Hello everybody. Well, what a day! Wasn't it hot?; or at least it was where I was! Today, following preparations last night, I was to be crewing LMS 'Jinty' No47298 at Shackerstone, with Mr Eddie Jones and Miss Jan Ford. 7298 was playing her usual role as 'Thomas' The Tank Engine; a role that she does well yet, I can't help thinking that she should be LMS Black! Anyhow, I got to Shackerstone at 6:30am and discovered my Driver & Fireman already there. Eddie was just lighting the loco up whilst Jan broke more wood. Throughout the morning, I cleaned whilst Jan & Eddie oiled the engine up. We also did continuous checks on the engine, checking for any leaks or pieces falling off (you can never be too sure!). Having been lit at around 6:50am, "Thomas" was ready and in steam by 8:50am, remarkable really; must have been a great warming fire last night! Oiled up, cleaned and feathering at the valves, "Thomas" made his way outside, carefully driven by Jan. The 3F then waited outside the shed for the call at 9:45am for the 'Grant Opening'; not before 3803 had got out of the way though!... Behind the 'Jinty' was the newcomer; I still can't believe we've got this(!); 3803, the GWR 38xx 2-8-0 'Heavy Freight'. 3803 was playing "Henry" today, though I did manage to get the shot below before they put the horrid plastic face on the smokebox! What a beautiful machine. She had 4 trips today; one alone and three with the Class 25, 'Rat', on the back... Back on the Jinty, the fire was going well. The ashpan had been emptied (by me) and the damper now shut to slow down excess steam creation. The doors were left open for a while to let the fire cool a little. Meanwhile, myself, Jan and Eddie were soon changed into our Smart Overalls ready for the call... With 3803 out of the way, "Thomas" briskly moved up the side of the loco shed, out of sight of the anticipating public. 3803 then moved back on shed. Up on "Thomas", the call came; "3, 2, 1 - GO". With alot of whistling and steam pouring from the chimney and the drain cocks, we took the Jinty down into Platform 1 where we broke a ribbon to declare the day's event OPEN! After even more whistling, we stopped to await orders. The first run, at 10am, was to be hauled by the Rat ("Bo-Co"), with "Thomas" tailing, ready to haul the return trip. Orders received, we moved through the North End and chugged forward again, onto the rear of the 6-coach train. After coupling up and changing the lamps, we were ready. The morning sun was very warm, just perfect really. But, even so, as the sun rose more and more, the day got hotter and hotter; "Oh no"! Anyway, at 10am, the Guard blew his whistle and the '25' took us to Shenton. 7298 rattled along behind the train whilst Eddie; who fired the first trip; prepared his fire. After a 5-minute stop at tranquil Shenton, we departed on the 10:25am for Shackerstone; no time for delays today! Below, see the clip I filmed of us departing Shenton up the bank towards Far Coton and Market Bosworth. Click "Play" to view. If you can't view it properly, double-click to see it bigger... "Thomas" had a really good first run, funny when your engine livery matches the sky though!... Below, we steam towards the 2nd bridge at Far Coton. There are three bridges here; two occupation and one country road. The middle one is the road. This is a lovely cutting, one of my favourite bits of the line in fact, second to Shenton Bank of course; thats beautiful on a day like today!... Back at Shackerstone, "Thomas" was uncoupled and 'parked' in the North End whilst 3803 took up her place at the back of the stock... Below, Driver Jan Ford takes us through Far Coton Cutting on route to Market Bosworth on the first run of the day. I'm sure Jan won't mind me saying that she has many years experience on many locomotives from the historic "Lion" 0-4-2 to the world-famous A3 Pacific No4472 "Flying Scotsman". Other engine's that have come under Jan's control have been Pannier No7752, 8F No8624, the 5XP Jubilee's, Castle Class "Defiant" and many more. Jan now drives at Shackerstone and Peak Rail, though she has also spent time at Tyseley... Throughout the day, we performed many activities, from the famous Water-Game (where I got soaked: again!), to Engine Races, Sing-A-Longs and two "Dining" Trains; "Lunch on Thomas" & "Tea on Thomas". Passenger numbers seemed very strong and the weather certainly