Warm at last.

Wednesday with the Usketeers.

Just the two of us again today, as Dave has pulled a sickie. We hope that this isn't turning into working from home, by the back door. Hope he gets better soon.

 

 

 

So two of us in the hut, and today's task was to fit as many of the remaining bricks as possible. Because of the angle here, many of them have to be cut to size, which slows things down a bit.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The half bricks are easy enough, Paul just marked them with a crayon.

Cut them in half, and they slip in nicely. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In the fireplace it was harder, as every brick here has an angle to it.

We also decided the raise the bed of the fireplace a bit, so a second course of bricks will go in here. 

The doorway will also get a raised course, to stop the rainwater from running in, as it did before.

 

 

During a mid morning visit to the C&M workshops we noticed that these timbers for the Winchcombe canopy were getting some nice attention.

There was also a vast pile of dagger boards, awaiting restoration. Dagger boards are complicated, with all the holes in them, which are always made up out of two halves (that don't always line up).

 

During the morning we also had an unexpected visit from Julian, who readers may remember worked on the Usk hut with us. Following a house move he now lives further away, so we see less of him, and so this visit was a very pleasant surprise.

Julian was on a test drive with this new model Morgan. What's it like, Jules?

Before we knew it, we were in the driving seat! We could get used to this...

It has a 2L 4 cyl turbocharged engine, and a body made of aircraft grade aluminium. 0 - 60 in 4 seconds...

This is an export model, you can have the driver's seat on the other side of course.

 

 

 

All too soon we had to get out again (not so easy these days) and it was back to brick cleaning, and brick laying floors. 

Here Paul is in the corner that used to be a big lump of concrete.

 

We also noticed that the floor seemed much drier this morning, so something must be working.

 

 

We had a good chat with Carriage and Wagon too, and they helped us with some nuts for these threaded bars that we got from Broadway. They are for our next project...

We also had a nice dive into the metal skip at Winchcombe. That is always worth a look.

 

 

Here we found a signal post lamp (donated to the RATs shop at Toddington) and this lovely cast iron fire bucket bracket.

As it happens we need three brackets for the Broadway P2 project, but this one may not be of GWR origin. Anyone know which company used this design?

 

 

The shape we are looking for is the black one, which has a GWR pattern number cast into it. They are distinguishable by the pointed top.

Has anyone got any more of the GWR type to give to us? We need 2 more. We could swap with the red one, and /or some others that we have.

 

 

 

 

Another 'want' that we have is a ring for this SUGG Rochester gas lantern. We have a glass bowl for it, but the ring which holds it in place (in two C sections) is missing.

 

Where can we get a ring for this?

 

 

 

 

PWay on Wednesday.

Went out to Gotherington, after finding the white Transit in the compound - gone ! Shock ! Someone else was faster at 9am. All the tools had to be piled up in the back of the Ranger, with the larger items on a trailer they attached to the back.

 

 

 

 

There was a good turnout for the gang today, no doubt helped by the excellent weather.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

They worked on the northern loop turnout, known as G8. Sounds like a summit meeting...

The re-timbering of this was started a while back, and finally completed today.

Another job ticked off the list. 

A separate unit, consisting of Simon and Steve, oiled all the fishplates from CRC to Bishops Cleeve, a distance of 2.75 miles.

We call that quite an achievement.

Interesting to note that the Interflon is being applied here with hand pumps, and not with the intended back packs, which have proved very troublesome in the past. They were always getting blocked.

 

 

 

Broadway P2 waiting room.

Still no brick laying, entirely due to the continuing below 3 degrees temperatures at night that we have been having. We can't risk the mortar freezing under the bricks.

John and Neal laid bricks today, but as the photographer was at Winchcombe, there are no pictures of that.

We hope to make progress later this week, when it gets significantly warmer.

 

 

 

A look over the fence.

We recently had cause to visit a certain car park, while on away day.

 

 

 

 

 

On the edge of the car park there was a concrete telegraph post, with a bracket for a lamp. That looked familiar....

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A footpath took us to the back of this perfectly preserved canopy, in green and cream.

The area under the canopy was divided into several individual areas. Clearly no more trains here, and the building has been divided up

The front of the building - clearly now a station, and in beautiful condition, was hidden behind a large solid double gate, and a small side gate for pedestrian visitors.

By standing on our toes, we managed to peer over the top of the side gate, and took this picture. It's quite a large station building, with adjacent stationmaster's house. All now private, and subdivided into different properties.

Does this ring a bell yet?

When the station (and double track railway line) closed in 1968, the stationmaster continued to live there, and afterwards his widow until 1999. This ensured its perfect preservation. It's now even grade II listed, and the station itself divided into 3 properties.

The route on which the station stands forms part of a potential alternative to a GWR route that is plagued by errosion. Part of the closed route has since been reactivated, and there are plans to re-open this piece as well, for which (according to Wikipedia) the government has earmarked £150m, subject to an updated business plan being approved. 

Adjacent to the station, high above its town, is a stone viaduct and then a tunnel.

 

Sounds fabulous. Where do you think it is ?

 

 

 

Absent friends.

Amazing but true, we were once the home of a Hoover. It was 50021 RODNEY. (D421, or Delboy / Dave, as some called it)

 

27 03 1993

 

 

Thanks to Ivor Dixon, we have a couple of photographs of RODNEY, while it was on the GWSR.

Here it is, alongside the Dowty shed, accompanied by two 03 shunters, and two class 14 locomotives.

 

 

 

 

The Hoover was purchased for preservation in 1989 from Stratford (London) by the 50021 Locomotive Association. By 1992 it is reported to have run on the GWSR (although on Ivor's picture in 1993 it looks pretty boxed in)

10 07 1994

We know that it ran in 1994 because we can see Ivor himself in the cab at Toddington alongside platform 2, but by 1999 it had moved to the Bo'ness Railway. There, however, it suffered a serious ETH generator failure. After that it was stored at Tyseley, back down south again.

In 2014 RODNEY  was sold to new owners 50021 Owners Ltd, and a second restoration started at Eastleigh works.

We believe that this restoration has now been completed, and that the loco visited a number of other railways in 2024, but where it is based now is not clear to us.

Of course all our motive power is owned by third parties on the GWSR, and we can't tell them what to do, but this, or indeed a Western, would surely be a magnificent addition to our home fleet. Perhaps as a visitor for a future gala? 

Finally, Broadway had this image in a little picture frame, and didn't know what to do with it. So we have scanned it in, for any views/information from our readers. Unfortunately there is nothing written on the back of the photograph.

Who am I ?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Is this a guard? Which railway company would it be? The house is possibly made of Cotswolds stone, and we think there is an 'R' on his collar, with very possibly a 'W' before it. We can't quite make out the buttons.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here is a close up of the buttons.

Anyone recognise the letters on them?