Railway in Wiltshire, and, for the first time, a covered workshop, saw the restoration completed and No.3 returned to steam in 2000.
No.3 was then the main operating steam locomotive at the Swindon & Cricklade Railway (S&CR) until taken out of service in January 2009, following problems found at her annual boiler inspection. Over the summer No.3 was given her ten-yearly overhaul at Statfold Barn near Tamworth and returned to steam in December 2009 hauling the S&CR's Santa Special services.
In November 2011 No.3 was relocated to the Middleton Railway in Leeds on long-term loan. This line is close to the site of the Railway Foundry where No.3 was built in 1924. No.3 also closely resembles the last steam loco to work over the railway in NCB days in 1958. It is thus appropriate that No.3 should have 'returned home' to Leeds.
Since moving north, No.3 has again become a favourite with loco crews, and until the end of 2020 was to be seen regularly hauling passenger trains on steaming weekends at the Middleton Railway.
On 17th April, 2021, No.3 was steamed for the last time before her boiler ticket ran out. The opportunity was taken to use her for crew training runs hauling a freight train, and some very fine video footage was recorded. After this, No.3 was drained and cleaned, and put on display in the Engine House to await her turn for overhaul in the workshops.
Slough Estates No.3 – News Archive
17th April 2021
No.3 was steamed for the last time on 17th April 2021, prior to the end of her boiler 'ticket'.
Following the last day in steam, the boiler was drained and washed out and the firebox and smokebox thoroughly cleaned. The motion was oiled up and the coal bunker emptied, along with other necessary work to minimise deterioration in storage. No.3 has now taken up residence in the Engine House museum until workshop space is available to commence her overhaul.
2010–2022
Details to follow...! (This may take some time!)
24th November 2009
No.3 returned to Blunsdon on the Swindon & Cricklade Railway.
11th November 2009
The locomotive overhaul is complete and the painting and lining out are finished. All being well No.3 will be steamed on Saturday 14th for an official handover, returning to Swindon on Monday.
27th October 2009
No 3 at Statfold Barn, restoration nearly complete
No.3 moved under its own steam today although only for a short distance. There are one or two small faults found, one being that the safety valves were not lifting as they should but this is not regarded as a problem and can easily be rectified. The new lubricators have been fitted are now working properly. There is still a small problem with a small steam leak from the regulator, again, can be repaired. There is also a small steam leak from the old clack valve.
The painters have been booked to start painting on the 3rd November and this will take around four days. Certain Society members will then go and inspect the locomotive before its return to Swindon.
25th October 2009
Having passed the hydraulic test (in August), the next hurdle for the boiler to overcome was a steam test, out of the frames. This test was passed by the boiler inspector, some weeks ago, so it was possible to re-assemble the locomotive. No.3 was steamed with the boiler in the frames on 16th October, and after some adjustments to the regulator all appears to be well. The painter was also on site to see the loco prior to lining out. As can be seen from the photos, No.3 has already been received several coats of paint.
The estimated arrival back at Swindon is mid November but this may yet slip as the date has been put back twice already. Hopefully No.3's return home will not be delayed further as she will be needed for hauling the S&CR Santa Special trains.
John Appleton - Posted 25/10/09
September 2009
_(resized).jpg "No.3 on a low-loader, leaving Blunsdon bound for Statfold Barn, Tamworth. (Morning of Thursday 23 April 2009)")
No.3 leaving Blunsdon
for Statfold Barn
Boiler: With the boiler lifted from the frames, and the front tubeplate and tubes removed, a thorough inspection was carried out and in general all was found to be in excellent condition. The palm stays which were thought missing were in fact present, but had not been connected to the firebox. This has now been done, along with the fabrication of a new washout housing. The regulator has been completely dismantled and overhauled, and this will hopefully cure the problem of the rather stiff regulator lever. All parts have been re-assembled, and the boiler passed its hydraulic test out of the frames in late August.
