Diesel days.

Diesel days.

Saturday on the PWay was a quiet one, as most were on a slinging refresher course. But it was also a diesel gala day, so not without interest.

These large vinyl posters advertised the 3 day event. Broadway had two large vinyls at the bottom of the drive.

In the Winchcombe visitor centre there was a large model railway layout, split into two halves - public, and behind a screen, a large fiddle yard.

Members of the PWay team stare at the model railway...

With a bit of patience you could get some quite realistic shots of the freight trains at 'Abbotswood'.

 

 

We're not that much into model railways, but must admit that the scenery was very well executed. It wasn't too fussy, with the more open spaces that you normally see on the full size railway.

 

From the window of the training centre you also got a good shot of your own trains, and this time, very realistic.

Here 37 215 exchanges tokens with the Winchcombe signalman as the first train of the day heads south.

After a while (and a cup of tea with biscuits in the training centre) the initial train was followed by one headed by the second class 37. Notice the short rake - but with more trains running up and down, one of the reasons we scheduled the training for that Saturday.

 

 

To make use of the day, we decided to get out the Transit and transfer the collected GWR throughbolters to Toddington. 

Here they are, 26 of them, nearly 3/4 of a tonne. They are for the 2807 gang, to turn into boot scrapers, for sale.

We also dropped off 3 hardwood blocks for the loco dept to use. They come from good bits of discarded timbers.

Elsewhere in the loco yard was our visitor from Llangollen, 5310.

Here it is doing some work in the yard.

That work was pushing cold 2807 back into the shed - it was diesel day, after all.

 

Our own class 24 was there too, for inspection.

Not long afterwards, with its engine nicely warmed up, visitor 5310 went out on the main line.

Here it is in the station, just leaving.... backwards. It was on the rear of the Broadway train.

The car park was well filled, with some people having to double park, and also make use of the upper coach park. A quick check of the Cotswolds halt at 11 showed it to be empty. Let's hope that fills up later one with people wanting lunch and a drink. The bar was open too.

The trains looked quite well filled, and the weather was kind, which no doubt helped. Here is our new found pair of class 20s, with the new blue 20 228 out in front.

This combination seemed extra popular, with a lot of enthusiasts hanging out of the window in the first carriage. Unfortunately there is not much noisy action while in our extensive station limits.

In Toddington, the RATs trust has put up two GWR posters from the inter war years that we have sourced. These are weatherproof - they are printed on an aluminium laminate and are colourfast.

The original style of posters on GWR stations of our period was to fix double or quad royal frames to sets of three battens. At Toddington you can still see the shadows on the brickwork where they were. The RATs have replaced one set that was on the end wall; a second set existed on the left, but a non - heritage aware person has put up a single posterboard with a modern poster on it instead.

For a while the original quad royal poster board had modern posters stuck on it too (while we arranged for the replicas from the interwar years, Toddington's period) and these have now been transferred to the modern featherboard fence opposite. Here they still serve their purpose, but no longer affect the period look of the station.

A less frenetic day on the Pway also offered the opportunity of chats with some mates you don't see so often.

We found Margaret, a PWay track walker and member of the Friends of Winchcombe Station, manning the Usk hut, which was open for sales of magazines etc to benefit the FoWS .

It was good to see the Usk hut doing something useful. Margaret had also acquired an excellent antique stool, which was just right for the height of the counter section. 

Note also the filled coal scuttle, and the railwayman's lamp in the fireplace.

Looking good !

Wednesday with the Usketeers on the fence.

Dave is back, we are back to our full strength of 4. That resulted in a great day, and the warm, pleasant weather played its part too.

Neal from Broadway wasn't there, but he had been on Monday, leaving a second arched ridge purlin a long way to completion.

It's here in the foreground. The first is stood upright centre right. Only one more to go, the third.

Neal though he might make a start on the trusses in a fortnight. Now that's progress ! The trusses form the largest item on our to make list.

 

After a welcome cup of coffee at 8 am the Usketeers got to work too, in blazing sun shine. (at last)

Each week we dig two post holes, and concrete in the relative grandfather posts.

Then the week after we can add the woodwork, while John digs the holes for the following week.

 

On the left Paul is fixing the rails, while John and Dave, under the big tree, are digging holes.

Yours truly completed the capping on the featherboard fence, and dug a post hole for the retainer post for the gate. Then it was more creosoting, to keep up with the others - such fun!

A cabin hook was fitted to the smaller of the two gates, so that these are now ready, except for the drop bolt in the middle.

The tree visible in the picture above was a concern. It is very tall indeed, and our fence would pass right in front of it.

