Christmas Quiz - Round Two

The first Xmas quiz rounds seems to have been, frankly, embarrassingly easy. It lasted only a couple of hours before a full set of answers were received. For the record, the answers are:-

1 Stoke on Trent - including the site of Kerr Stuart's works

2. Edinburgh

3. Stafford - Bagnall's premises are visible

4. Crewe

5. Cheadle Hulme

6. Manchester Piccadilly

7. York

8. Carlisle

9. Cologne - The Deutz works is just off the photo to the right, across the Rhine. 

10. Blackpool

I am not going to let this setback defeat me. Round Two is based on Movies, Songs and Books - the full Amazon product range. However, there is a railway theme throughout. Ready? Okey Dokey.

1:- Book. "A Scarlet steam engine was waiting next to a platform packed with people......Smoke from the engine drifted over the heads of the chattering crowds....Owls hooted to each other in a disgruntled sort of way"

A:- What platform did this train leave from? B:- What was the destination? C:- From what London station did the Author THINK it would leave from?

2:- Film. A 1964 film starring Burt Lancaster saw the destruction, for real, of a French marshalling yard. Name of the film?

3:- Song. What was Kraftwerk's song about long distant trains?

4:-  Song. "Deltics and steamers and F88s in full flight". Artist and Album, please. Also, why on earth did he choose one of the Cold War's most obscure aircraft?

5:- Film. This, and the next two question, take Chicago as a common theme. Which 1993 film, based on a 1960s TV serial, saw a train demolishing a prison bus and the Chicago Elevated Railway as key plot points?

6:-  Film. Which 1980 cult film also had the Chicago Elevated Railway almost as a cast member, had a scene short in the remains of the 2'0" gauge Chicago Tunnel Railway and saw the cast singing about the Missouri–Kansas–Texas Railroad?

For a bonus point, name the 1950 movie which uses the 2'0" Chicago Tunnel Railway as a key part of the film climax?

7:- Film. Which rather bewildering 2011 film sees the hero repeatedly making the same journey on a Chicago commuter train?

8:- Song. A plaque on the waiting room wall at Widnes station commemorates the writing of which Simon and Garfunkel song?

9:- Book (and TV serial and radio play). By Neil Gaimen, this book saw the hero meeting people who took their names from London place names, including many Tube stations. The TV serial included a sequence shot on the 2'0" gauge Post Office Railway. What is the name of the book?

10:- Book (and now film). My namesake was a RailwayMan. Where did he work and who was his involuntary employer?

Answers to here - and a happy Christmas to everyone reading.

Time for Santa to crack on with the main job

It's time for Santa to leave Apedale and get on with the preparations for the Big Day. You can follow his progress here if so inclined. The Santa campaign at Apedale this year seems to have been a great success - almost 100% train occupancy - from what I saw, somewhat in excess of 100% in a few cases. Not quite at Indian Railways levels, but not far off. So, if you are reading this and came to see us as a visitor, a BIG THANK YOU - every penny you spend with us goes towards continuing the work of the Trust. If you are reading this and helped out - even just as an armchair member of the Trust - an EVEN BIGGER THANK YOU - this Trust is nothing without its members. So, it only really remains to wish everyone a happy Christmas, and we can reflect on what marvellous things 2014 holds for the Moseley Railway Trust and the Apedale Valley Light Railway. Get in touch here.

It must be Christmas

It must be Christmas, for three reasons. Firstly, Santa has been seen at Apedale. Secondly, we have had the Trust Xmas meal (thanks to Terry for organising it) and the CME was seen with a ridiculous dancing Meerkat toy. Thirdly, and most relevant, we have once again sent the Trust SR71 on a tour, and produced aerial photos. This time, they are well known (to be honest "not totally obscure" might be closer to the truth) railway stations. All you have to do is to identify the ten railway stations. Simples. Either a major clue, or for bonus points, is to identify the sites of well-known loco builders which are visible in two of the photos - and for the Smarty Pants award - who is the builder whose site is just off the edge of one of the photos? Good Luck, and get in touch here with your answers.

