Second update on Generator Repairs

In the last update it was reported that Bowers were having problems separating the Alternator Rotor from the main armature shaft. We are pleased to report that this has been successfully accomplished. They obtained advice from someone who used to work in Derby Works. It involved injecting high pressure oil into the joint and then barring back the rotor which resulted in it being successfully separated. There was no damage to the shaft or rotor.

The picture captions should explain how the damaged armature windings are being prised back. Dave Hesketh of Bowers is now looking at whether they can butt braze new end pieces to each of the windings. It will be quite a tricky job, but if successful it will avoid having to extract the entire winding coils, and should save a lot of time and effort. With regards to repairing the field frame, which is much more extensively damaged, it will hopefully be a similar case of cutting out the damage and brazing in new copper strips. Bowers anticipate starting this shortly.

We are obliged to Mike Jacob for supplying the above information and indeed the photographs of the work in progress.

First update on Generator Repairs

The following update is based on notes and photographs kindly supplied by Mike Jacob:-

Bowers have cleaned the field frame and it appears in very good condition (apart from the damage) - it has obviously been rewound at some stage, as the insulation is quite modern - unfortunately not modern enough to use the latest banding technology! The damaged compensating coils all look repairable, despite the mess.

Work has halted temporarily whilst Bowers try to find out how to remove the alternator rotor from the main armature shaft. This is necessary to access the damaged coils in the armature. Mike Jacob found an old drawing from the original eth conversion during which the Alternator was fitted, and Dave Hesketh of Bowers has had a chat with someone from Brush. Apparently the rotor was shrunk on to the armature shaft on three different diameters, two tapered and the inner one parallel but keyed. The rotor will need some special tooling made up to pull it off the armature shaft, including high pressure oil injection. Next update will follow once the alternator rotor has been removed.

NEWSFLASH - 45132 GENERATOR REPAIRS AUTHORISED

Bowers Ltd have been authorised to transfer the Generator to their premises at Heanor in Derbyshire and commence repairs as soon as practical. The transfer occurred Monday / Tuesday, 26th / 27th October 2009.

Bowers have been chosen as our preferred contractor on the basis of their previous track record for Network Rail and Harry Needle and, in particular, their success with Sherwood Forester, which also suffered a main generator failure.

Additional work of a preventative nature has also been requested. Firstly improved armature banding to provide greater protection against coils lifting. Secondly anti condensation heaters are being installed to keep condensation and dampness at bay. These are eminently sensible proposals and it is hoped that they will help to prevent a recurrence of this problem and ensure the long term reliability of our loco.

This is very good news indeed for our loco and the pressure is now on to make her ready to receive the Generator back at a date yet to be confirmed in the New Year. Basically we are now firmly on track with our stated aim of returning 45132 to working order for her 50th birthday in 2011.

45132 On the Move! Plus Latest Engine Room Progress (Photos)

Following the Mid Hants Diesel Gala 45132 was transferred to the headshunt at Alresford to help make room for the Heritage Lottery Project at Ropley. We have settled in nicely at our new location and are quite content with the facilities available to us at Alresford - indeed we are hopeful that progress will improve at our new home.

Whilst the Generator is away for repairs the opportunity has been taken to strip the engine room interior back down to bare metal and repaint it. 3 coats of Hammerite White are being applied to the walls with Blue being used on the floor immediately below where the Generator sits. This has improved the look of the Engine Room considerably and undoubtedly brightens the place up.

Also the badly corroded central roof beam has been undergoing repairs which are mostly complete, with just some final smoothing and painting required. The roof section immediately above the turbocharger location has also been cleaned up and coated with heat resistant aluminium paint.

Photos of this work can be found by clicking on "Images" on the LH side of this page and then selecting "45132 on the Move Plus Latest Engine Room Progress" from the "Most Recent Collections" section on the D22 Gallery Page."

More photographs...

The generator has been dismantled at the Knowlton & Newman works in Southampton, and the fotopic site (left sidebar) shows what they found. I don't really know what I'm looking at, but it ain't pretty...

Big news in the world of 45132: The generator was lifted out on 29th July 2008

The story is told photographically on the fotopic site (click images in the left hand bar). Our thanks to all those who made this possible, particularly to the Bob Allen and Colin Chambers (Mid Hants MD and crane driver).

