A pause for thoughts.

Monday at Broadway.

A dry (-ish) day at last, and the merry gang was back on the footbridge centre span, undercoating the very last bit of the roof, topcoating the second-to-last bit, while Neal was making rapid progress with the treads towards the end of the span, after we had moved the chunky pile of T&G to the middle section again. There it was stored on rollers, so that we can roll it somewhere, should there be a next time. Yes, we are lazy...

Dave of the Broadway gang was very proud to show us the new HAYLES ABBEY HALT running in board, which according to the cunning plans will last a lot longer than the first one. We shall see. But - the plywood backboard used in the first version has now been replaced by three big boards of T&G. The same letters are being used again, because we are using castings in Aluminium now. They last, and look right. It's worth taking the trouble.

While clearing that big pile of T&G boards, we also had to move the sample timbers we stored up there. They come from the original footbridge in Henley in Arden.  A lot of the woodwork was rotten, depending on the direction of the wind and rain. But some was still almost perfect, like this panel.

Neal was going to drag it out of the way, then had a brainwave - why not keep it in the place where it came from?

 And this is that place, half way up the steps. You can now see what all that T&G board will be used for.
Basically there is a diamond shaped frame around the panel, and it's the parts of that frame that need all the shaping work done.

Here Neal is holding one in its place. In the middle of the boards you can make out a little square - that is the place of a handrail support. We have those.

We have the top member of each frame, spindle moulded by our C&W team. The other 3 parts of each frame, and the cross members, will now be shaped by a joiner that we have found in a nearby village. Because his mother used to cycle to Broadway to take the train to work in Cheltenham, there was a great rapport with us rebuilding the station, and he gave us a very friendly rate. Thanks!

 Neal decided to keep the panel in place, and here he's clamping a piece of timber on, which will help to keep the panel up.

Here's the panel from a distance, in a moment of golden sunshine late afternoon.

We're going to be taking the timber, currently in store at Winchcombe, to the joiner on Friday. When it comes back, we'll be painting it with wood preservative and then primer, before Neal also gives it some attention. Hence, after a bit of a hiatus recently as the wood was held up, we are back on the fast track on the footbridge. We'd like to have it finished for the next season.




Wednesday at Winchcombe

 A bright sunny day, and a full mess coach.

In view of the chilly temperature though, the doughnuts were heated, and Mike, front left, is testing the first one.

A discussion about lime mortar is taking place at the rear. Unusual stuff, lime mortar.

Paul checking the dismantling file of the Usk building.

We've mugged up a bit on the stuff, and the advice is that we shouldn't use it when there is frost around. The stuff goes off by the absorption of CO2 from the atmosphere, and it takes several months. Given the advice, we have decided not to build the stone walls during this winter, which we hope you will appreciate is a prudent decision.

We have an alternative build in mind during the winter, and talks are being held about that. All the materials are already there.

The door of the building is in store round the corner, so today we had a measure up and Paul gave a bit of advice on how it will interact with the floor.

As you can see, the bottom of the door has been affected by rot, especially by the frame, as these timbers, being vertical, absorb moisture from below.

In this original picture in the Usk goods yard you can see how the bottom of the door disappears behind a low brick wall. This wall is a later addition, and we believe was built to hold back the ground level, which was raised around the building over the years. The original ground level is visible in the trench on the left.

The rot probably occurred when water ran down the door and was trapped behind the low wall.




We decided to have the door ending above the new sill, so will advise the joiner to repair it accordingly. It shouldn't be too hard. The old sill is broken in two, and after hunting round Winchcombe yard we decided that a slice off an old CRC sandstone platform slab was about the right material, thickness and look. We just need to find someone with a disk cutter to cut us a slice off. Hopefully next week that.

The main Wednesday gang was out along the line today. This gang here on Chicken curve cleared the sleeper eds of recently swept ballast, so that the track walkers could readily identify faults.

The other gang was out replacing cracked fishplates. Two more spent the day sorting out our store of them.

Getting the tools back at the end of the day from Chicken Curve was easy - just barrow them a few 100yds back home, cup of coffee to finish, job done!