 

Undaunted, Dave started digging the post hole, and by luck or skill managed not to find any large roots.

Here the post hole, 2ft deep, has just been completed.

The featherboard gate has had its length of capping too. The little gap on the right still needs filling, but we haven't had time. The gap is used very frequently, we wonder why there is a gate at all?

We heard a distant roar above us, and took the shot below, with maximum zoom.

Is that a B52 there, accompanied by two fighters? They were heading SW, generally in the direction of the USA...

We were pleased to see that the latest permanent GWR poster that we have sourced is now up. The location is the P2 waiting room at Toddington.

Cheltenham Races (1936!) is very fitting for our line.

Soon it was lunch time.

We treated ourselves to rolls filled with suasages and onions - delicious! Dave certainly thought so.

During the day we took down the first panels of Heras fencing, to reveal the post and rail fence behind. The Heras fence is supported periodically by a triangle behind, and that gets in the way of the permanent fence that we are erecting.

Mid afternoon it was time to concrete in the grandfather posts into the holes dug earlier the same day.

Note how close to our fence route that big tree is. Keeping to the required distance of 1m from the kerb here could be tricky.

 

But the concrete post by the big tree went in as well, we were lucky there. We also took down some of the invasive ivy up the tree.

The last thing we did today was to set the gate retaining post inside the featherboard fence.

Next week it will receive a cabin hook, and then that's the gate finished.

The material to close the gap is stored up against the fence, so we are ready for the job, just too busy with the next one.

 

We've been storing the liberated Heras fencing panels upright against the paling fence, but today the steam dept came and requested that we let them have half a dozen for their wood pile.

All the other panels will eventually have to go back into storage, so that is half a dozen fewer that we have to deal with. Good for both parties then.

 

At the end of the day we called in at Broadway, where John and Neal have been laying bricks, after a temporary hiatus when we ran out of black dye powder.

A big roll of 225mm DPC has been found, and this enabled John to make a start on the second course of blues along the plinth.

Two mixes were made - more than usual - and John reckons he put down over 100 blues. Great progress here too then.

To round off the day we relaxed outside the cafe with a slice of cake and a cuppa. Life is good....

A GWR 2-8-0 beyond hope.

Or so we thought. This Barry wreck was retrieved from the P&BR in 2011 and taken to the K&ESR. It had stood on a Welsh mountainside for 24 years, exactly the same number of years that it had stood in the scrapyard. It was the last 4200 to be extracted, so all the useful bits were missing.

Photo credit: 4253 Locomotive Co Ltd.

How could this rusty thing ever run again? All the connecting and coupling rods were missing, all the brass fittings, the chimney base shattered, tanks, cab and bunker only good for patterns.

We signed up though !

It was estimated to be a 10 - 12 year project, and so far we have had - 12 years. But it's nearly ready, not bad for a team on the KESR that has never restored a Barry wreck before.

The bunker before...

... and the bunker after, a complete refabrication.

These two pictures give you an idea of the extent of the work that was necessary. And of the quality achieved.

The reason for this blogpost is the excellent news that the boiler has returned from its overhaul. It too has had extensive work done, which has rather depleted the coffers for the final push towards its relaunch.

 

Here the boiler has just been hauled into the yard at Rolvenden. The frames, bunker and smokebox of 4253 are in the foreground.

 

Amazing, but within 40 minutes the overhauled boiler was back in the frames.

All the rods were missing, and had to be traced or completely remade. But they're on now.

When they saw the wreck of 4253, out in the open air for 48 years, many people thought that this was an impossible project. Too far gone, too expensive, they'll never raise the money.

Well, here is their answer:

 

 (Three photo credits: Alan Crotty, 4253 Locomotive Co Ltd.)

 

The restoration is still not fully funded, there is still a gap. If you would like to give them a hand for the final push, you can do so here:

https://www.4253.co.uk/how-to-help/

Two other restoration projects on the KESR are also of interest:

This 'boiler on wheels' is the next project for the 4253 people. It came from the same source, not long after 4253 arrived on the KESR. This is GWR 0-6-2 5668, which has spent a similar length of time at Barry and at the P&BR. As you can see it is completely bare, but some new parts for it have already been made, in parallel with its larger brother.

The other interesting item is another rare GWR survivor, railcar W20W. That actually ran in 1974 immediately after the KESR reopening, but was soon withdrawn due to bodywork issues. It too has seen an extensive overhaul, which is nearing completion.

Maybe if we ask the KESR very very nicely, they will lend it to us for a little while? Those railcars did run on our line, we have a picture of one passing Long Marston signal box. Now wouldn't that be nice.

Your blogger still has a roneoed set of operating instructions printed 50 years ago !