A Saturday Out: Gloucester & Warwicks...

Hi all. Today was a Saturday excursion out into the Cotswolds. Destination?: The Gloucestershire & Warwickshire Railway. We have visited this wonderful Great Western steam railway a number of times now but, with the prospect of the sheds being open today due to a volunteer recruitment weekend, we thought we'd take a trip out. I picked up John & 'Eddie the Late' from Coventry at about 10am and after an easy run along the A46, we made Toddington by about 11am. First stop?: Tea. The Flag & Whistle on the station car park was a hive of activity and we enjoyed a cuppa' and a bacon bap. Next stop: the Steam Shed. As most of the GWSR fleet is currently out on hire as its still low season, the only engine in the shed was GWR 2-8-0 No2807. A green Heavy Freight 2-8-0? A real home from home! This earlier 28xx example of 1905 is 34 years older than 3803 and includes some subtle differences such as compensated springing and a slightly different cab. Other than that, its essentially the same thing. A pretty machine this one...

Moving around the corner from the steam shed we headed into the diesel shed. An equally impressive building this was: the GWSR have some really nice sheds! The diesel presence at Toddington is striking and it was quite refreshing to see even the diesel locomotives in such good condition. The fleet really is cared for here, as seen by this very nice example of a Class 37...

Sitting outside and only a few panels away from the shining bulk of 2807, we found another 28'. This example is No2874 and is quite literally three shades of buggered. Withdrawn in 1963 and sent to Barry, it was rescued in 1987. It is still a prime example of a Barry Wreck, having never been restored. Happily, work has just commenced on 2874 so she will be steaming one day in the future. Interestingly, 2874 is one of the few remaining Western engines that features inside steam pipes. 2807 has the typical outside variant, as does the later 3803, but 2874 retains the inside feature...

Having admired the two 28s and the impressive (dare I say it?!) collection of diesel locos, we meandered around the station for a bit before returning to the Flag & Whistle. John described it as, "grabbin' some snap". Eddie the Late was up to his old tricks again in the shot below. Regular readers will know of his lust for the epic and hideous 'Three Course Challenges'. As he couldn't piece together a full meal today, he had to settle for the equally fattening 'Three Cake Challenge'...

John, not content with having the cake and eating it, also ordered a sizeable luncheon. When it arrived the presentation was impressive, though the countless dressings were soon scattered all over the floor in a 3ft radius of the table!...

Refuelled after tea & cake, we waded out of the café through the dropped grated cheese to reach the platforms. 7820 "Dinmore Manor" had just arrived from Cheltenham Racecourse and was about to take water at the tower...

Freshly watered, the Manor steamed away to move back into the occupied platform to recouple to her stock for a later departure. In the car park, Toddington's up and coming steam star was on display. 35006 is a rebuilt Bullied Merchant Navy Class Pacific, built in 1941 for the Southern Railway. A big engine at 151 tons, 35006's name is equally as big: "Peninsular & Oriental S.N.Co". Withdrawn in 1964 and sent to Barry, 35006 was rescued in 1983 and the restoration process soon began. The pacific is now coming towards the end of its total rebuild and I believe is expected to be in service by the end of this year. These Merchant Navy's are quite a beast...

Having admired the bulk of 35006, there was time for a last shot of 7820 waiting patiently to drop down onto her train...

All in all a very pleasant little visit to the wonderful GWSR. This railway has really come on leaps and bounds in the last few years and is set to go from strength to strength, with the extension to Broadway already in more than full swing. Now? Off to Evesham!...

Shackerstone: The Sunday Report...

Hi all. Here is todays report from my visit to Shackerstone. Today was only brief for me as its Mothers Day and getting out at all sometimes proves an issue on this annual event. I was at the railway from 10am until 1pm before returning home for dinner. Upon my arrival, the Prairie was stood outside the shed. The Epping Ongar's 4141 was being readied to take up her place at the head of the first Battlefield Line steam service of 2015. The engine looked smart as she stood on the dock road showing off her BR lined green livery...

