Afternoon all. Just a short one from today. After a stressful week at work I was shattered this weekend and very nearly decided to stay in and chill out rather than go anywhere. However, after much deliberation I did manage to get myself motivated enough to spend a few hours at Loughborough shed cleaning their version of the Forth bridge: the mighty 9F 2-10-0 No92214. Scrubbing this impressive beast is a seemingly never ending task but, as with all engines, she always looks better for it afterwards! As it was the GCR diesel gala this weekend, no steamers were running on the Saturday and Sunday. The Bank Holiday Monday however was advertised as a mixed traffic day and so 92214, 46521 and 73156 were rostered to join in the fun. All three engines were being prepared today and had their respective warming fires put in. Myself and fellow cleaner Dave set to work with the big 9F, which was quite grubby it had to be said. Over the next few hours we white spirited her boiler casing and smokebox before giving her a full body polish. Our efforts on the driver's side were quite rewarding...
As the hours wore on the engine became cleaner and our pile of soiled cloths gradually grew. 92214's warming fire was crackling away nicely as she began to slowly warm through, sending a plume of smoke steadily skyward. She's a big engine this one. It's only when you work on and around her that you appreciate it...
Around mid-afternoon I decided to call it a day after a worthwhile effort cleaning the 9F with Dave. I'm sure she'll look lovely now when she goes out tomorrow. Hopefully the shining barrel will last a few weeks! That's all folks, cheers, Sam...
Please note any views or opinions expressed in this blog are merely personal and do not in any way represent the views or opinions of any other person, group or organisation.
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