Vectis Knight at EATES Crank Up
 

Having been following Martin Hunt's account of how he and Melvyn Camps rebuilt the boiler of 1927 Super Sentinel 6887 'Vectis Knight', I was delighted to see it - and them - at the EATES Saffron Walden Crank Up.
I thought that others who know as little about Sentinels as I do might like to see it with the 3-way tipping body tipped:

http://www.tractiontalkforum.com/pic...ictureid=45157

At first I thought there had been a disaster, as it looked like this:

http://www.tractiontalkforum.com/pic...ictureid=45158

However Martin explained that he was using the steam lance, fitted for cleaning the boiler tubes, to warm the engine after checking the clearance on the push rods for the poppet valves. The correct clearance is nil when cold, but it's good to confirm things are OK with a hot engine. You can't sit there with the engine ticking over with a Sentinel (no clutch), hence the use of the lance.
Here are a couple of pictures of the bits you can't easily see with the body down, a red items are props to secure the body when it's up:

http://www.tractiontalkforum.com/pic...ictureid=45159

http://www.tractiontalkforum.com/pic...ictureid=45160

If I'd thought more quickly, I'd have photographed the ram end too.
Here's Martin stowing the lance away again:

http://www.tractiontalkforum.com/pic...ictureid=45161

Thanks Martin, it was great to meet you and Melvyn.

Bill.

Shame that only the dog was reading the display board , tho' it is the right height for him .

Great to see the waggon back on the road .

Thank you Bill
It was great to meet you and have a chance for a natter
The comments of both yourself and others were much appreciated ,it makes the job seem worth all the effort
Just for the record
Friday evening's run to the field was 6&1\2 miles including through Saffron Walden town centre in 24 minutes
An average of about 16 mph
Tonight on way back to yard was 30 minutes so average of 13 mph
The boiler has been a revelation with its new set up ,can now readily maintain200 psi plus and when pulling hard uphill has a humming sound like it used to before ( no its not a hole in fire )but rather the gasses flowing through superheater coils
A great weekend
Many thanks to all involved
Cheers Martin

The mutt in question is my hound " Mr Riley "
He's a rescue dog .had him nearly six years now
Came from Ireland as a six month old puppy
Parentage and pedigree unknown ,but a great mate and a natural born clown and poser who just loves people
Cheers Martin