Well the website has been away for some time now, but now I'm back. Not necessarily with a vengence, but back nonetheless.

Since last time we've made good progress with the rotating electrical machine - the generator is now disconnected from the engine and we're awaiting a date from the railway's crane department to get it out and sent away.

In other news, the air box has been pretty much refurbished, and the silencer is still in need of re-fabrication. Batteries don't look too good either, but that's been known for a long time

No dates will be committed to (publically at least) for the next pressing of the go button, but it certainly seems as though we're nearing the end of the tunnel. Either that, or the light is the headlight of an on-coming train...

A couple of pictures showing the disconnected generator have been added to the fotopic page.

How long since the last update? So, where are we now? Pretty much fully moved into our container. We have to finish connecting the permanent electricity supply, which should be done within the next few weeks.

The usual fundraising continues. This machine is never going to run again unless we have the money to pay for things, and the batteries appear to be write-offs as far as actually starting the loco goes - they'll run the lights & some pumps, but cranking the engine will probably be too much for them.

Work on the interior continues, with the roof hatches receiving a thorough clean and a coat of paint - the idea being to paint it white to improve the lighting situation inside the loco. This will of course last 5 seconds once we're up & running, but there's a long road to walk before we get there...

The generator hasn't been forgotten either. We have been working on the tools required to remove it from the loco, for which we have one vague diagram. So getting those right does unsurprisingly feature a large element of trial & error, and of course foul language.

The nose has unfortunately stagnated now, as we cannot work on the nose standing in the six-foot with trains running up and down on the adjacent line. Some space away from the main line will be required before we can finish the wiring. It should be a relatively quick job once we have that, which makes it doubly frustrating.

Some attention has been given to the bodywork of the loco, as shown in a few pics added to the fotopic page.

We've moved into the container and out of the running shed, to allow the floor in there to be concreted. Fortunately, such comodities as lighting and racking were already in there, which cut down the time it took quite significantly. However, as anyone who's ever moved house will know, this is the kind of task where you discover mountains of stuff which you had forgotten about - this was no different. A major task over the next few weeks will be to sort out the contents which will give us much more space.

We have also been taking advantage of the last few weeks of the season to continue fundraising - a seemingly endless task, and a thoroughly boring one!

In between that, work on the nose has continued, with lots of studding replaced and the lightbox, which was so well restored in the first instance, removed for more attention as sitting under a tarpaulin has done it no good at all.

Recent action on 45132 has been relatively good, despite the distraction from Thomas the Annoying Engine's week long playtime at the Mid Hants Railway. (Though thankfully the piped theme music was not present this time, and to be quite honest when I was 8 the racing between thomas and 08288 ('Diesel') would have been the best thing in the world. D199 will be challenging Thomas to a race, whether he will accept is another matter entirely...). The special tools for shifting the generator around have progressed and even recieved some paint. We have been given clearance to adopt a container, which will ease the storage situation greatly, but first we have to empty it into the neighbouring container. Which is easier said than done.

A few new pictures added to the fotopic site, and a whole string of sightings added to the sightings page this month.

The latest 'state of play' on the generator, as men in suits might call it is as follows:

• Endoscope pictures of the generator damage have been taken, and sent to our prospective repair contractor, Knowlton & Newman.
• Agreement has been reached with the Mid Hants Railway regarding use of the steam crane to lift the generator.
• Production of special tools to disengage the generator from the engine has commenced.
• Almost all electrical connections have been disconnected.

The other parts of the loco have not been neglected:

• The turnbuckles have been disconnected from the generator to allow the engine to be barred over - and it's very free, thankfully!
• The triple pump is run regularly, to ensure the engine remains happy to turn, and the turbo is manually spun to keep that free.
• The nose refurbishment continues, with all internal welding work now completed, and only the awkward jobs of rewiring and sealing the air system remaining outstanding.
• The partial refurbishment of No.1 cab continues, though a lack of storage space means there's twice as much work involved in shifting stuff to allow access to work in the cab!
• Maintainance of the batteries continues to show a gradual decline and it is now deemed highly unlikely that they will even turn the engine over, never mind start it!