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2011 Running Log
Summary of the year.
This has been a very busy year for Gentoo, and apart from a couple of teething problems early in the year it has run almost faultlessly. Its availability for public running has certainly been a match for all the other regular passenger locos at Pinewood, with only one failure in service. The injector clack problem, which appears to be a recurring theme throughout the year, is mostly because I spent so much time deliberately experimenting to try to determine why it failed. I doubt that the failure rate is actually any worse than that of other engines I know, but I hope that my experiments will eventually lead to a complete solution.
Overall I would rate the Stafford as having exceeded my expectations and its reliability during public running has been acknowledged by many other club members. It has certainly been a very enjoyable year.
This has been a very busy year for Gentoo, and apart from a couple of teething problems early in the year it has run almost faultlessly. Its availability for public running has certainly been a match for all the other regular passenger locos at Pinewood, with only one failure in service. The injector clack problem, which appears to be a recurring theme throughout the year, is mostly because I spent so much time deliberately experimenting to try to determine why it failed. I doubt that the failure rate is actually any worse than that of other engines I know, but I hope that my experiments will eventually lead to a complete solution.
Overall I would rate the Stafford as having exceeded my expectations and its reliability during public running has been acknowledged by many other club members. It has certainly been a very enjoyable year.
| Date | Location | Activity | Mileage | Comments |
| 03/04/11 | Pinewood (Wokingham) | Members Day | 11.28 | Derailed after viaduct. Driver error - looking at injector and missed obstruction on the track. |
| 17/04/11 | Pinewood (Wokingham) | Public Running | 7.61 | Knock from loco traced to right piston rod having unscrewed about 2 turns from the crosshead. Temporary withdrawal from service while repairing. |
| 01/05/11 | Wherwell (Andover) | Visit | 6.22 | Left hand injector clack valve stuck open when used for first time about 3 hours into run. Problem solved when injector restarted by spraying with cold water. |
| 15/05/11 | Pinewood (Wokingham) | Public Running | 9.67 | Mechanical lubricator stopped working during the day. Traced to the ratchet pawl having worn away. |
| 12/06/11 | Pinewood (Wokingham) | Special Event | 7.15 | Loco being driven by the local Councillor. A screw was found to have fallen out of the drain cock linkage when cleaning the loco after the run. |
| 19/06/11 | Pinewood (Wokingham) | Public Running | 10.05 | Right hand injector steam valve started leaking. Top section had come loose. |
| 02/07/11 | Amners Farm (Reading) | Visit | 12.84 | Left hand injector clack valve stuck open when used for the first time about 4 hours into the run. Fire had to be dropped. Mechanical lubricator not working again. Eventually traced to it not operating at anything above a very slow speed. |
| 10/07/11 | Pinewood (Wokingham) | Guest Drivers | 10.08 | Loco being driven by Mid Hants Railway P'Way visitors. Left hand injector clack valve problem occurred again at the end of the day test. |
| 17/07/11 | Pinewood (Wokingham) | Public Running | 3.01 | Right hand injector clack valve stuck open during normal use. Fire had to be dropped and loco withdrawn from service. |
| 30/07/11 | Hollycombe Steam Museum | Public Running | 7.48 | Left hand injector clack valve stuck open at the very end of the day. Fire had to be dropped. |
| 21/08/11 | Pinewood (Wokingham) | Public Running | 13.38 | New injector clack valves fitted, but left hand clack still failed the "end of day" test by sticking open. |
| 18/09/11 | Pinewood (Wokingham) | Public Running | 12.51 | Only the right injector used all day without any problems. Left clack dismantled when back home to examine the dirt inside it. |
| 24/09/11 | Coate Water Park (Swindon) | Visit | 4.93 | Usual left hand injector clack failure (when tested after period of no use) demonstrated to Station Road Steam. |
| 02/10/11 | Pinewood (Wokingham) | Special Event | 9.14 | Birthday party for disabled children in the morning and then loco used by junior members all afternoon. (Injector clack test failed as usual at end of day) |
| 16/10/11 | Pinewood *Wokingham) | Public Running | 12.11 | No problems all day ! |
| 04/12/11 | Pinewood (Wokingham) | Santa Specials | 8.40 | No problems all day again ! |
| Total mileage this year = 145.84 | ||||
| Total passenger mileage this year = 93.56 | ||||