Station 1

Station 2

Station 3

Station 4

Station 5

Station 6

Station 7

Station 8

Station 9

Station 10

Hudswell Clarke progress

We've had quite a few posts on here about progress on the restoration of the Moseley Railway Trust's diesel Hudswell - but it's been a while since we have heard of the steam Hudswell. This loco, imported from Ghana in 2008, has been out of the public eye for some considerable time. It has been away from the Apedale site undergoing the major overhaul required to return it to steam. This restoration has recently taken a major step forward with the delivery of the new boiler. As can be seen the loco is almost unrecognisable from the rather challenging project which we found in Africa. Last weekend, a Works Open Day was held for Trust members to see how far the loco has progressed. It wasn't quite like a traditional Railway Works Open Day as apparently there was no stall selling railway videos and the Works brass band hadn't turned up. Despite these flaws, a good number of members made the visit, and everyone seems to have left well impressed. The Hudswell is very much on the last leg of the restoration journey now, and - barring disasters - we should see it hauling trains at Apedale during 2014. Keep watching here for more news on this, and get in touch here.

Bursting out of the ground

It's been a while since we have seen much tangible progress on the Apedale museum project. The reason for this is money. After Lehmann Brothers and Fred Goodwin managed to loose it all (presumably in a washing machine or a very large sofa) it's been even more difficult to come by than before. And building buildings involving deep piled foundations ain't cheap. But, we have managed to scrimp, save and raid corporate piggy banks to allow the next phase of the project to proceed. This is to build the walls which sit on top of the cast concrete beams which in turn are connected to the steel piles which The Mole from Thunderbirds put in a couple of years ago. Mr Builder has been busy, because bags of sugar in the local co-op have doubled in price, and the large piles of blocks are depleting nicely. Most of what you can see in the picture will be, eventually, underground. The next phase will be to complete the foundations, and lay a concrete slab into which the track will be set. This will be a key acheivement, because we can then use the area between building blitzes, rather than it simply being a large hole in the ground. We are aiming to get that complete by the September 2014 "Tracks to the Trenches" event - as we want the trenches elsewhere on site, thank you very much.
As ever, get in touch here.

Moseley Railway Trust accepts Woodhead Tunnel locomotive from National Grid

A battery powered electric locomotive is back on the rails following it’s donation by National Grid to The Moseley Railway Trust.

The locomotive, which weighs four tonnes, was built in 1998 by Clayton Equipment.  It has been used at the National Grid’s cable tunnels at Woodhead, high in the Pennines.  The Woodhead tunnels were originally built to carry mainline trains from Sheffield to Manchester. Following closure of the railway, the tunnels were converted to carry high-voltage cables to avoid the need for above-ground pylons through one of the UK’s most dramatic landscapes. National Grid use a 2’ 0” gauge narrow gauge railway for maintenance purposes.  A recent review of operations at Woodhead concluded that the Clayton locomotive was surplus to requirements.  The Moseley Railway Trust already had in its collection two locomotives which had worked in the Woodhead cable tunnels – a Hudson diesel locomotive and an older Clayton electric locomotive.  Both National Grid and the Trust wished to complete the Woodhead story in the Trust’s collection, and this led to arrival of the 1998 built Clayton at the Moseley Railway Trust’s Apedale site earlier this month.

Phil Robinson, MRT Chairman said “We are absolutely delighted with this new locomotive, and we wish to acknowledge National Grid’s support to our work at Apedale.  The locomotive not only fills an important part in the museum collection – but it is also in full working order. Most locomotives which arrive at Apedale need years of restoration work!”

David Smith, who is looking after the Woodhead Tunnels for National Grid said: "We are happy to have been able to donate the locomotive to the Railway Trust and we are delighted to learn that it will see active service on their line for years to come."

The National Grid locomotive will now be used on general duties on the Moseley Railway Trust’s Apedale Valley Light Railway.

Joffre update

What does the Moseley Railway Trust's Joffre and most steam roller have in common? The answer, of course, is that they both have only one cylinder. In the case of a roller, this is the design condition, and a huge flywheel overcomes the difficulties. In the case of the Joffre locomotive, this situation is considered to be 50% of the optimal condition. You may recall that we last saw the Joffre back in July having the problematic cylinder removed. Cracks had been noted in the offending article, and this led to the loco being stood down from service - and also missing a much anticipated visit to the Golden Valley Light Railway. Various avenues were explored for a repair to the cylinder, but in the end the bullet was bitten and a new cylinder is to be cast. Of course, the first step for an iron casting is a pattern. Thought was given to producing a pattern using a 3d printer or similar technology, but in the end a Very Clever Man called Alan Frodsham was commisioned to produce a wooden pattern. Alan is a stalwart of the West Lancashire Light Railway. This is a project of quite fiendish complexity, since the casting contains a valve chest, a cylinder bore and various internal passages allowing steam to flow and move the loco. The picture shows Alan with his handiwork. The next step is to produce a casting, have it machined and refit to the loco. Sounds easy when said quickly. All being well, the loco should be back in business for Easter 2014. In the meantime, should you own a Joffre and want to cast a RH cylinder off the pattern, get in touch here.