Chassis: Inspection of the springs have revealed that several leaves were broken and they will be rebuilt using parts from the spare sent with the engine. The broken spring hanger has been removed and a new one made and fitted. Whilst cleaning the cylinder block, a hole was discovered on top -- below where the smokebox fits -- and as this is on the low-pressure side it has been plugged and a plate welded onto the casting. The slide bars have been re-aligned and all other moving parts will be examined and repaired or adjusted where necessary. The frames have been steam-cleaned and the first layers of undercoat applied.
John Appleton - Posted 23/10/09
23rd April 2009
No.3 left Blunsdon bound for Statfold Barn, Tamworth, today, on a low loader (see picture).
8th March 2009
Inspection of No.3
(Hayes Knoll, 08 Mar 09)
No.3 was visited today at Swindon by Graham Lee from Statfold Barn and he was quite impressed with our loco. The engine was pulled out over the inspection pit and he had a very detailed examination both inside the cab, outside and underneath. He is able to take take the loco right away subject to our agreeing a price obviously and this we wait for.
4th March 2009
Slough Estates No.3:
Our locomotive, a 1924-built Hudswell-Clarke 0-6-0ST, was made ready for its annual boiler inspection by Allianz, who visited Blunsdon on 28th January. Unfortunately the locomotive was declared a failure due to the boiler tubes being pitted and wasted around the smokebox and firebox ends. One option open to us was simply to re-tube and return it to service, but with only another nine months left on its boiler certificate it was agreed that this was a false economy and we have decided to take the locomotive out of service early for a complete overhaul.
Slough Estates Ltd No.3 at
Swindon & Cricklade Railway
Several possible locations to do this work have been approached. The current preference appears to be with Mr G Lee at Statfold Barn in Staffordshire who can turn the work around in a reasonable space of time and return the loco to revenue-earning service. A preliminary inspection of the engine took place on Saturday 7th March when Graham Lee visited the Swindon & Cricklade Railway. No.3 was pulled out over the inspection pit and Mr Lee took a very detailed examination both inside the cab, outside and underneath. He can accept the loco immediately, subject to a price being agreed, after which we can prepare the loco for its move and this we hope will be done on the same low-loader which is due at Swindon with Manchester Ship Canal No.70 from the Avon Valley Railway.
The missing clack valve has now been cast and machined, and is back with the Society - along with the new steam fountain casting - and these will be added to the locomotive during its overhaul. The work to be carried out will be quite expensive and any donations towards this will be gratefully accepted by the Society.
The 7.25" ("narrow gauge") railway has now been sold and the money raised will be used towards the overhaul of No.3. The railway was sold to a scrap metal merchant (!) who luckily will not scrap it but he is due to retire in the next year or two and it will be going to his home in France.
John Appleton - Posted 06/03/09 (amended 20/03/09)
Website: A completely new SWRS website is in preparation (by a proper web designer!), and will hopefully come on-line in the near future. In the mean-time, the existing pages will be undergoing occasional changes to include new information, styling, etc.
Peter Jewell - Posted 06/03/09
February 2009
Website: The SWRS website is now in the hands of a new 'webmaster', and is gradually going through a metamorphosis (that means 'change' :o) ) into something more up-to-date. Please bear with us as he gets to grips with XML, FTP, and other TLAs...
If you have suggestions for new features for the website, please contact the Webmaster at info@swrs.co.uk.
Peter Jewell - Posted 08/02/09
NEWS ARCHIVE:
July 2007
First of all may I apologise for a lack of updates recently. Time restraints and then my computer crashing prevented me from doing a lot with the website recently. However quite a lot has been going on recently. Triangle magazine issue no. 73 is now out with all the usual news and features and this is the first issue of the new editor, Ian White. If you are not a member, this can be purchased for £1 on a Friday night.
Our Engine, Slough Estates No. 3 has been out of service recently while the clack valve was taken off for a pattern to be made. This was for Slough Estates No. 5 which the clack valve on our engine is from, but No. 5's owners wanted it back. Our engine is now however back in service.
Posted 07/07/07