must have helped this come about. However, it was blisteringly hot; especially on the footplate. We were boiling, but after all, "its all in a days work". Some things did not go to plan however. "Thomas" was suffering from a warped firebar which was allowing far too much ash into his asphan at once, and in too large a commodity. This meant the ashpan filled in the front right corner very quickly. By mid-afternoon, the loco was setting fire to many sleepers, and the weather didn't help. After a Shuttle-Run with the DMU to Carlton and back proved very flammable indeed, we decided to take action. It was the final 'performance' section of the day so, after informing the right people, we raced "Thomas" two more times before taking water and taking 'him' to the shed. Inside the shed, we ashed the loco out AGAIN and checked 'him over'. Meanwhile, the diesels were keeping the public busy outside. After 10 minutes or so, the pan was clear again and we got the star of the show back outside as quickly as possible. Following one more Sing-A-Long, we got "Thomas" onto the front of the days final train; the 5pm "Tea on Thomas". Driver Eddie is seen in the cab as we await departure from Shackerstone; what a gorgeous day it was... Leaving at 5pm, the last train of any "Thomas" day is always challenging but, nevertheless, we soldier on. I was firing this run too, whilst Jan and Eddie shared the driving. 7298 steamed very well and, if she didn't, one good shovelfull in each corner seemed to rectify any problem at all. Great stuff. However, the return run gave us a little more than we bargained for. Basically, the warped firebar cracked and failed. It fell into the ashpan and then ended up blocking the damper fully open. On return to Shack, still unaware of the firebar problem, I reached for the rake ready to 'clean' and thin the fire. Looking closely through the flames, I could see a 5-inch gap; "Oh My God!". So, we got the Jinty on shed and removed the bar from the ashpan asap. We then disposed of her accordingly. The problem was then resolved ready for the next day when, after her duties, the Jinty will be leaving us. Shame really; she's a proper Midland machine! (Shame about the colour though!). Eventually, we signed off at 6:30pm. Thanks to Carl for the turn, and great thanks to Jan and Eddie for a great day on "Thomas" The Tank Engine; another great experience. Thanks for reading folks. Sorry for the length of this post but it was a fantastic day. For visitor information, "Thomas" will be back at Shack in June and October! Come and see him at Shackerstone; you won't be dissapointed! Evening All...
Hello everybody. Well, what a day! Wasn't it hot?; or at least it was where I was! Today, following preparations last night, I was to be crewing LMS 'Jinty' No47298 at Shackerstone, with Mr Eddie Jones and Miss Jan Ford. 7298 was playing her usual role as 'Thomas' The Tank Engine; a role that she does well yet, I can't help thinking that she should be LMS Black! Anyhow, I got to Shackerstone at 6:30am and discovered my Driver & Fireman already there. Eddie was just lighting the loco up whilst Jan broke more wood. Throughout the morning, I cleaned whilst Jan & Eddie oiled the engine up. We also did continuous checks on the engine, checking for any leaks or pieces falling off (you can never be too sure!). Having been lit at around 6:50am, "Thomas" was ready and in steam by 8:50am, remarkable really; must have been a great warming fire last night! Oiled up, cleaned and feathering at the valves, "Thomas" made his way outside, carefully driven by Jan. The 3F then waited outside the shed for the call at 9:45am for the 'Grant Opening'; not before 3803 had got out of the way though!... 
Behind the 'Jinty' was the newcomer; I still can't believe we've got this(!); 3803, the GWR 38xx 2-8-0 'Heavy Freight'. 3803 was playing "Henry" today, though I did manage to get the shot below before they put the horrid plastic face on the smokebox! What a beautiful machine. She had 4 trips today; one alone and three with the Class 25, 'Rat', on the back...
Back on the Jinty, the fire was going well. The ashpan had been emptied (by me) and the damper now shut to slow down excess steam creation. The doors were left open for a while to let the fire cool a little. Meanwhile, myself, Jan and Eddie were soon changed into our Smart Overalls ready for the call...