Rarities

A pleasant autumnal day down the Apedale Valley has seen all many of tasks happening. The Hudswell Diesel has taken a significant step forward with the fitting of the engine and gearbox back into the frame. The engine is a 4 cylinder Dorman which was fitted by the quarry where the loco worked in the 1950s. It is rated at about 40hp. The transmission was built by David Brown for the loco when new, and is probably rated at about 4000hp. Flushed with success from this little task, the team responsible then undertook to rebuild a WW1-era portable track panel in the manner which our forebears would have done it. This led to the How Many People Can Work on One Track Panel contest, followed by the ultimate rarity - the CME being seen to touch a piece of trackwork. Previous CME-related trackwork projects have usually ended in tears, so we can but hope that this will be OK. If you are at all concerned about this matter, or have been affected by any of the items in this entry, contact us here.

Back to work

Putting all the Halloween nonsense behind us, it was back to reality with a vengeance this weekend at Apedale. The closed season is all too short, and it is the key opportunity to carry out significant maintenance and renewals on the railway infrastructure. This weekend has seen a major project to re-rail a section of the main line alongside the Aurora North storage shed. The objective of the exercise was to generate a float of rails of the type used on the southern end of the railway; the concern has been that we had no spare such rails - so if one was found to be damaged, or cracked, then we were in potentially deep trouble. So, a team cracked on and changed the rails, which also allowed the fishplates to re-greased, rail gaps set correctly and preservative to be poured into sleeper fixing holes. It has to be said that it's always a slightly nervous time when there are huge holes in the railway, but at least we didn't have a large block in a black mac muttering threats about the Sleeper train being due in two hours time. As ever, get in touch here.

Halloween HiJinks

This weekend has seen the first ever Halloween event at Apedale, and the general consensus is that it's been a great success. Although, to be fair, we did have a problem with convincing some of the customers that they hadn't passed into an afterlife (of their choice, dependant on religious views or persuasions). Firstly, none of them seemed concerned that they were only being sold single tickets. Secondly, one would have thought the Spectre of Death walking up and down the platform may have caused some concern. Thirdly, the presence of Salmon Mousse on the menu of the Heritage Centre cafe. Fortunately, our Spectre of Death had read Terry Pratchett, and consequently ONLY EVER SPOKE IN CAPITAL LETTERS.Our band of happy, and hopefully slightly uneasy customers all seemed to have a jolly good time, and the volunteers who played the various roles all seemed to quite enjoy themselves. Indeed, some of them fell into the roles so naturally that it looks like the next Trust AGM could be significantly more entertaining than previous years. It's quite rare for a membership's democratic opinion to be expressed by a flaming torch and stake wielding mob, but it's all about freedom of expression really isn't it? Anyway, that's about it now for the 2013 operating season until the Santas. Hopefully, you've made your booking here by now? All being well, no-one will get confused between the various events because SANTA SPEAKING IN CAPITAL LETTERS could be quite frightening to the little ones. As ever, get in touch here (unless you are selling Salmon Mousse).

Going out on a high

This coming weekend is the last operating days of the season - hasn't the year just flown by? In previous years, the season has ended with rather a dull diesel operating Saturday, then the train is put in the shed, and that's about it until Santa. Not this year. Oh no. This year we're trying to go out on a high with the First Ever Apedale Halloween special. The Legend of the Lost Engine is writ large, and hopefully we'll see throngs of punters just itching to find out what horrors lurk down at Apedale. Actually, the horrors are there most weekends working in the workshop, it's just this time they are being allowed to meet the public. It's some sort of Care in the Community initiative, apparently. Check out the AVLR website for more details, but suffice to say that the Halloween Specials will be running from 4pm to 8pm on both Saturday and Sunday.
On the off chabce that we survive our excursion into the Dark Side, the next Big Thing will be altogether less scary - Santa. The Santa Special booking system is now up and running on the AVLR website, and this year is fully automated. I gather it is run by HAL9000. In the event that you get an e-mail asking about opening pod bay doors, it is probably time to get quite worried. Do feel free to get in touch here if you feel worried, and we'll pretend to be concerned.