4141 left the shed on time, though departed slightly late with the 11am train. With the dock road clear, the Class 02 shunter was drafted in for a spot of shunting. The old Shell tank wagon was dragged from the side of the shed and prepared for steam cleaning. This is the next project for the team who've just done up the 02, to return the wagon to its Shell colours. It always used to be used on Thomas days: back when we used to do them: but now its Tidmouth Milk colours are redundant. Here, the team chew the fat whilst milking (get it?!) the task of washing the wagon...

My job today involved further work on 3803, whilst 4141 steamed up and down the line outside. 3803 is now nearing her deadline so it won't be long before she is out & about. Further down the shed stood "Sir Gomer". "Gomer" is now waiting for the boiler man to come and do her dry exam before she is reboxed and steam tested for him...

A few paces down from "Gomer" stands another Peckett: Dunlop No7. At the minute, No7 is progressing well and changes by the week. I doubt it'll be long before this little W7 is moving under her own steam again...

The boiler for No7 is really coming along. The tubes are here for her and the 300-odd stays are almost all done. I was told that only 10 need to be done now...

The stays on the firebox are now being calked. The calking process involves basically jack hammering the head of the stay down using a curved tool. The tool turns the remaining threaded end of the stay into a rivet-style head, thus forming a seal against the outer firebox. On many boilers, this process is used inside the box as well, but on some engines nuts are used. The area around the stay near the inner firebox side-sheet is secured and sealed, whilst the nut is used to prevent the stay burning away. Here we see the calked stays of the outer firebox on the fireman's side...

Finally and, unusually in this report, we see "Richard III". "Richard III" hasn't really progressed in the last few years due to time and the work on the other engines. The boiler sits off the frames in a semi-dismantled condition away from the engine, whilst the frames are in the shed just behind No7. The bits are there to sort the engine out, though she does require a lot of work. A powerful RSH 0-6-0 and former shedmate to Nechells No4: which we saw the other week at Chasewater: "Richard" was the engine that worked the first passenger train to Shenton two decades ago. For now, she lies in wait...

Well, that's it for the report guys. I left the railway at 1pm and started the 15-mile run home for dinner. Unfortunately, we have to end this post with some sad news. On Thursday evening the former Shed Cat come Railway Cat passed away after a short illness. She had more alias' than 007 but was commonly known as 'Morris' by all of us at the shed. 'Morris' I hear you say? Well, to be honest, nobody really knew why...

'Morris' came to the railway at least 5 years ago after moving home from a local farm. She became a familiar sight around the railway and befriended the late former owner of the B1 "Mayflower": Gerald. Wherever there was Gerald, there was often the cat. The cat even had a bed on "Mayflower"s cab steps, just above the heaters which would work through the night to protect her expensive injectors through the winter. The cat later took up residence on top of the hot-cupboard in the workshop. 1306 departed for good not long after Gerald's passing, though the cat remained a fixture at the shed and we even installed a cat flap. During the running season she would be fed by probably three or four locations during the day, and would meander around the railway attempting to avoid the public, though she was always friendly and calm when she did come into contact with them.

 

In a strange sort of a way, it was company to know that the cat was there when you arrived at the dark railway gates at 5:30am in the morning. Leaving your car, you wouldn't make it many paces before a dark whimpering figure made every attempt to knock you over! She would then wolf down a good packet of food before looking at you expectantly for another! She was no stranger to locomotives and managed to keep herself safe around the railway for over half a decade. On one occasion she fell asleep in the visiting Beavertail Saloon and enjoyed an impromptu return trip to Shenton and back behind 1306, much to her bewilderment! Allas, now unfortunately the time has come to say goodbye to another of the railways regular fixtures; such a shame. Goodbye cat: I'll miss you on those winter mornings, Sam...

A French Connection at Statfold Barn...

