56301 should work in multiple with 56091 on tomorrows 6Z60 0951 Willesden DC Rail Sidings to Merehead Quarry .

Realtime Trains | 6Z60 0951 Willesden Dc Rail Sidings to Merehead Quarry (Fhh) | 27/07/2023

Return working is 6Z61 1628 Merehead to Wiilesden.

Detail here :-

Realtime Trains | 6Z61 1628 Merehead Quarry (Fhh) to Willesden Dc Rail Sidings | 27/07/2023

This will be the first time a pair of class 56s have worked out of Merehead for many years.

56301 is booked to run light engine tomorrow 24th July as

0Z56 11:30 Leicester LIP – Chaddesden Sidings arr 12:32

(Realtime Trains | 0Z56 1130 Leicester L.I.P. to Chaddesden Sdgs | 24/07/2023

Work to rewire the wheelslip protection circuits on 56006 has continued over the winter but unfortunately the work cannot now be completed soon enough to allow the full testing and proving of the work and then the essential test runs(s) before the upcoming Diesel Gala. Work will continue but the locomotive not scheduled to appear at the gala.

The wheelslip resistors form part of a quite complex circuit which in essence identifies a slipping wheelset by detecting the different electrical characteristics between a slipping traction motor and a non slipping motor.

The work has involves stripping out the old resistors and wiring- identifying each wire and matching it to the wiring diagram. Then finding a supplier for the correct grade of cable – the resistors get very very hot and the cable has to be rated to 1900v at 190 degrees C. The cable cost was in the region of £150 . The resistors were sourced at a cost of around £1000 from a specialist firm – who needed no other information other than- “can we have a full set of resistors for a BR Class 56 locomotive”.

The correct cable crimps had to be sourced – all to the correct specifications for the application, and these were a very specific railway spec only made by US company TE Connectivity. Understandably these were well researched before purchase as they were quite expensive and not easy to obtain.

The replacement cables were made up to match the existing lengths of cable and then made up into looms to keep the wiring as neat and tidy as the original cabling.

Then when it came to refitting in the close confines of the electrical compartment on 56006 , it became apparent that the job of wiring up the circuits in a main workshop- where the whole electrical cubicle was removed from the locomotive , was much easier than the job we had to complete. The biggest issue was the tools required to crimp the cables which enter the rear of the wheelslip resistor compartment were too big to fit in the small space we had to work in. After several different tools were borrowed and tried we eventually located a compact pistol type tool which could be operated with one hand. This was critical as the crimp had to be held with one hand and the crimp tool operated with the other. There just wasn;t physically enough room for a second person to get their hand into help – so it had to be a one man operation. The tool, which was ex RAF and cost £300,only arrived a week ago but was perfect for the job and the cables were crimped up in a 8 our session yesterday.

The cable looms to the resistors now need to be fitted and the whole job checked against the wiring diagram to ensure the wires have all been replaced exactly as they were. Any errors could result in damage to the locomotive – by damaging other circuits on the loco or worse of all cause a fire , so we make no excuses for not rushing this work.

The cables have all had the identification marks renewed as this will help with fault finding and be a great help if we ever have to replace any resistors in future.

We are sorry the loco will be unavailable and we have kept the ELR Gala team updated as we progressed the work. We are confident the work will result in a more reliable 56006 – and we actually found a number of broken connections when we removed the resistors so part of the circuits may not have been working for several months or years. The fitting of the overall tarpaulin has made the loco very very dry inside and this should also help eliminate many of the damp related faults we’d been seeing.

The small ( too small) team of volunteers are confident that 56006 will be returned to operational status in the next couple of months and it is our intention to have it available for the next gala in the Autumn.

– we do desperately need more volunteers to spread the load and the knowledge , as trying to coordinate work party dates when several key volunteers working shifts is just another restriction to making progress with any repairs on 56006.

Please get n touch if you feel you can help out at Bury

56006-progress.

Pleased to report the tarpaulin fitted over the weekend of the AGM is doing its job as the inside of the locomotive is now bone dry. One unforeseen consequence is the lack of natural light- it wasn’t appreciated how much daylight was filtering into the loco through the cantrail air filter louvres.

Recent work has included the refitting of the floor plate in the radiator compartment. There are still some finishing off jobs to do, including some of the unpainted sections! and replacing the rubber seals around the bulkhead doors.

The turbocharger storm drains ( which allow rainwater entering the exhaust system to drain from the turbocharger) which require frequent cleaning to ensure water can escape and not damage the turbocharger.

Needless to say this B Exam job ticked all the boxes for a typical class 56 maintenance job in that the pipes were difficult to access, were blocked with carbon , the bolts were different between the free end drain and the alternator end drain.

The wheelslip circuitry from the top of the electrical cubicle was laid out and the new resistors checked off as being correct . A number of wires are corroded and some of the terminals on the 17 resistors were broken.

New crimps have been purchased and the correct specification of cable has been identified and will be purchased. It is planned to lay out the existing wiring loom, and then produce an exact copy of the loom using new cable and crimps. Only then will the old resistors be removed one at a time from the old wiring loom and the new replacement attached to the new loom.

56301– the loco went out on a short test run with 56081 on 12th October. The locos ran to Wembley to collect 92006 and take it to Loughborough. Following the test run 56301 requires some remedial works before it can be available for traffic.

General News:-

Following the announcement that 56097 and a range of spare parts were being put up for tender the Group made a bid on a range of spares. We were lucky enough to secure a number of these spares, many of which are unlikely to come available again.

Grids-The Class 56 Story- possible reprint.

Thoughts are being given to a short rerun of the above book. In order to judge demand and possible print run ( larger print run = lower selling price), it would be helpful if anyone wishing to secure a copy could register their interest via the chairAT e-mail address on the contact page.

The C56G AGM took place on Saturday 23rd July at the East Lancashire Railway in Bury.

The meeting was reasonably well attended and two members attended by remote video link.

A group picture appears below. On the Sunday a team of 7 volunteers set to work on 56006 and the main accomplishment was the fitting of a tarpaulin over the full length of the locomotive. Not an easy task and the weather was rather poor as can be seen.

A full report on the proceedings on the day will appear in Gridiron in due course.

AGM attendees pose in front of 56006 shortly after the meeting concluded.

The inset image shows the tarps fitted, and also gives an indication of the weather on the Sunday.