Going Great Central: A Shed Turn...

A short one from today folks. I went across to the GCR first thing this morning to take part in a shed turn. It's always good to show some willing outside of footplate turns so I headed along to help with ashing the pits etc, once the four big engines in steam for the 50th anniversary gala weekend had left the shed. Inside the shed was old favourite No6990 "Witherslack Hall", the boiler from which is being readied to return to the frames very shortly following a re-tube. I'm really looking forward to seeing 6990 back in action. I had a few hours pottering around the shed and yard, helping where I could, before heading for home. Short and sweet, not a lot else to it. Cheers, Sam...

Please note any views or opinions expressed in this blog are merely personal and do not in any way represent the views or opinions of any other person, group or organisation.

Statfold: Sweet Sugar "Saccharine"...

"Driving Fowler 'Saccharine' of 1912" (B.Fitzpatrick)

Having been volunteering as footplate crew on the Statfold Barn Railway since 2012, there aren't many of the fleet that I haven't been on at one stage or another. Today, at the Summer Spectacle of Steam event, I was to tick another engine off the list that has always evaded me: the mighty Fowler "Saccharine". Built by the well known traction engine manufacturer John Fowler & Co of Leeds in 1912, this chunky 0-4-2 side tank was destined for the Natal Estates sugar plantation in South Africa. Having returned to the UK for preservation in 1978, the engine later found its way to Statfold and it was brought back to steam there in early 2010. It's a big old engine this one, overhanging the 2ft gauge tracks quite considerably. As my tick list of the Statfold fleet is ever decreasing, I'd politely requested to Alex that we take "Saccharine" out for the day to get it out of my system. Being a cracking chap, Alex duly accepted and myself and well known dawn chorus denier Eddie the Late were penned to the engine with cleaner Stuart. I arrived a little before 06:30, discovering the 0-4-2 at the rear of No1 road on the shed frontage. It was then time to sign in and read the notices...

Having checked the engine over (confirming that I'd escaped those pesky chocolate firebars Batesy keeps threatening to fit!) I deemed it safe to light up. There was a strong water level in the two gauge frames, the smokebox and firebox were dry and the grate was clear. I managed to find some fairly good size planks of wood to throw into the considerable box on "Saccharine". This is no quarry Hunslet...

Soon enough there was a plume of smoke rising from the tall chimney as the mixture of paraffin soaked rags and wood began to take hold in the firebox...

Eddie the Late duly arrived after his arduous trek from his caravan in the next field over and we set about preparing the engine together. Eddie was the booked driver for today but, as usual, we shared it all as we hold the same competencies. Just in front of us was the lovely Bagnall "Isaac", driven today by old mate JB. Here, Eddie and JB put the world to rights from the footplate of "Isaac". Almost reminds me of Statler and Waldorf offering constructive criticism from the comfort of their balcony...

Cleaner Stuart went around cleaning the engine for her day out whilst myself and Eddie shared the firing and oiling duties. I had to remind Eddie to go easy with those big pieces of wood. He's only used to 15" gauge locomotives these days and I was worried that such big pieces of wood might overwhelm him. They must have felt like great 6 x 2s to him! Thankfully no Eddie's were harmed during lighting up...

As a team, we three enginemen went around the big Fowler and prepared her for the day. After the usual 08:30 safety briefing (and customary bacon roll) on the lawn, we got changed before rejoining the locomotive. To our surprise, it wasn't long before we were called upon to leave the shed. I drove the first two trips whilst Ed re-familiarised himself with the railway and got used to "Saccharine". My first task was to couple the engine to "Isaac" in front. Once coupled, the duo made their way to platform 2 via the signalbox, where our stock awaited us. We would now form the first train of the day to Cogan Halt, where "Isaac" would leave us and return light engine with the token. Alongside us in platform 1 was the visiting engine for the event: another Fowler. This one was No15513 of 1920 and she was one of a series of six 0-4-2s built by Fowler for the Sena Sugar Estates in Mozambique. She was fresh out of the box...

Once everything was ready, we received the road and the "Right Away" from the Guard before steaming off towards Cogan Halt via Oak Tree. JB led the way with "Isaac" whilst "Saccharine" was the train engine. At the balloon loop we were quickly separated and JB took the Bagnall back up to the top with the token. We meanwhile had to wait for the next down train, hauled by the beautifully restored smaller Fowler...

Here, "Saccharine" waits for the line ahead to become clear...

Leaving the balloon loop, we plodded steadily back up to Statfold where permission was given (once uncoupled) to turn on the turntable. We managed to keep "Saccharine" facing the right way throughout the day, which was good for us as well as the photographers. It's always nicer going forwards I must admit. So, the all important question: What did I think of "Saccharine"? You know what, I liked it. I love things that are strong. This old 0-4-2 is certainly that and as well as pulling well, it stops well, which is another important thing. The injectors were a bit finicky on it and would rarely run clean, although they did put water in at their own steady pace. The large boiler on the engine did however mean that water could just be topped up every now and then and we had no trouble with either steam or water throughout the day. The engine also rode well and with the bigger wheels it seemed to rattle along quite nicely. I liked it and would have no aversion to going on it again. As with all engines, opinions differ across the crews but "Saccharine" is alright with me. She's certainly more pleasant to drive than the K1 Garrett which I found to be a bit cumbersome in its handling...

