A shorter diary update this time, as there are several other posts appearing over the course of the next week or so.

Darlington 4

Below: With the steep platform structure rebuilt, a new floor has been made for the platform area as the work on the bus continues, albeit at a slower pace now.  With the scale of the work becoming apparent as it was uncovered, the rapid rate and all-hands approach has now shifted to a more programmed method, which will take longer but doesn’t tie up all of our resources on one vehicle.  The department priority (after the day to day running), remains Gateshead 10 as this project is now reaching a point where we need to see it completed, and clear the decks for the next project that will follow it.  This is just one of the challenges of having a relatively small team and a vast amount of work to manage!

Gateshead 10

Below: A trial assembly of the new spring hangers and articulated spring pocket links.  As with the rest of this project, where there is some doubt as to the long-term integrity of any components, replacement is generally favoured.  This does challenge conventional museum philosophy around the aim to retain original material and technology, but where we have a vehicle that will be expected to run many tens of thousands of miles in the future, and operate within a rigorous safety environment, we have to be pragmatic.  One example is the spring pocket that is located at the end of the articulated link (the bit above the coil spring).

The trial assembly has revealed that there is some concern about the structural integrity of these castings, which are a casting plus machined steel hybrid.  Rather than risk the potential failure in service, or need to replace following a fault observed on an exam, these items are now being re-designed to be both stronger and more resistant to cracking, as well as being made of a single material (and single piece of steel where this is feasible).  There will be no visible change to the passing observer, and the change will be drawn, assessed and executed per our change management system (part of the Safety Management System), which also ensures a curatorial record of it as well.  But what we should have is one less thing that can provide a future point of failure or prolonged period out of service.

As well as the new hangers (still in shiny steel), the pockets at their base can also be seen.  These are fabricated (and replace cast originals), providing secure location of the leaf spring at each end, within the hanger jaw.  The target still remains to trial fit the bogies as soon as practicable, in order to determine what other work is required to bring the project to completion.

Weardale Motor Service KPT 909

Below: With the partial repaint completed, and the re-upholstered seats back and being fitted, 909 is looking very smart indeed.  It isn’t in service for the first weekend of the Festival of Transport, but a lot of effort is being put into enabling it to make its Beamish debut at the second weekend, and then it will become a regular sight around the museum as it takes its place in the fleet.

Photos by Phil Doran, Paul Jarman and Terry Pinnegar