Who Ya Gonna Call??

Another busy weekend at Apedale. It was a training weekend, so various pieces of knowledge were imparted into various brains. It's the look of the bright, eager young faces which makes it all seem so worthwhile. Meanwhile, elsewhere, the restoration of the Big Hudswell diesel took a major step forward with the re-unification of the wheelsets and the frames. It's the first time something has been re-assembled - as distinct to taken apart - so this was a big day for the project. It was noteworthy that the the wheeled frame rolled a lot more easily than before, and then horrendous screaching from one of the axleboxes has gone away, suggesting that we are heading in the right direction with the project. Speaking of horrendous things, and moving on the from the recent invasion of the Killer Tea Cups, the shed appears to have become invested with Monster Mutant Spiders, which have colonised the Joffre. There have been a lot of spooky goings-on at Apedale, and these are expected to reach a peak for the first-ever Halloween weeked - the 26th & 27th of October. Check out the AVLR website for details. We think we need some sort of Ghost-busting service. We have some old vacuum cleaners, so we might try and give it a go ourselves. As ever, get in touch here.

Moseley Railway Trust announces second visiting steam locomotive for Tracks to the Trenches

The Moseley Railway Trust is delighted to announce that agreement has been reached for a second visiting steam locomotive for the September 2014 Tracks to the Trenches event. The North Gloucestershire Railway, based at Toddington, have agreed that their 1918-built Henschel “Brigadelok” locomotive will visit the MRT’s Apedale Valley Light Railway for the Tracks to the Trenches gala, to be held on September 12, 13 and 14 of 2014.

Almost 2500 of the Brigadelok locomotives were built. These served the German military light railways – known as Heeresfeldbahn – on all the fronts of the war. Despite being built for military service, they subsequently demonstrated their usefulness for many post-war operators. An innovative feature is the Klein-Lindner radial axles, which allow the locomotives to traverse tight radius curves despite the 080 wheel arrangement. The locomotive which will come to Apedale is Henschel 15968. After the end of the First World War, the locomotive worked at the Naklo sugar factory in Poland, hauling trains of sugar beet in from the fields to the factory for processing. In 1985, the loco moved from Poland to the UK, where it was restored to its current immaculate condition, carrying Heeresfeldbahn grey livery and the number 1091.

Phil Robinson, MRT Chairman said “We are extremely grateful to the North Gloucestershire Railway for loaning us this locomotive. When taken with the Baldwin loco which will visit from Leighton Buzzard, and the Moseley Railway Trust’s own “Joffre” and Hudswell Clarke steam locomotives, we now have engines representing all the main combatants in the First World War. Our event is all about commemorating all those who participated in this conflict, regardless of nationality, and we believe that representing the German forces is key to this”.

The Kerr Stuart locomotive “Stanhope”, normally resident at Apedale, will be making a reciprocal visit to the North Gloucestershire Railway during 2014.

The Killer Tea Cups of Apedale

The European Rail Heap is no more. It has been replaced by the considerably tidier, and less muck-encrusted European Stack of Rail. Once again, quite a few of the Moseley Railway Trust members went home with no need to go to the gym this week. One member was viciously attacked by a Killer Tea Cup and ended up in A&E, where it was pronounced that they could save the Tea Cup, but individual in question would have to be sacrificed. Still, you can't make an omelette without breaking a few tea cups. Hopes still remain high that the Museum can be entirely funded by finding gold in the muck of the rails, and the CME has now resorted to gold panning. He is nothing if not optimistic. Meanwhile, preparations for the new Halloween event are taking shape elsewhere on the site. This prompted an overheard phrase "I must go and check if my gravestones are ready yet". Now there's something you don't hear everyday. For further information on gravestones or Killer Tea Cups, get in touch here.