A glance along the way down on the Isbourne showed that the contractors were now working with piled sheets, rather than the big pipes originally intended. With all this rain recently (as opposed to October 2018) the Isbourne has had days of very high water.

We should get a separate blog report for this shortly. Then the full strategy will be revealed!




In other news we noticed this unusual set of bench ends in the C&M shed. They have been donated to us as coming from Monmouth.

Middle piece.

Bench end.

We wonder if any readers can say more about this design. It is not a GWR design as far as we know (scripted, or later roundel bench ends) and normally we would have said this is a Victorian garden ornament, but for the apparent Monmouth connection, and the fact that there are three of them. That would be a big garden bench.

Any ideas?

The first stone

Monday at Broadway.

A fine day, but a man down. Lots of condensation around, but thanks to the sun peeping through, the centre span roof panels soon warmed up. It's amazing how quickly they get warm.

The work painting the centre span ceiling is finally drawing to a close. Today, we painted the last panel with its third coat, topcoat light stone.

Staring up at the ceiling for extended periods is painful for the neck, so we were glad for a spot of lunch and a chat with the other Broadway lads in the cabin.

After lunch we continued with the last painting task remaining - the structural steel angles, which had been either rusting, or simply the wrong colour scheme.

You can see evidence of that in the above picture, where the middle of the angle around the rivets was painted in light stone when the whole things was put back together a few years ago now.



While we were staring at a sticky light stone ceiling, and flicking away occasional cluster flies that fell into you neck or up your sleeve, Neal concluded fitting the treads to the upper landing, and started on the treads in the bridge span itself.

Fitting these treads should be a bit faster, as they were never bolted down. They just need trimming, and seating properly to stop them moving when walking across.

Neil did the first half a dozen today. Another reason for doing them now is that the rolling scaffold is no longer being used on the ceiling panels, so can be pushed out of the way. It's now a few panels further along, dealing with the dark stone angle painting.








Wednesday at Winchcombe.

A good dry day, just right for cracking on with the weighbridge.

As these things happen on the railway, and wearing an Usk hat as well as a footbridge hat, yours truly was however asked to be at Winchcombe for a delivery of timber for Broadway.

This somewhat ruined the eagerly anticipated tea and several doughnuts usually consumed in the mess coach. Instead, the timber lorry arrived early at 08.25 and was keen to dispose of its load and move on.

Seven 4.50m lengths of 6x3 ins timbers were dropped off - these are for the footbridge and need shaping by a joiner.

The load up in the air is T&G for more replica signage and poster boards at Broadway, both for P1 and the future P2 building.


The T&G was taken north. Having made the first 4 poster boards already on Broadway station, we're now getting quite good at making these. Several more are in the pipeline, as well as two large double sided hanging signs with 'WAY OUT - Over The Footbridge' and one of those pointing hands in use 100 years ago. We have already secured the replica cast letters for them - planning ahead! We also have the WAITING ROOM V board, as well as the relative doorplate in store.

The Usketeers had no knowledge of all this, and simply started work. Maxie was got out and manhandled on to her high chair. She sprang into life without protest, despite the sleep of several months in the corrugated iron lamp hut.

The first block.

After some head scratching and a first delivery of 'muck' the first stone was laid on the Usk weighbridge building at Winchcombe.

Here is Paul with the first concrete block (above which we will use the original stone) and it has just been laid. The rebuild is now officially ON !

It's thataway round, can't you see?

There soon followed a debate - which apparently had simmered for several hours while yours truly was moving timber - about the orientation of the building, and what the 4 different corners were to be described as.

Paperwork and plans were consulted.

The plans gave the 4 corners names of the 4 points of the compass, but what would that be at Winchcombe?

It was decided to stick to the plan, even if the SE corner was actually the NE one in the present location. Simple, no?

A dab of mortar was put in each corner, and the compass points at Usk - so not the actual one, geddit - were inscribed in them.

Here Neil is inscribing NW in the SW corner. It's so logical, we shouldn't need to explain it all again here. Just bear with.




Sadly the subsequent rain after lunch and a few careless boots put paid to the lettering scheme on 3 out of the 4 dabs of mortar. But one remains, so we'll work from that.