Hi all. Today was another training day at Statfold Barn Railway: the delightful 2ft/2ft 6" gauge private line, over at Tamworth. I arrived at 7am after the traditional McDonalds stop. I don't know what the McDonalds staff must think when they see the traditional railway overalls; probably that I'm on my way to some kind of dawn has broken fancy dress party. Once on the SBR site I met up with other crews before we were briefed for the day. There have been even more developments at Statfold since our last run in October, and therefore we had to be trained. One locomotive was in steam: the wonderful Corpet Pannier Tank. This 1884-built 0-6-0 is a true railway relic, with origins in Paris. Having worked in a Spanish gold mine of all places (the Minas de Aller) the engine was restored at Statfold following import. It is the only one of its type in the country. It later transpired that I would be crewing the Corpet with Statfold Employee Will. The job today would involve just simply running trains: "we can do that!". The Corpet would be doing turn and turn about with the 2ft 6" gauge Hudswell diesel "Badger": an unbelievably loud contraption of a thing. By about 9:30am, the first train was ready to leave and so I made up the fire on the Corpet...

The elderly Pannier has no dampers and so you have to be on the ball with the fire on this one to prevent constant blowing off. The Brown valve geared engine steamed out of Station Jnc station easily with a 4-coach train. After a very pleasant run we returned to Statfold to hand over the stock to "Badger". The noisy internal combustion thingy then took the stock for a trip before we took over again. This time, I was driving. The Corpet is unusual in that the regulator is outside the front cab sheet, meaning that you have to reach around. It does have a very pleasant screw reverser though which sets the gear up perfectly. Pulling away, you can notch her up and just keep a breath on. Don't be fooled by her elderly appearance: she is a very strong engine! Once clear of the station mouth and around the first corner you can open her up and, without argument, she's away. Coasting is done in full forward but running along at about 35% with the regulator just open she'll do the job with ease. When you hit a bank, the bark turns into a roar: its a hell of a thing and she's steams brilliantly. For our third & final trip, I was firing again and Will put the Corpet through its paces to provide a brilliant performance. Its a lovely old machine that. I don't think she's the prettiest of engines but certainly the design is strong, easy to oil up and reliable. Myself and Will, naturally, had a good laugh pretending to be Driver Le Boosh and Fireman Le Beech. The typical French accents were rife on the footplate! The Corpet?..."ce magnifique"!

After a very enjoyable morning & early afternoon at Statfold I had completed my training and am now ready for the March 28th private Open Day. I left the SBR at about 2:30pm and joined the A444 for home. However, as is often the way, knowledge of other local goings on moved my route ever so slightly. Destination?: Shackerstone. I thought I'd nip in to drop a few leaflets for MTEW off to a few lads in the Museum, and to have a cuppa' with Jason, who was doing the FTR on the recently arrived 4141...

4141 is our gala visitor and, weighing in at over 70 tons, is quite a tank engine. These 41XX type Large Prairies were both powerful and quick and I think we're all looking forward to seeing what it can do. It'll have to go some way to beat 5542 though. All the best guys, Sam...

Shack Sunday...

Hi everyone. A short & sweet post from today. I was at Shackerstone from 9am until 4pm and had a pleasant day working away on 3803. The 2884-class 2-8-0 is now coming along very nicely and it is now only three weeks until the gala weekend where she will make her BR Black debut. Other work in the shed today included stay corking for Dunlop No7. After the gala, I'll post the 3803 progress pictures! Cheers all, Sam...

00 Gauge In The Garden...

Hi all. This week the garden railway has had one or two runs. The 00 gauge tracks have been rumbling to the wheels of various locomotives and carriage sets, as well as the odd freight working. Earlier in the week I was finishing off the wiring to the track, with 4 power points now completed. The addition of the fourth power point has made trains run smoothly over the tracks once again, and the wiring for features such as the turntable is next on my list. Ripping out all of the old wiring has certainly made it easier to reroute the new wires, and has tidied up the flowerbeds somewhat too. Here, one of the shunters used for moving stock around the shed fiddle yard is out & about on a P-Way train working...