Back to reality

Putting all the fun and glamour of the Stoke Steam Special behind us, it's back to reality for the good people of the Moseley Railway Trust down t'Valley. It's been a week of intense lorry traffic to and from the site, with various vehicles coming and going, but also rather a large consignment of rail doing a lot of "coming". It has been acquired from a gold mine in Scotland. Apparently, the driver of one of the lorries had never been this far south, and his boss explained that Stoke on Trent is just a "little further on" from Cumbria. Which would explain why the driver rang from Carlisle with that "put the kettle on, we'll be there in ten minutes" tone of voice. Despite geographic reality, and being Scottish, the delivery was executed swiftly and professionally. However, gravity was the main driving force of the unloading, leaving the European Rail Mountain for the MRT to sort out. Saturday was spent sorting, de-scaling and stacking more than 10 tonnes of rail - and that's only just over halfway. There was a number of members who went home and slept well that night. Being from a gold mine, there was some excitement about what was being knocked off the rails. That excitement was tempered by the words Iron Pyrites, and the revelation of how much gold had actually ever been extracted from this mine in question - precisely nil. Not a sausage. Zippo. Still, hope springs eternal, eh?

Meanwhile, at the other end of the railway, work was continuing on the new Apedale Road Hauptbahnhof. Having seen our previous efforts at bricklaying, we got Proper Workmen in to do the job, and consequently the tea room sugar bowl is significantly denuded. But they've done a nice job. The light coloured heaps in the foreground of the photo is the spoil which has been knocked off the Scottish rails. So, whilst there may be gold in them thar hills, there may also be gold in this 'ere platform. As ever, get in touch here.

 

 

That's another Gala knocked off......

Well, folks, that's another Gala completed. I know we called it the Stoke Steam Special in a brave attempt to avoid using the G word, but it rather failed the Duck Test. It looked like a Gala, and it felt like a Gala - so it's a Gala. The rather dire weather forecast meant that the crowds were somewhat absent on Sunday, but we still saw plenty of people, and the plenty of people saw plenty of trains. Many of the vintage diesels had outings on the main line - in some cases hauling their first trains for donkey's years. The promised downpour did not materialise until just after 3pm, at which point the traincrew were heard asking if anyone knew a Noah. So, we had most of the day not wet, and you can't really ask for much more. This weekend, of course, marks the official launch of the run up to the Tracks to the Trenches event of Setember 2014 - and that REALLY WILL be a full-on Gala. Once feet stop aching, we'll start looking forward to it! In the meantime, just to show that the MRT is a gennuine and serious organisation, I can reveal that original scientific research has established that dead wasps are less dense than diesel engine oil. The Nobel prize is as good as ours. Anyone got a street map of Stockholm?

Stoke Steam Special - half done

We've survived Day One of the Stoke Steam Special, and a jolly good day it has been too. The weather has been kind to us (so far), and we have seen lots of people riding lots of trains. Aurora North is packed full of model railways and trade stands, and many of the diesel fleet have been having rare outings on mainline goods trains. The visiting steam loco is "Jack Lane", kindly loaned by Statfold. If my lottery ticket comes up, Statfold needn't bother sending the lorry to collect it - it's a right little cracker. We have also entertained the editor of Railway Gazette International for the launch of the War Transportation re-print project. It would seem that the gentleman concerned is no stranger to narrow gauge railways. Anyway, it's all happening again tomorrow, and we very much look forward to seeing you.

Nearly Time

The team at Apedale have spent the weekend preparing for the annual Big Weekend at he Apedale Valley Light Railway - this year christened the Stoke Steam Special. If can be be tidied, it's been tidied, if it can be cleaned it's been cleaned. One of our volunteers sat still for too long and ended up in a bin bag. These weekends have always been memorable, and we are sure next weekend will not disappoint. We have, for example, a record breaking collection of model railways, and for the hardened enthusiast, the last remaining parts of the rare Rhiwbach loco have  been re-assembled (but don't get too excited!). The photos are reminders of previous years - hopefully next weekend will also produce a set of nice pictures.  As ever, get in touch here.

Nearly the Big Weekend

It's nearly the Big Weekend - the Stoke Steam Special weekend - 14th and 15th September. It's the annual weekend when we get to show off a few of the things we've achieved down at Apedale. As a regular reader of this column, you will be very well acquainted by now with all that type of thing, and hence inspired to come along and check that is actually true and not just random cyberspace rantings (or Wikipedia). However, there's a couple of recent developments you won't have seen. The Dick Kerr skip wagon has completed its restoration, and jolly nice it looks too. Good to see a skip wagon painted something other than grey or black. All it needs now is the Zorin Industries logo. Meanwhile, the recent(ish) restored petrol Motor Rail 5038 has now become a Namer. How exciting. The owner was a bit cheesed off, because he thought he was getting Duke of Gloucester, not City of Gloucester. I'm sure he'll get over it. Find out more about the September Shenanigans here, and, as ever, contact us here.

