Restoration of McLaren Traction engine No. 767 

Update 20th May 2008

The long slog continues... Keith Stevens reports...

This project is still very much keeping us busy amongst the many tasks and different problems which we hit, but all in all things at long last seem to be coming together. This project has also made us much more proficient in riveting, which I am sure you will see from the pictures of the belly tank and tender. I was hoping to get a hydrostatic test on the boiler last week but have had to wait for boiler door jointing, hopefully we will attend to this shortly.

In the last few weeks we have re-tubed the boiler, manufactured and fitted the boiler doors (which was a week's work in itself), manufactured the belly tank, completed the tender, manufactured the ash pan and manufactured and fitted the chimney.

At the moment I am busy re-bushing the front wheels and attending to all the necessary parts for the front axle assembly. I will then be able to attach the front axle and wheels.

The pictures enclosed depict the following :

0805 - Governor valve and spindle assembly



0806 - Riveting up the Tender



0822 - Completed Tender




0823 - Fitting top plate on the Belly Tank



0824 - Cutting bottom plate of the Belly Tank



0826 - Annealing tube ends in sand




0828 - Manufacturing chimney



0829 - Manufacturing boiler hand hold doors & dogs 0830 - Tubes fitted (note slight cutaways on the smoke box front to enable us to get the bottom tubes in)




0831 - Manufacture of ash pan



0832 - Ends and sides of Belly Tank partially riveted



0833 - Chimney fitted