News, 3 November 2019
This week's work has focussed on the replacement of the cab windows. It is obvious from detailed study of photographs that the cab windows on a Baby Deltic are a slightly different size to a Class 37, they are the same width but shallower. There are no drawings for the windows, vague references are made on the cab and nose drawings to a template but nothing appears to exist. With the starting point taken as a very good square-on photo we have drawn the aperture and printed it to the same scale as an existing Class 37 template, gradually making adjustments and reprinting several times until it looked right. From there a full-scale template was laser cut and held against the loco with changes being made again until the appearance matched the photo.
The new frame couldn't simply be welded into the existing frame because it was too thin in a number of places to allow reasonable welding without distortion. The image below shows the final frame arrangement held in place by multiple clamps into the cut-back original (Class 37) frame ready for welding.
The photos below show the sequence of replacement in full, from tacking in, fully welded and dressed back, centre window welded in and both windows in primer. As I have said before; time taken to do job = 8 hours, design time = 24 hours.
The other piece of work this week was a bit of cardboard-aided design looking at the easiest way to make the skirts round the front of the buffer beam. They're not the same as the Class 37 and they have an annoying return on the bottom edge which continues round the curve. These will be made on site - each one will inevitably be slightly different so a sub-contract out would be a brave move.