With the track now operating smoothly, locomotives can have a good run once again. Certain locomotives in the fleet haven't even been tested yet since their arrival, due to the track being out of use. One of these examples is my mint condition Mainline Railways Collett Goods 0-6-0. This was a gift a year or so ago and had yet to take to the rails until this week...

The Collett got on well with some freight wagons and was even spotted on a short passenger train. I do like the old Mainline Railways stuff: it wasn't as detailed but it was certainly durable and powerful. Another previous non-runner was the LMS Patriot "E C Trench". This Hornby 4-6-0 arrived a good year ago and had had yet to take to the tracks. Later in the week, it is seen below hauling a train of LMS coaches along the straight towards the turntable junction...

The Patriot completed its test runs during a running session held this afternoon. Below, another Mainline Railways engine: my 53XX GW Mogul: is seen climbing the bank with Great Western stock...

Last but not least is another shot from Friday. This is my much-loved and reliable Hornby Battle of Britain Class Pacific No34051 "Winston Churchill". This engine has been in the collection for a good few years now and always ran well. They make for a heavy and durable model in 00 gauge...

So there we have it, the garden railway has returned! I am hoping that the 00 gauge metals of the old SSR will see a good few more trains this year as it is in fact 10 years since it was first built: time has flown! As usual I'm sure updates of the garden line will appear on this blog as they happen. Who knows what'll happen. All the best, Sam...

Busy Times at Shack Loco...

Hi everyone. After an enjoyable visit to Chasewater yesterday for their Winter Gala, it was back to normal at Shackerstone today for our Sunday shed working. During the week, the railways Peckett 0-6-0ST "Sir Gomer" had been shunted around to result in her being over the inspection pit. The loco is currently awaiting her annual re-ticket and thus work was carried out to that end today. During the test period, the inspector of a steam boiler will do a dry exam and a steam exam. For this to take place the various plugs and lids around the engine will have to be removed and the boiler will also be washed out if required. "SG" hasn't done a great deal of steamings since her last washout but it was decided to do the job anyway just to be safe. The backhead plugs are seen here removed, as well as both of the corner plugs located lower down...

When talking about steam boilers references may be made to a mud-door or a mudlid. The mudlids are basically larger inspection blanks used to seal inspection holes. A mudlid itself is made to fit inside the mudhole but obviously not to come out. They often go in at an angle and a machined section will have been made so that it fits snugly into the mudhole. There is then a threaded section which then takes the clamp (known as the 'bridge') and a washer followed by a large nut. The machined section of the lid often takes a seal, known as a 'pilot seal', which is there to take up any undulations (no matter how slight) in the plate work or the lid, thus sealing it against steam pressure. "Gomer"s boiler contains 10 mudlids I believe, plus all of the plugs, though other boilers will probably contain more. The fireman's side mudlid can be seen here with the old seal removed...

Here is a quick snap inside "Sir Gomer"s smokebox during the washout. In this shot we can see the two main steam pipes coming down from the header. (The loco is not superheated). The blower ring can be seen making its way in from the right and the blast pipe is duly central. The array of tubes in the background can be clearly seen and the pipe making its way in from the left and angling itself towards the petticoat is the ejector feed from the vacuum system. There are plugs in the smokebox to remove too...

Here we see the selection of plugs and lids removed from "Gomer". All of them will be lightly cleaned of any muck or grime and then refitted when required. All of the mudlids will have brand new seals of course...

I had the hideous job of removing the fusible plugs from the firebox crown. Swinging spanners inside 1859's little box is nothing short of cramp inducing! I tell you what, I got absolutely filthy. There was soot everywhere that soot could be. "Sir Gomer" then enjoyed a good old washout. For those not in the know, a washout is exactly what it sounds like: the boiler is washed out so as to remove any sediment that leaves the boiled water during steamings. In a particularly hard-water area such as ours, washouts are vital for the long term health of the boilers. The engines are treated each time they steam but this doesn't necessarily mean that a washout is not required. The treatment often encourages the sediment (some call it limescale) to stick to it rather than the materials of the boiler. Therefore, during a washout, the whole lot comes out in a kind of brown sludge, pouring from the recently opened mudholes. Todays washout was a fairly clean one for "Sir Gomer", showing her lack of use in recent months. However, the job was still worth doing and got rid of some potentially harmful muck. The boiler will then dry and been inspected dry before being put back together (known as boxing up) before being steamed. We're sure she'll pass with flying colours.

