A Tale of Two Terriers by Tim Stanger

Mechanical Division Manager, Tim Stanger, describes the restoration of our two most historic locomotives, which returned to service in 1984 after several years of inactivity
First published in issue 35 of The Tenterden Terrier Winter 1984
Reproduced with permission of present editor Mr P D Shaw.

In common with many members, I believe the Kent and East Sussex Railway is unthinkable without the sight and sound of a working Terrier. That may be romantic nonsense, or nostalgia, and certainly the harsh economic realities of today dictate that more modern and larger locomotives must be in service to haul trains beyond the capacity of the Terriers. The locomotive department needs to produce a balanced fleet to meet the needs of the railway operation and give visitors an interesting variety of motive power.

Neither No.10 “Sutton” nor No.3 “Bodiam” had seen service in the 1980s, until this year. No.10 had been withdrawn from service on 01 January 1980 and No.3 some two years earlier in September 1977 – both requiring a thorough overhaul, including boiler repairs.

Locomotive restoration requires three main ingredients; money (and plenty of it), skilled labour (with a good deal of unskilled labour) and sheer determination.

As far as No.10 was concerned, the decision was made by the Board that the proceeds from the Steam and Country Fair (remember those?) of September 1981 would be utilised for its restoration. Although the whether was somewhat unkind, the attraction of the replica “Rocket” drew the crowds and enabled the boiler work required to be put out to tender.

By the end of 1981, “Sutton” had been stripped down sufficiently for the whole of the boiler and firebox to be thoroughly examined for six contractors to tender for the work envisaged. Incidentally, we have found that the dismantling of both Terriers was no easy task. William Stroudley certainly did not build them with that in mind – but I digress.

Resco (Railways) Ltd. won the contract, and the boiler with fittings was delivered to their Erith works on 01 June 1982, returning to us in sound order on 04 November 1983. Work at Resco’s, under the direction of their then boilersmith Norman Payne, progressed steadily, with a new smokebox being fabricated and removal of the inner copper firebox with a view to a replacement steel firebox being made. In the event, on the advice of Resco’s, the decision was made in January 1983, in conjunction with our Boiler Inspector, to repair and refit the copper box, together with 258 replacement copper stays. While this undoubtedly saved some £1600, it did take time and served to a degree to delay the return of the boiler.

At each stage of the boiler/firebox repair, our Boiler Inspector, Bill Vincent, inspected the work done. New longitudinal stays and four new palm stays were required as a result of these inspections, which unfortunately swallowed up much of the savings made, but as so often is the case, the deeper you dig, the more you find.

Whilst the frames and motion had been steam cleaned and overhauled, it was only on the return of the boiler and it reunification with the frames that restoration could really get under way. On the face of it, this was a “just” job – it just needed re-assembling, plumbing up and painting. I dread to think how many hundreds of hours those “just” jobs took!

From the outset of my involvement in the management of Rolvenden in November 1982, I firmly believed that a project system, with a Leader for each project, would encourage volunteer involvement and build small teams that work well together. Bob Forsythe, as Leader with Lawrence Donaldson and David Brailsford as two very hard-working right-hand men, pulled in many skilled and unskilled volunteers to see this project finished.

We all have an aversion to deadlines, even though they concentrate the mind wonderfully. The return of “Sutton” to steam was set for 28 May 1984. The job was finished on time, in fact, three days early, and on the due day she entered traffic, with the BBC in attendance in appalling weather.

It was in July 1982 that John Liddell and I had a meeting with Ron and Vic Wheele, the owners of No.3 “Bodiam”, to discuss the restoration of their locomotive. Following a boiler inspection by Norman Payne, the Board made funds available for the work to be instigated. In January 1983, Paul Hatcher was made project leader and dismantling began. By May, the motion had been overhauled, cab floor platework replaced and the boiler fittings re-packed and stored. Meanwhile in February, the boiler had been transported to Resco’s where it was shotblasted by contractors and painted by volunteers.

The locomotive had failed in September 1977 due to wastage and leakage from the boiler front tubeplate flange. Paul Hatcher and Adrian Landi carried out some repairs at Resco’s for one week, breaking the back of the work, and a new smokebox was rolled up at the same time.

While the tubes appeared good for another two years or so (unlike No.10’s which had to be scrapped) , platework on the lower portion of the outer firebox just above the foundation ring had to be cut out and certified plate let in and welded up. This was also carried out by Paul and Adrian when the boiler returned to Rolvenden in November, on the same low-loader as No.10’s.

Bearing in mind the considerable winter work involved in the open, it is a very great achievement that the boiler was finished in time for its steam test to take place on 25 May 1984 having passed its hydraulic test some weeks before.

As with No.10, once the boiler had been completed it “just” had to be re-assembled, and again many man-hours were worked to “just put it together”