Looking for ideas tips etc on how to secure the hatch covers on the top of the Vanderbilt Tenders. We currently have them all chained and padlocked but as we progress with Paint removal prime and new paint I would like a better and cleaner way of securing these hatches. Any ideas?? Welding is a good one but we will need access in the tank from time to time..

What about a powerful electro-magnet? Mount some solar panels on the roof, and somewhere in the engine (maybe in the water tank) put a bank of car batteries to hold extra power. Place a breaker somewhere that is easy to access to deactivate the electro-magnet when you need to get into the tank. And as a backup, a heavy-duty padlock.

Wow.. lost for words after that post....

Weld a tab on both the hatch riser and cover, drill, and install either a padlock or stout bolt and nut. Locks are expensive, tend to become non-operative when exposed to the weather, unless a crude lock like a switch lock. If you use a relatively long bolt and a lock nut, you'll at least make the tweakers work at getting it off. Or, weld the nut on the bolt and just figure on cutting it for access. Either way, should do less damage to the paint than having to cut a weld bead applied right to the hatch cover.

Thanks Dennis, that is one option on the table as we were looking at seeing if there would be enough room to run a drill through the cover and lip and thne bolt it shut. I would have to go the welding method as that just leads to more painting and repairs..

Get a length of chain, weld an end to each side. Slice a link out and insert a lock. Switch locks work good..

Thanks Nova, we have chains and padlocks on right now but once we get the rest of the top of the water tank and hatches painted, we want a nice clean lock system in place... We had to clean out a 70s era furnished clubhouse in the tank I don't want to have to do that in the future...

I don't think you are going to get much cleaner then a simple piece of chain. Paint it to match and you will never know.

Epoxy it shut. No, seriously. To get back in, you'll have to heat the metal hot enough to break down either the epoxy or the paint it's bonded to, probably 300-400 degrees F (150-200 C). This would ruin the paint, almost assuredly.

Run a couple of tabs with nuts welded on the end, down inside the opening, then drill a couple of holes for 1/2 or 5/8 bolts.

Then use a button head, allen or torx head bolt, and after assembly pound solder into the head of the bolt, shape it to look like a rivet and paint, all you have to remember is which rivet(s) to heat up to to open the hatch.

You can also use bondo or epoxy, but solder seems to last the longest and hides under the paint the best.

-Hudson

Adding to this a bit:

1) Use threadlocker on the nut(s) but leave a small tube to allow direct heat application/solvent application directly to the location;

2) drill oversize and coat the head and shaft of the bolt with elastomer that has hard grit mixed in (for fun, some forms of very hard material are now cost-effective...)

3) weld a tube over where the head of the bolt goes.

You can also modify the head of the bolt to something different from standard hex or square; the special profiles for antitheft nuts/bolts for automotive aluminum wheels might give you some ideas...

This will prevent any casual extraction of the bolt, or hacksawing to cut the head or shank. The tube also precludes anyone getting bolt cutters in there.

Extraction remains relatively simple: you'll need a 'socket' fitting inside the tube that matches whatever you're using for the bolt head...

Was it that bad an idea? Sounded better in my head I guess...

I'll make it even easier-drill through the cover at the edge, lined up with a tab that has a nut welded in it. bolt the cover shut-on the other end you can use a Z shaped peice of metal to hold that side in place, if you don't have a hinge. Then weld a bit of tube about 2 inches long around the bolt. drill a hole sideways through the tube, and padlock it. Of course all this hardware would be stuff like 1/4 inch plate and 1/4 wall tube, something like a 3/4 inch bolt. this will be tight and secure, and no one tool could really force its way in. if you had a cutter, you would need a socket and bar to get the bolt turned. You can also put considerable torque on a good 3/4 inch bolt. grade 8 can take over 300 ft lbs so no pocket socket is gonna cut it.

Robert

We have two 6,000 gallon underground cisterns on our property each with two 36" x 18" manways above ground.

To secure the lids we have a 22" long piece of 3" heavy wall "C-channel" that spans the 18" width with a section of threaded rod welded to it on center. The treaded rod sticks up thru a hole in the lid and then a "Long Reach Mag Wheel" locking lugnut bolts the arrangement tight.

To lock the lid, we just spin the c-channel to span the shorter dimension of the opening and tighten down the nut pulling the c-channel against the roof of the tank below the manway opening. A heavy rubber gasket and homemade "fender washer" under the nut seals up the hole thru the lid.

We use the type of lugnut that requires a machined mating "key" to be able to loosen or tighten the nut. Our key looks like two snakes mating on a raised surface on a hex plug that inserts into a socket. The lugnut has the same design in relief on it's face.

The down side... Don't loose the "Key" and don't take the lugnut all the way off... loosen it just enough to spin the c-channel out of the way to open the lid.

..... Yes, I have fished out the c-channel more than once when the lugnut got spun all the way off....

Tim Wilson

Ye gods, all very interesting and elegant answers to a problem, but why not simply weld a bolt to the cover(s), put a nut on the bolt and tack weld the threads? Touch up the scorched paint with a brush and be done with it. When you restore the locomotive to service, cut the bolt.