Well, that's one Peckett...what about Dunlop No7? Well...

No7 is enjoying her new stays and more are being fitted every time I see the boiler. Some 300 stays are gradually making their way into the new firebox...

Looking into the firebox we can see the new firebox material and the new stays poking through ready for nutting...

The stays on the outside of the boiler will be corked (or peened over if you like) until a seal is made, as per standard practise. These are the throatplate stays...

"Not To Be Moved", ay? Well, not for much longer we hope!...

Elsewhere in the shed, GWR 3803 is changing by the week. I look forward to displaying some photos of her once the gala weekend of March 28th/29th finally arrives! Outside the shed the cutting is receiving some P-Way work. Some of the track has been lifted and the drains are being redone by contractors. The trackbed will then be dug back, a new base put down and fresh ballast added before the track goes back. A good job well on the way... 

I was at the railway from 11am until around 5pm today and felt a good, productive day was had by all. Thank you all for reading and good evening :) All the best, Sam...

An Industrial's Home: Chasewater Railway...

Hello everyone. Today we had planned a day out to the Chasewater Railway. I hadn't been for 10 years or so and as they had 5 engines in steam for their Winter Gala we felt a visit was worthwhile. 'Eddie the Late' picked me up just after half 9 and we continued via Nuneaton to pick up John. We arrived at Chasewater at around 10:45am and bought a ticket before grabbing a cuppa'. We then caught the 11:20am Brownhills West to Chasetown service behind Hunslet "Holly Bank No3". This 0-6-0 saddle tank is actually "Darfield No1", No3783 of 1953. Three similar engines lived locally at Holly Bank, hence the identity change...

Departing Brownhills West slightly late, bright blue "Holly Bank" steamed around and across the Causeway before arriving at Chasewater Heaths station. After a brief passenger stop, she continued along the final section to the terminus at Chasetown (Church Street) station. The railway is 2 miles long in total and winds its way along the edge of Chasewater. On this chilly Winter day, the wind was cutting! At Chasetown the passenger train pulled into the platform whilst a coal train waited to depart for Brownhills in the run round loop. At the head of the train stood a long term Chasewater visitor; Bagnall 0-4-0ST "Kent No2" (2842 of 1946)...

With a loud blast on her Stanier-type hooter, "Kent No2" got away with the coal wagons rumbling along behind her. Standing alongside "Holly Bank" at the head of the station was the main reason for my visit: "Nechells No4". Built by RSH as No7684 of 1951, "Nechells" is a large 0-6-0 side tank capable of moving well over 1000 tons. Industrials such as this were some of the biggest made and worked their hearts out in power stations. No4 actually worked with our "Richard III" and was based at Shackerstone in her early preservation days. Having been partially restored at Shack, she spent a long time working on the Foxfield railway before moving to Chasewater a couple of years ago. However, this would be her last gala appearance with time ticking away on her boiler certificate, which ends pretty soon. It was nice to see the big RSH in action and looking so well...

Having admired "Holly Bank" & "Nechells", the latter steamed away to take up her place at the head of our service back to Brownhills. Departing Chasetown slightly late, the RSH got the 2-coach train moving without even a breath. Then came the traditional 'Industrial Waddle': the to and fro, the fore and aft. Big outside cylinders and little unbalanced wheels always come together to make industrials bumpy for passenger work. However, one must remember that they were never designed for this purpose. Having alighted from the train at Chasewater Heaths after a very short run from Chasetown, we spotted the gala visitor.