An unexpected (but welcome) guest

As the old saying goes, all guests at Apedale are welcome. Some when they arrive, others when they go. Falling firmly into the first category is Hunslet quarry tank "Sybil Mary", which is a very temporary visitor. The team at Statfold Barn - where "Sybil-Mary" normally lives - have very kindly stepped into the breach left by the cylinder problems on the Joffre. We have a commitment to a photo charter later in the month - which requires two steam locos. The Joffre problem left us with a slight shortfall in the chuffa department. "Sybil Mary" and resident "Stanhope" are both ex-Penrhyn, and look a right picture in their similar liveries. This is certainly the fist time they have been together in preservation, but (at one time) they were both owned by the late  Colin Pealling, who was instrumental in the preservation of a number of the Penrhyn locomotives. The author vividly remembers visiting "Sybil Mary" when it was in store on a farm in rural Leicestershire and being told that it seemed unlikely that if would ever be restored. Ironically, the loco was, whereas the farm is now a housing estate. We understand that that there are still a few vacancies for the charter day - contact us here and we'll put you in touch with the organisers.
Meanwhile, tearing ourselves away from the glamourpuss end of the operation, work has continued on the Parkinson's Law siding, and this is nearly complete. Which is a good job, since the Stoke Steam Special weekend is closing fast - it's September 14 & 15 - and we'll need this bit of track to give a bit of much-needed flexibility in how we operate the railway. Look forward to seeing you then?

Moseley Railway Trust announces line-up for Stoke Steam Special weekend

Plans are well advanced for the Stoke Steam Special weekend at the Apedale Valley Light Railway, operated by the Moseley Railway Trust (MRT). This weekend will be the 14 and 15th of September. This weekend will be a celebration of all things narrow gauge railway. An intensive service of steam trains will run on the Apedale Valley Light Railway. In addition to the resident steam locomotive “Stanhope”, a visiting engine is expected to be “Jack Lane”. This locomotive will be visiting from the Statfold Barn Railway, and the MRT wish to express sincere thanks to Graham Lee and the Statfold team for providing this locomotive.

Demonstration freight trains will be in operation, and the popular Field Railway, debuted in 2012, will once again be running.
The Aurora North shed will be packed with model railways and other displays – more than ever before. An innovation this year is that the entrance ticket will include unlimited train rides. Entrance will be £6 adults, £3 children.
The Stoke Steam Special will also see the launch of the run-up to the Tracks to the Trenches event in 2014 – this will be a major event marking the centenary of the start of the First World War, a conflict which changed the world, and one in which narrow gauges railways played a key role. As part of this, the Trust will be launching a new publishing venture in partnership with Railway Gazette International.
The popular “Access all Areas” passes will be repeated – these allow interested railway enthusiasts unprecedented levels of access to non-public areas of the site and outside normal opening hours – get in touch here for details.
Sadly, the second Apedale resident steam locomotive – the Kerr Stuart “Joffre” – will not be operational at the Stoke Steam Special. During preparation for a visit to the Golden Valley Light Railway in Derbyshire, cracks were noticed in one of the two steam cylinders. Recognising that the locomotive is almost a hundred years old, the decision was taken that the best interests of the locomotive would be served by taking it out of traffic for these cracks to be attended to. The locomotive owners are currently considering the best course of action, but a complete new cylinder is one option currently being explored. The “Joffre” will be available for public viewing at the Stoke Steam Special weekend, and provides an unusual sight as it currently has the affected cylinder removed.
The Stoke Steam Special promises to be another great event at Apedale. It will be open from 11am to 5pm on Saturday 14^th and Sunday 15^th September.

Parkinson's Law

Cyril Northcote Parkinson postulated his famous law in 1955. In exactly the way that work expands to fill the time available, a similar situation appears to exist at most heritage railways. The issue is that rolling stock collections expand to fill  the siding space available. Apedale is no exception, although we have not helped ourselves by having to lift two long sidings to make space for the museum foundations. Consequently, we have found ourselves rather clogged. Some time ago, Silverdale Station West siding was schemed, and that is now becoming reality. You may recall that the access point was inserted some time ago - the siding leading from it is now emerging. The SSW will give us much-needed extra storage space. It is opposite the platform at Silverdale station, so it can also be used to stable restored vehicles on display to our customers whilst they await their train. The difficult bits progressed well yesterday - the fiddly curved bits leading onto the point, so next weekend should be relatively plain sailing. We'll see. As ever, get in touch here.