With 3803 out of the way, "Thomas" briskly moved up the side of the loco shed, out of sight of the anticipating public. 3803 then moved back on shed. Up on "Thomas", the call came; "3, 2, 1 - GO". With alot of whistling and steam pouring from the chimney and the drain cocks, we took the Jinty down into Platform 1 where we broke a ribbon to declare the day's event OPEN! After even more whistling, we stopped to await orders. The first run, at 10am, was to be hauled by the Rat ("Bo-Co"), with "Thomas" tailing, ready to haul the return trip. Orders received, we moved through the North End and chugged forward again, onto the rear of the 6-coach train. After coupling up and changing the lamps, we were ready. The morning sun was very warm, just perfect really. But, even so, as the sun rose more and more, the day got hotter and hotter; "Oh no"! Anyway, at 10am, the Guard blew his whistle and the '25' took us to Shenton. 7298 rattled along behind the train whilst Eddie; who fired the first trip; prepared his fire. After a 5-minute stop at tranquil Shenton, we departed on the 10:25am for Shackerstone; no time for delays today! Below, see the clip I filmed of us departing Shenton up the bank towards Far Coton and Market Bosworth. Click "Play" to view. If you can't view it properly, double-click to see it bigger... "Thomas" had a really good first run, funny when your engine livery matches the sky though!...
Below, we steam towards the 2nd bridge at Far Coton. There are three bridges here; two occupation and one country road. The middle one is the road. This is a lovely cutting, one of my favourite bits of the line in fact, second to Shenton Bank of course; thats beautiful on a day like today!...
Back at Shackerstone, "Thomas" was uncoupled and 'parked' in the North End whilst 3803 took up her place at the back of the stock...
Below, Driver Jan Ford takes us through Far Coton Cutting on route to Market Bosworth on the first run of the day. I'm sure Jan won't mind me saying that she has many years experience on many locomotives from the historic "Lion" 0-4-2 to the world-famous A3 Pacific No4472 "Flying Scotsman". Other engine's that have come under Jan's control have been Pannier No7752, 8F No8624, the 5XP Jubilee's, Castle Class "Defiant" and many more. Jan now drives at Shackerstone and Peak Rail, though she has also spent time at Tyseley...
Throughout the day, we performed many activities, from the famous Water-Game (where I got soaked: again!), to Engine Races, Sing-A-Longs and two "Dining" Trains; "Lunch on Thomas" & "Tea on Thomas". Passenger numbers seemed very strong and the weather certainly must have helped this come about. However, it was blisteringly hot; especially on the footplate. We were boiling, but after all, "its all in a days work". Some things did not go to plan however. "Thomas" was suffering from a warped firebar which was allowing far too much ash into his asphan at once, and in too large a commodity. This meant the ashpan filled in the front right corner very quickly. By mid-afternoon, the loco was setting fire to many sleepers, and the weather didn't help. After a Shuttle-Run with the DMU to Carlton and back proved very flammable indeed, we decided to take action. It was the final 'performance' section of the day so, after informing the right people, we raced "Thomas" two more times before taking water and taking 'him' to the shed. Inside the shed, we ashed the loco out AGAIN and checked 'him over'. Meanwhile, the diesels were keeping the public busy outside. After 10 minutes or so, the pan was clear again and we got the star of the show back outside as quickly as possible. Following one more Sing-A-Long, we got "Thomas" onto the front of the days final train; the 5pm "Tea on Thomas". Driver Eddie is seen in the cab as we await departure from Shackerstone; what a gorgeous day it was...
Leaving at 5pm, the last train of any "Thomas" day is always challenging but, nevertheless, we soldier on. I was firing this run too, whilst Jan and Eddie shared the driving. 7298 steamed very well and, if she didn't, one good shovelfull in each corner seemed to rectify any problem at all. Great stuff. However, the return run gave us a little more than we bargained for. Basically, the warped firebar cracked and failed. It fell into the ashpan and then ended up blocking the damper fully open. On return to Shack, still unaware of the firebar problem, I reached for the rake ready to 'clean' and thin the fire. Looking closely through the flames, I could see a 5-inch gap; "Oh My God!". So, we got the Jinty on shed and removed the bar from the ashpan asap. We then disposed of her accordingly. The problem was then resolved ready for the next day when, after her duties, the Jinty will be leaving us. Shame really; she's a proper Midland machine! (Shame about the colour though!). Eventually, we signed off at 6:30pm. Thanks to Carl for the turn, and great thanks to Jan and Eddie for a great day on "Thomas" The Tank Engine; another great experience. Thanks for reading folks. Sorry for the length of this post but it was a fantastic day. For visitor information, "Thomas" will be back at Shack in June and October! Come and see him at Shackerstone; you won't be dissapointed! Evening All...
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