Surprise

In anticipation of refitting the front end running plates and smokebox next week, it was off the Kirkby in Ashfield this afternoon to count nuts and bolts to check we have sufficient for the job.  There was also the matter of repairing the tent before the promised gales, fitting new webbing hold-down straps in place of the broken junk ones supplied with it.  No sooner had I changed into overalls than a truck arrived.  It wasn’t carrying the half-expected vacuum pipe swan neck from Boro Foundry, but the Driving Hornblocks from Trefoil.  That was a pleasant surprise.  Next week we hope to reassemble the smokebox and front end running plates on to the frames.  It will be as a permanent assembly this time.  Now we have to squeeze in the trial fit of our hornblocks, each weighing 165kg, which we look forward to with great excitement and some trepidation.

Keep an eye out here next week to see how we get on.

Two very beefy-looking driving hornblocks as delivered