 

Book Launch

This column normally focuses on the activities of the Moseley Railway Trust at it's Apedale base, and also leans towards the engineering side of things. That's because the author is an engineer (and has a sistificate thingy to prove it). So, the other activities of the Trust are sometimes overlooked. Unlike many such bodies, MRT takes the "museum" side of things very seriously. The production and publication of books and other learned treatise is a key part of this element of the Trust's work. Probably the best-known such work is the legendary A Guide to Simplex Locomotives book, described as the definitive work on the subject (not by the authors either, which makes a nice change). This book, into its nth reprint, is still available. However, the point of all this is to bring your attention, dear reader, to the MRT's latest venture in this area. We have teamed up with Railway Gazette International who publish a very grown-up magazine about proper trains to reprint their 1920 special edition on War Transport. Back in 1920, this would have been the first time that most readers would have become aware of the machines and techniques used to achieve the recent victory – much of it had been secret until then. Since 1920, copies of this special edition have been highly prized collectors’ items. We have had the original professionally scanned and enhanced, to maximise the reproduction of the many pictures. New colour covers and a foreword have been added. The book is “A4” size, and contains 160 pages. We currently expect the book to be published in mid-September 2013. This, therefore, is your Big Chance to get this book at a worthwhile discount in advance. Call in at the Apedale shop if you're in the area for the pre-publication offer, or get in touch here and we'll e-mail you the flyer.

Working Week

It's been the annual working week at Apedale. Unusually, it has been baking hot, which makes a change from the more conventional downpours or post-apocalyptic TV series filming. There's been plenty going on. The first part of the week has seen a major drive on adding the second station to the Apedale Valley Light Railway. The imaginatively named Apedale Road station ("change here for Eurostar and the Victoria Line") has begun to take shape. This will allow passengers to break their journey at this sylvan spot, or even just take a one-way journey. This will therefore serve a genuine transport need for the Apedale Community Country Park and hence deprive the Inland Revenue somewhat (they only squander it on schools and hospitals and things). We should express our sincere thanks to the Co-Op Community Fund for their assistance with this, and also to  Balfour Beatty who provided the Universal Construction Medium used (also known as Concrete Sleepers). Also seeing significant progress this week has been the restoration project on the big Hudswell Clarke diesel. The engine and gearbox have now been removed, and the shops of Staffordshire has been cleaned-out of de-greasing products. If Mr Gunk is reading this - you owe us, big time. All that remains now is to remove the rest of the brake rigging and the wheelsets before the frames are shotblasted, and rebuilding can start. Sounds easy? Unfortunately, experience has shown that the brake rigging and the loco are VERY long-standing friends and are most unwilling to be separated. As ever, get in touch here, especially is you know where degreaser can be bought in Staffordshire.

Missing Links

Another baking hot weekend down the Apedale Valley has seen eggs being fried on Ruston bonnet tops and the steam loco crew indulging in the Staffordshire Horsefly massacre - "Death's too good for 'em". Using a firing shovel to batter a small insect seemed like overkill, but the others seemed to get the message. Meanwhile, down at the workshops, The Joffre  has been showing its wounds with pride. The cylinder is now with the cast-iron welding people for their collective sucking in of breath and tut-tutting, and the next few days should give us an indication as to when this loco will be back in business. A number of people have observed that the loco actually looks quite good without the cylinder, and had we considered the advantages which an inside-cylinder version would bring? Meanwhile, the Hudswell diesel is also now missing a rather vital link - the clutch between the engine and the transmission. Opportunities to dismantle 1930 Hudswell Clarke clutches are rather scarce, and we really didn't know what to expect. Clutches can be vicious things, since they tend to contain powerful springs which are looking for the first opportunity to escape their confines. However, with care, the clutch is now off the loco and dismantled, revealing a complex multi-plate arrangements of plates, splines and springs. There was some concern about the clutch slipping, possibly indicating an end-of-life lining, which would have been a MAJOR problem. Thankfully, the linings are actually in pretty good order, so a good clean out and adjustment should sort out any issues. There isn't much more to come off the Hudswell now, although the brake rigging is being somewhat intransigent. As ever, get in touch here (unless you represent the Friends of the Staffordshire Horsefly).