Access to the underside of heavy engines?

How do you get to the underside of your engine? I need to give mine a good clean and repair the paint, its more than just oiling the motion.

Do you just tip it on something soft?

I am minded to bolt disks of plywood to the buffer beams but I need to know the centre of gravity.

I have a bad back and my workshop is very cramped, so no heavy lifting for me, only controlled and safe. My Polly 4 is about 40kg so one end at a time to lift.

ta

A few pictures of my new engine on its trolley, and the areas that need work.

My engine weighs about 50kg, but I can't roll it onto it's side as the side steps are fairly delicate and would be bent in and foul the motion, so I usually tip it onto one end. It needs some stabilising supports but at least I can see and get to all the bits while standing. Previously I would lay some rails between the fixed workbench and a mobile bench of a similar height and roll the loco onto the rails. Meant I had to sit on a low stool to get to the underside and was a bit hard on the back and neck muscles as well as usually needing temporary additional lighting.

I use a spit connected to the buffer beams. It has saved a huge amount of time and effort and allows for quicker servicing and inspection to find out what is working loose...

If it's possible, can you cut two circles of thick Plywood of sufficient diameter and fix to the buffer beams and roll it into whichever position you require. A timber brace can be screwed to the circles to enable its position to be locked.

Robert Butler

Follow Locomotive transport on this site for some other ideas

Locomotive Transport

+1 for Jon Lawes. I made my own fixture for working on my loco. Pictures in my album.

Alan

Ta guys, I have the means to follow Robert's advice, I like the spit solutions, but that is a big job in its own right and I need this done for testing day.

Transport is another issue entirely.

I am still interested in what people do.