The Maunsell Locomotive Society has released its latest update on progress to overhaul Southern Railway Maunsell Q Class No. 541.

On 9th April, a new tender tank fabricated by the 4253 Locomotive Group was delivered to Sheffield Park on the Bluebell Railway in East Sussex.

On delivery, it was placed on the ground, but then moved inside the locomotive works, where it was lifted onto the chassis, ready for holes to be drilled for the holding down bolts.

Once all the holes have been drilled and a bit of fettling work completed, the new tank will be bolted to the chassis permanently.

Meanwhile, volunteers from the Maunsell Locomotive Society have been cleaning and painting various parts of 541’s cladding and preparing the loco springs for testing by giving them a good clean.

Although largely unseen, as they are carried out ‘behind the scenes’, they are a vital part of the locomotive’s overhaul.

Work on the locomotive’s boiler and chassis is taking place at the workshops of Leaky Finders in Devon. Over 300 new monel stays for the boiler needed machining, and that work is nearly complete, and new patch screws have also been fitted to the new outer wrapper boiler plate.

Work has progressed on three areas of the chassis. Fitted bolts have been removed from the left-hand and right-hand side cylinder blocks, their holes reamed and countersunk, and new bolts fitted.

On the main locomotive frames, work has been completed to reattach the leading and driving horns using new fitted bolts and nuts.