The visitor is an ex-Teddy Boston engine: "Teddy". This 0-4-0 Peckett 'Yorktown' class is a diminutive saddle tank of only 11-tons in weight. One of the smallest standard gauge loco's ever made, the locomotive made a preservation debut at Shackerstone under the care of Teddy Boston: click here for a video of Teddy driving it: dog collar and all. When her boiler ticket expired she was moved to Teddy's Cadeby Light Railway and plinthed on the front garden. When the CLR closed in 2005, the engine was purchased and restored and, following another ownership change, is now owned by former Steam Railway Magazine editor Gary Boyd-Hope. The 1941-built baby Peckett is seen here at Chasewater Heaths...

A stark contrast in size compared to "Teddy", the huge bulk of No4 prepares to depart...

Up in the loft of Chasewater Heaths station is a rather impressive G-Gauge model railway which is well worth a look. A work in progress, the guys were busying themselves with various improvement tasks whilst the trains continued to run...

Walking down from the loft we caught the 'Bay Train' (a brakevan and riding van combination) back to Brownhills. The Bay set was being top & tailed by "Teddy" and Andrew Barclay "Colin McAndrew". We rode in the Shark-type brakevan back to Brownhills and thankfully remained inside the guards covered section as the front veranda was dead level with the Barclay's chimney. I said to the lads that the people there would get covered and my, my did they?! There were quite a few ruined coats and oily faces I can tell you! The Bay train took us back into the goods platform at Brownhills before pulling forward again...

We walked back up onto the platform in the hope of getting some lunch as it was now just before 1pm. The café at Brownhills is pleasant and warm, though the service is tremendously slow. We spotted one lady working away doing food, drinks and delivering them to the table; it was just too much for her and it wasn't her fault. With a massive queue that clearly was not moving and wasn't likely to, we decided to rejoin the Yorktown and the Barclay for a run back to Chasewater Heaths. 1911-built "Colin McAndrew" certainly did some hard work shoving the train and "Teddy" on the way: she sounded great. At Chasewater Heaths, thankfully, the service was much faster and we enjoyed a Full English in the station café. Now folks, prepare yourselves, for the following contains a photo of 'Eddie the Late' about to eat! Here is 'Eddie the Late' about to undertake one of the biggest meals he has ever eaten in his life, being normally used to bringing others to their knees with his hideous 'Three Course Challenge's for which he is notorious in Wales!...

Having eaten our fry up (it was very nice) we returned to the platform to catch another Brownhills train. "Colin McAndrew" was ready and waiting...

We departed Chasewater Heaths at 1:45pm and returned to Brownhills West before detraining. The next stop was the Heritage Centre and the Museum. When Chasewater began its preservation life it was not in the exact location it is now. The M6 Toll decided that its original station would need to move in order to make way for the motorway so one can only assume that a substantial compensation pay-out followed. This money has been well spent on a fantastic heritage centre-style shed which includes a lovely little Museum. Inside the centre stood Chasewater's flagship loco: "Asbestos". A Hawthorn Leslie 0-4-0, "Asbestos" has been out of ticket for a couple of years and is the subject of a £30,000 overhaul appeal. Luckily, to date, over 60% of the money has been raised and so maybe this attractive little engine will move again one day...

Across from "Asbestos" stands Hudswell Clarke 0-6-0 "S100". S100 is a much larger loco and is owned by the same people who own "Nechells No4". The Hudswell is coming along nicely and the chassis looks smart: she just needs a boiler next! Today she was spotted looking outside at her future stamping ground...

Having wandered around the Heritage Centre and the Museum, we came back outside just in time to see "Teddy" and "Colin" departing again. For two little engines they can certainly create some smoke!...

The temperature was now dropping and so we decided to head off after a very pleasant visit. The Chasewater Railway has a surprising collection of industrial stock and offers a steady journey through watery scenery. Why not give it a try? It is so refreshing to see that places like this and Foxfield are upholding the good name of the hard working industrial engine. They may not be perfect for bigger lines and for constant passenger work but on a quiet little heritage railway like this they are perfect. Its so good to see that industrials still have a home. All the best guys, Sam...