Attention has shifted to the tender bogie where some problems have been experienced. Many parts are not original with some items such as the axle box dust shields shown in the photo actually fabricated from wood. This is believed to have happened when the loco was originally set aside for preservation. Lukas Nel and his team are looking for parts with the original look or will fabricate new ones from the NG10 drawings we have.
The springs on the bogie have been pressure tested and the centre part of the bogie is being assembled. All this work is time consuming but necessary to complete the standard of restoration required.

This weeks steam report from Sandstone 10^th August 2017

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Following on from our last update, the Bloemfontein team are waiting for some parts for the motion and in the meantime have begun to strip the number two tender bogie for assessment and repairs. A complete overhaul is required as expected as many parts are damaged and all are very badly rusted.

Attention has now been given to the cylinder and valve covers as all the studs were rusted solid and could not be unscrewed. They have now been drilled out, retapped and replaced with new studs as our pictures show.

The repairs to the front bogie and bissel bogie are now complete and work has progressed to assembling the front ends starting with the side rods, connecting rods, piston slide bars and cross heads. When the loco was originally stripped many parts were found to be missing and these are now being fabricated to complete the work. Our pictures show some general views of the loco’s front end.

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After receiving the necessary machined fixing bolts the brake shaft and bissel bogie have now been fitted to the frames of NG10 number 61 as our photo gallery from Lukas Nel shows.

Gert Jubileus from our rail division has produced an excellent schematic map of Hoekfontein and its railway infrastructure. Click here to view the PDF.

While spares are awaited to finish the bissel truck attention has shifted to the front bogie of the NG10 in Bloemfontein. Our picture gallery shows Isak vd Berg profiling the wheel flanges which were then mounted in the bogie and trembled to settle them. As they were misaligned and the axleboxes did not have the desired play to correct this, liners were welded to the bogie frame and then machined to the correct size. Remetaled axle boxes were fitted to the wheel journals and the bogie reassembled. As Sandstone has a complete set of original drawings for the NG10 new axle box covers were fabricated and the bogie is now complete and on rail

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The bissel has been reassembled and refitted with its wheels and placed in position under the rear of the NG10 frames for final adjustment and alignment.
Our pictures from Lukas Nel show final machining in progress and the bissel under the frames and the now machined brake shaft ready to be test fitted for alignment.

The two Lawley locomotives (BR7 & NG97) at Sandstone are perhaps the most popular engines with visitors and are the only two operating in the world. Two more exist in Zimbabwe at Centenary Park and the NRZ museum in Bulawayo. Neither is positively identified, particularly the example in the NRZ museum which may be made up of a number of locos that worked in Rhodesia after being set aside by the Beira Railway. The Vale of Rheidol Railway in Wales has now listed two Lawleys in their stock list as Falcon Works number 265 (BR27) and 266 (BR28) built 1897 originally at the Busi Sugar Estate near Beira in Mozambique. These were repatriated to to the UK in 2000 by the Rampton Trust after lying unused for 30 years. These are of the F4 type as is Sandstone’s NG97 (Falcon 263 of 1897) The Rampton Trust being the owners of the Vale of Rheidol Railway. You can check details of the locomotives at http://www.rheidolrailway.co.uk/museum.htm

Our picture by David Benn shows the two Sandstone Lawleys double heading a short mixed train. Dave Richardson’s picture shows the Lawley in the NRZ museum incorrectly marked as 27 which is the Beira Railway number of Vale of Rheidol’s number 265.The locomotive also has the flat running board of the F2 type similar to Sandstone’s BR7 which belies its identity as 27 which is of the F4 type with a stepped running board under the cab.

The bissel components have been returned from machining and the bissel reassembled. Work now continues on the frames and other components. As we have mentioned before this is probably the most difficult restoration done by Sandstone and so our updates tend to be about seemingly small items but which are key to the locomotive’ reconstruction, and yes in reality, given the deterioration of the NG10, the restoration probably will be classified as a reconstruction.

Our pictures show the bissel components and the bissel completed plus the brake shaft which needs further work.

The new bissel castings and brake shaft are being prepared for some major machining work and welding over the next few weeks. Our pictures show the bissel being prepared by Isak vd Berg and a volunteer at work on the brake shaft. Lukas Nel has also retrieved the original boiler plate from number 61 showing its boiler is from 1916 and the last steam test was in October 1958. Renewal was due in November 61 but this was not done. This coincides with our information that the loco was withdrawn in 1961 for preservation but not in working order.

This stalwart loco of the Sandstone fleet had had the boiler unit lifted from the two engine units to allow access to the pony truck wheels which need attention. This will also allow a close inspection of the engine unit pivots and steam pipe fittings while the boiler is split from the units.