"Second Outward Trip" (B.Fitzpatrick)

Here we are pulling away from Oak Tree Halt, returning to Statfold...

"Side Profile" (B.Fitzpatrick)

By the third trip it was time that we swapped duties. Eddie took over the regulator of "Saccharine" whilst I supervised Stuart doing the firing. He was doing well and needed little if any tuition today so I was mainly standing in the middle of the cab surveying the scenery. For our third trip we were joined by the pretty little red Fowler. The Fowler duo certainly got the photographers excited as we made our way around...

Third trip complete, "Saccharine" waits on platform 1 approach after turning...

After being brought down under caution through platform 1 we were asked to pop up onto the shed for a short break whilst the Plymouth diesel did some shunting in the headshunt. I sat in the shade in a chair watching the Fowler simmering across the way in the sunshine. The shade was certainly welcome as it was very muggy today with very little breeze unless you were moving. It was a tad sticky...

Eddie drove our fourth trip (this time without the little Fowler as a headboard) before I took over again for our fifth and final trip. The day went by very fast...

Sunshine and blue skies was the order of the afternoon at a peaceful Statfold...

After our fifth trip we were kept off shed for a while longer and ended up shunt releasing three trains with the chunky Fowler. "Saccharine", as with everything it seems, found the movements no stress and was very controllable. It's a useful and versatile tool indeed. By the time we'd finished shunting, the fire had been run down nicely and only needed a quick turn over with the iron to make sure it was free of clinker. Eddie must have felt like he was flinging some great jousting lance about in comparison to the salad tongs he normally uses to clear his fires out these days...

Once the engine was disposed and rubbed down, I caught this final shot of her as she simmered quietly on No1 road after a great day out...

Thank you to all involved in today for another great time. Thank you to Eddie the Late and Stuart for their company aboard "Saccharine" and thank you to Alex for rostering us. Also, thank you to Barry Fitzpatrick for sending in three of the images used in this post. It was a great day all round and I'm glad that I've finally ticked the big Fowler off my list of engines to drive at Statfold. It was even better that Eddie managed to get through the day without succumbing to altitude sickness, having conquered his fear of heights rejoining the crews of bigger engines. He didn't even need his stepladders or his harness! Thanks for being such a good sport, Ed...

Mail Rail: The Post Office Railway...

"One of the original Royal Mail trains that worked the line"

When you think of well known London attractions there will be many that spring to mind: Big Ben, Buckingham Palace, the London Eye and so on. One that perhaps you wouldn't automatically think of is the museum dedicated to London's historic underground post office railway: Mail Rail. Today, whilst on a jaunt to London for tea at the Langham, we called in to this lovely little set up for our first visit. This 2ft gauge railway originally began operating in 1927, using driverless trains which carried mail across a system which eventually encompassed 6.5 miles of track. The first mail was carried for the Christmas post of 1927, with the system continuing to operate right up until 2003. Electrified by 440V DC third rail, trains would operate up to a maximum speed of 40mph whilst out of station limits, transporting post between the sorting offices above without the need to traverse the traffic filled streets of the capital. Following closure in 2003, the line lay dormant for a period until a section was reopened as part of a special exhibition. New battery operated trains were supplied for the setup and these days you can ride on a 1km circular section of the original line...

We'd booked the train ride part of the exhibition for 11:30 and arrived in good time at the Mount Pleasant museum. The exhibition and platform area can be found beneath the gift shop, down a flight of stairs. The low clearance within the tunnels (no doubt due to the fact that the trains were driverless) has meant that the new tourist trains are also quite cramped. Much smaller and they would feel a bit claustrophobic...

An addition on the new trains is a driver who sits up front and controls the unit and the various displays along the route. Having descended into the tunnels, here we make our way to the right towards an area where old trains are stored. The tunnel to the left goes off in another direction and is no doubt part of the old more expansive system that once was. I have no reason to believe that the whole system isn't still there...

As the train rumbled its way around the route within the tunnels, various displays were put on and a commentary was played over the PA system, including interviews from those who used to work on the railway. There was also quite an interesting light show and presentation at one of the old stations, showing the path of a letter from sender to destination via the old post office railway system. After our informative ride through the tunnels, we alighted from the little green train and had a look around the museum section which included a lot of history on the original route...

Here, the green train departs again into the tunnels with tail lamp lit. The other train (a red identical twin to this one) will soon arrive on the right hand track...

After a very pleasant hour at Mail Rail we took a steady walk back to the nearest tube station before continuing our underground journey to Oxford Street ready to walk to the Langham. If you're ever in the capital and have an hour to spare, Mail Rail is well worth a look. It's always nice to support a little venture like this. You'd never know that those tunnels were there when you look at the building from outside. I wonder how few people knew that these little mail trains were rumbling around underneath London doing their job day in, day out for so many decades. At one point the railway carried 1 million items of mail everyday which is certainly an achievement! Thanks for reading all, Sam...