Essential maintenance

Toddington - the unloading road.

Work on this was paused during last year, but its half finished state is an operational hindrance, and a bit of a safety hazard for people using that bit of the yard (mainly contractors finishing off the mess room).

It was therefore decided to complete the concreting job, using a contractor and a couple of volunteers to prepare it. An initial section was concreted a week ago, as in the picture.

Here is the section completed last week. It includes the area between the containers and the mess room extension, on the right.

 

The canopy team was then requested to place the edging strips that they had made (we are not allowed to work on the canopy completion as it is not 'essential') and here they are carrying out the strips which were then welded (temporarily) to the running rails.

Today the concrete supplier came again, this time working from the car park end. Here is the concrete pump, and the lorry making on the spot concrete for it.

At the business end of the supply pipe the concrete started to come out in spurts, and it was raked level by the contractors.

Around lunch time this is as far as they had advanced. In the foreground is a cross drain which will take away the water that used to stand in large puddles along here. By the end of the day it was hoped to reach the sliding door of the goods shed, leaving a third and final section still to do.

Before the concrete came, Neal and yours truly hurriedly dug out the guide rail below the original sliding door along the side. It was about to be buried in 9 inches of concrete. The guide rail is of cast iron and was set in granite blocks, which proved a challenge to undo without damage, but we got there.

On the left the cast iron guide rails after removal, om the right Neal struggling the granite blocks, trying to recover the rail without breaking it. Now it is safe, and we plan to refit it into the new concrete once it has gone off.

 

 

 

 A quick look into the loco shed shows these two bits, marked with a large L and R. Well, that's clear. They are off 2807. Is this what they call 'stuffing boxes'?

 

Outside the new mess room - still being fitted out as we write - here is a detail of the new replica lamps. We are very pleased with the quality. These have a door underneath, rather than on top, such as the budget ones we fitted at Broadway. You can also get them with the correct side doors.

 

Finally a picture from Sunday, when there was a light snowfall:

The Cotswolds Edge is still pretty, despite winter and lockdown. This picture was taken near Dover's Hill on Sunday. We have to do regular walks, as staying at home and writing blogs is clearly fattening. Sadly.

 

 

Cromford & High Peak in colour

Derek continues with his tales of steam in 1963.

Continuing with my bike tour of Derbyshire and here are some more views of the Cromford & High Peak Railway in July 1963.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Between the top of Sheep Pasture incline and the bottom of Middleton incline the railway passes a massive outcrop known as Black Rocks.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The next view is taken from the top of Hopton Incline which was originally operated with a winding engine similar to the other inclines but in 1877 it became single track and relied on locomotive power to ascend the 1 in 14 gradient. It was still in use at the time of my visit but I did not capture any workings. There was an occasion when a derailment occurred on the approach to the foot of the incline when, taking a run at it, the locomotive became derailed by spreading the track through excessive nosing, unfortunately with fatal consequences. 

 

I mentioned last week how the route has characteristics similar to those that might have been found with a canal. Below is Gotham Curve which has a radius of 2.5 chains and turns the line through 80 degrees.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Continuing northwest here is Hindlow tunnel on part of the route that the LNWR straightened out and doubled the track.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Getting closer to the end of the original route and the part of the line that had been abandoned, and here is the north portal of Burbage tunnel. No, I didn't fancy looking beyond the tunnel mouth. It was very dark. 

 

Back on the section of line upgraded by the LNWR and 4F 0-6-0 44339 is seen shunting at Parsley Hay. Just south of here the upgraded line diverges towards Ashbourne, away from the original C&HPR route.

LMS 4F 44339 shunting at Parsley Hay and its wooden platforms.

 

 

 For our classic diesel friends:

Whilst still on my week in Derbyshire I also spent time looking at the Derby to Manchester Midland mainline. A chance bonus at the beginning of a new film and I pointed the camera expecting to get a blank picture, but instead here is a Peak class heading north light engine, near Rowsley.

Then a walk to Haddon Tunnel by an obscure (!) route gave me the next three pictures. First, heading a southbound freight approaching the tunnel, is ex WD 2-8-0 90204.

Turning to face the tunnel mouth Standard Class 5 73137 is heading a northbound freight.

I guessed that this would have a banker, so with camera at the ready..... lo and behold Fairburn 2-6-4T 42225 arrived. I am sure the crew were relieved to be back out in the fresh air.

 

The same scenes today give these pictures:

WD 90204 came along here, at the tunnel's upper end.

The western approach to Haddon tunnel, with the former headshunt on the right in the bushes.

Here is where 73137 came out of the tunnel mouth, and again that headshunt on the right.

Note how shallow the tunnel roof is.

This is because there was actually no need for the tunnel, the owner of Haddon Hall just wanted the trains to disappear while passing through his property. So the line runs behind the hall, underground but only just, for just over 1000 yards.

Haddon Hall today. Worth a visit, despite the aversion to steam.

Also, as an update to Derek's 1963 pictures of the Middleton Top incline, here are two pictures from 2015 which show the situation today:

A wagon by the Middleton Top engine house, with the incline falling away steeply by the signal.

The engine house still exists, and you can rent cycles here to follow the old trackbed.

Middle Peak quarry

You can also see the chimney of Middleton Top engine house in this picture, taken across the gigantic quarry after a short walk up from Wirksworth village, home to the EVR.

Turntable update

Good progress has been made with finding this a new home. Two candidates stepped forward to take it over as a job lot, and a final selection has now been made. We now await arrangements to have it moved to its new owners. We won't give the name away for the time being, but they may well make this known by themselves.

An on-site inspection took place today to take some measurements, and to find out exactly what there is. We also had a party interested in the vacuum motor alone, but that was not a feasible option. First of all, the turntable was offered and taken as a job lot, and secondly the inspection today revealed that the vacuum motor is an integral part of the structure, and cannot be removed from it. It's not just a bolt on power unit, but the drive on it forms one of the four wheels underneath. You can't take that away on its own.

Here are some pictures of the vacuum motor, which we found an interesting piece of technology:

The vacuum motor, inside.

Maintenance instructions

Operating instructions

 

 

This is why vacuum motor and turntable can't be separated. The cogwheel on the right is connected to the running wheel on the left, which is one of 4 that run along the ring rails.

The vacuum supply hose is in the foreground.

Do you 'supply' a vacuum ??? It sucks, doesn't it?

 

 

If you look closely you can see that the running wheel was not positioned correctly on the ring rail during its service life, and the ring rail has bitten into the cogwheel that is driven by the vacuum motor.

We also found that the motor was supplied by Cowans Sheldon of Carlisle, but the main running wheels are marked Ransomes & Rapier, Ipswich. Was the motor sub contracted, or did the firms merge / work together? The worksplate is no longer there to see.

More next week.