No more trains now of course, but what is this? Is it a diesel hauled auto train being tested? The hire of the 14XX is so expensive....

Neil made the first load of mortar. However, filling Maxie with half a bucket of water as usual afterwards to keep the drum clean was a bad idea in this damp weather.

Without adding any more water at all, even 12 shovels of damp sand were unable to stiffen the slurry that resulted while making the second mix. Tricky, but we did get out of it in the end.

We were soon laying more blocks, with two block layers at work.

Here Paul and Peter are about to meet in the middle on the first side.

It's the West side, which is really the West, because we are putting the hut up facing the other way round. Are you still with us?

We also decided to move our pile of sand nearer to the building. This is possible now that the foundations are in, and the pit back filled, to give a more level site all round.

Dave brought the pile round to under the tree with the Telehandler, after first dealing with a puncture incurred last week.

This is going to be much easier with Maxie stationed here, right next to the building.

This picture, mid afternoon, shows the West side done, and a start being made by Peter on the, er, next side.

Some thick rubber sheets have been found to make the surrounding area a bit more mud free.

Next comes the East side (by the platform).

To resume: the building will have its door facing the tree, to keep the chimney away from under it.

The big window will be moved to the other side (from the door's point of view) so that it overlooks the platform.

Here the first two sides have had the damp proof layer laid out, although not yet fixed down with mortar. We'll do that next week.

Finally we made it to the South end (really the north) and started the return.

Here we ran out of concrete blocks. We only need a handful more, but don't have any at the moment.

In the background Dave is bringing the remaining bits and pieces to rebuild our mortar making station.

The a quick check with the tape measure across the end to see where the middle is, and where the temporary door frame will go.

We have the original door and it's quite chunky, but the bottom 6 inches have rotted. We need someone to repair that for us. C&W can't help with their joinery, as they are currently fully committed. We may have to go outside the railway.

At the end of the day we rebuilt Maxie's throne, nice and level, and right next to the pile of red sand we moved.

A nice little cameo was spotted too, as three burly men manhandled a reluctant Maxie back into the corrugated iron hut, rather roughly we felt. Too late for a photograph, dang. Better luck next time.

Next week we hope to set out the four corners with stone quoins.

Has it gone off yet?

Monday at Broadway.

A fine day, but cold and windy. Condensation under the roof sheets, so need to wait for the sun to burn it off.

That wait is a chance to put together another replica GWR poster board.

Those boards have to be sawn to length perfectly, otherwise you can't close the special moulding round the edges (from bitter experience - although glued, one sprang open again after a few days).

Some of the new boards will replace non-heritage items on P1. Others will be for the P2 building, for which discussions are ongoing. There's a feeling it's going to happen.

Neal of course is in the shelter of the side sheets, so doesn't feel the icy wind (although he says that he does!)

He's getting another tread ready here, now on the top landing. As the boards are second hand, ex HIA, they are not all of uniform size, so each needs prepping specially for its own little place.

Once a board is ready to be laid in, Neal has to drill the holes in the bottom angles.

There are no old holes to use, as the towers are all new, the HIA ones having rusted through.

Here is the second to last one being prepared. Once the landing is done, Neal will start on the centre span treads. They are all laid in, but not yet bolted down, so wobble as you walk over them.

Children of the former station employees recalled that they used to stand up here and watch the steam come up through the gaps in the treads, a special thrill for them.

A bit further along the painters - John and yours truly - are now on the last two of the 7 roof panel sections. We're just applying the second undercoat here, the sheets having finally dried off.

Over John's head is still one of the roof hoops in light stone, which is the wrong colour. There's also a row of rust spots along the bottom edge of the angles. This was rubbed off and a rust fixer applied. The angles along the top look new, and the paint on them looks thin, probably the reason they are rusting, as the other, original angles are fine.




Wednesday with the Usketeers.

Has the concrete gone off? Yes, but it can cure a while longer, and get harder still. The process goes on for a long time.

Paul started off by prising away at the shuttering, which proved to be very resistant to pulling away. Who on earth put all those nails in?

We embraced a request to get some Heras fencing round the site, so went across to the other side of the yard to find some.

The contractors working on the river Isbourne were filling sandbags there as well. Note the neat little funnel, apparently made up out of an old traffic cone.

This is the site where the contractors are reinforcing the river banks.

Note the life belt! Nothing can go wrong here, they even had a little boat, leaning against the hedge. Next stop down the river, Dumbleton.

This is the other, Winchcombe side of the river, as it passes under the Chicken Curve embankment in two sharp meanders.

Dinmore Manor then entered the station, with the first down train, and when it returned an hour later from CRC we saw it well filled, even this late in the season. Just a few more days to go. We heard from station staff that the trains might be well filled, but not much cash was being handed over in fares, as these are the last days you can use your 2019 shareholder's vouchers.

The balancing train was the DMU, also quite well occupied.

We put some of the Heras fencing up on each side of our little site.

Upppppp !

We then set about removing the concrete sleepers that we had put in to support the shuttering. Neil is giving directions to Dave in the Telehandler.

No, dooooown!

Out at last.

The sleepers were not so easy to get at, particularly these two along the platform edge here. We dragged it, rather than lift it. They then went on a pile, ready for returning to their place of origin - the pile of scrap concrete sleepers in the yard.

Where are you off to then?

The Telehandler once again proved its versatility, particularly after having a slow puncture re-inflated.

Our very own driver Dave was back from hols in Greece, and the British weather proved itself for everything for which it was reputed - cold and wet. But not today.

These mini Mars bars make you very dreamy.

Paul always surprises us with little treats. First it was doughnuts - a tradition started by him on the Hayles Abbey project - and today we were offered mini mars bars. 'Go on - HAVE ONE', we were encouraged. We accepted one, so as not to cause offence.

By noon time the weather was quite fine - after an icy, window scraping start - and this allowed Dinmore Manor to make a lively start with plenty of steam.

Rods down and lots of steam - a photographer's dream on the GWSR.

Shortly afterwards there was a loud clatter. Eh? It was the dropping of tools, and a bee-line was made for the mess coach at the bottom of the yard.

Others, from the PWay side, arrived from Broadway, where they had been recording the newly laid track assets, starting from the northern buffer stops.

Returning to the mess coach, we found Roger from the 2807 Boot Scraper Enterprise Ltd rummaging round our store of cast iron chairs.

The boot scrapers he makes are sourced from discarded GWR though bolters that we pass on, and they have all sorts of dates on them. Every now and then a customer demands a specific date. This time, it was 1969. Tricky.

We hope the customer didn't specify that it had to be a GWR chair as well.


Other good news were spotted at lunch time:

The chimney liners for our Usk building have arrived! When we build a chimney, we build a proper one.

After lunch, and with all the shuttering removed, disassembled and all the nails pulled back out, we started to back fill the space around the concrete slab.

Dave picked up big bucket loads of clay and soil from a pile further down the yard.

The first bucket load went into the corner. Neil watched over it as the bucket was emptied.

Then some down the side, and the next load went into the SW corner.

Rob, normally on the PWay side, helped us for the day and is leaning helpfully on a shovel here.

He was 2 hours late this morning, due to yet another road closure on the motorway.

More soil went into the southern side, once we had cleared the pile of concrete blocks put there last week to start off the first course.

All the blocks are now in the middle of the slab, and next week, weather permitting, we will put the first course on, after setting out the site.

Then it was the turn of the NE corner. Bit trickier here, as the Telehandler can't reach all of the way.

The whole site needs to come up a bit, to reach the tops of the platform wall blocks on the edge. When they are put in.

Mid afternoon Dinmore Manor brought more happy travellers from CRC. Those with shovels were pleased for the opportunity to stop and wave.

Finally the SW corner was filled in.

Having brought as much soil as he could, Dave drove the Telehandler as close to the foundation slab as possible, to compact the soil. This worked quite well.

The trip hazard of the open trench all round is now gone, and next week we can finally start building that Wendy House. Sorry, Usk weighbridge hut.

We finished the day in the Coffeepot, but not before consuming vast amounts of sugar from another one of Paul's little treats.

This time it was Liquorice Allsorts, and they are, sadly, very moreish.