Thank you, Mr Dorman

Last time,  you will recall that Motor Rail 1111 was receiving repairs to its engine in an attempt to create oil pressure. This succeeded, and the engine ran just fine. It started at the first twirl of the handle, much to the surprise of the individual holding the handle at the time. Less good was the water leak which became apparent from the cylinder block - it seems time had rather taken a dislike to the water jacket. The Dorman 2JO engine petrol engine, as fitted to MR1111, is pretty good for accessibility and repairability. Removal of the block is relatively straightforward, and leaves the two pistons & rods waving gently in the air. The pistons are of considerable interest. The more IC-engine minded reader will note several curiosities. Firstly, there are no oil control (aka Scraper) piston rings - the holes in the piston skirt seem to fulfill that function. Secondly, the piston crowns are most odd, with a bevelled edge to the flame face. Thirdly - not readily visible - the gudgeon pin retaining arrangement is also very unusual. Your author has seen a lot of IC engine pistons in his time - in some cases in rather small pieces - but these features were all new to him. Still, every day's a school day. The block was quickly repaired, which left the task of reassembly. Even with the help of a piston rung compressor and several willing extra pairs of hands, this was distinctly fiddly - but seems to have succeeded in the end. Hopefully, MR1111 will have no more glitches and will be able to take its place in the line-up at Tracks to the Trenches in September. By the way, please note that tickets can now be bought for the event in advance - check here. Get in touch with us here.

Somewhere in a foreign field

This recently discovered photograph shows two 20HP Simplex petrol tractors undergoing maintenance at what seems to be an improvised workshop, believed to be somewhere in France during 1917. It shows the primitive conditions within which these sturdy little engines had to be maintained.

Convinced?

Thought not. But it shows what a few minutes with Photoshop can do! Falling back through a wibbly-wobbly hole in space time (or something) back to the present day, you may recall that MR1111 was extracted from the Heritage Centre museum a few weeks ago. The loco had not run for some years, and it was stopped with a low oil pressure fault. The owner has been cracking on and looking into the problem. The 2JO engines are actually quite good from a maintainability standpoint, and most of the key parts of the oil system can be accessed without massive dismantling. The oil pump is driven from a rather curious skew-gear arrangement, with the driving skew gear being an integral part of the centre of the camshaft (between the lobes for the two sets of cylinder valve push rods. A helpful inspection port allows this drive shaft to be seen fairly easily.

There seems to be some grounds for optimism that oil pressure is now returning to the engine, so hopefully this is a loco we'll see running up and down at the Tracks to the Trenches event. As ever, get in touch here.

Moseley Railway Trust announces a preservation first at September 2014 Tracks To The Trenches event – and On-Line ticketing is now available!

The Moseley Railway Trust is delighted to announce a preservation first at the Tracks to the Trenches Gala. For the first time, a re-union of each of the four different types of War Department Light Railway “Motor Rail” locomotives will take place. These pioneering little locomotives made a huge contribution to the Allied war effort during World War One. They were used to move supplies and men from marshalling yards right up to the front line.

The smallest of these was the 20HP tractor – on which the driver was fully exposed to both the elements and the effects of enemy fire. Surviving accounts tell of hair-raising exploits including trains disappearing into newly-created shell holes. There will be at least three, maybe more, 20HP tractors in operation at Tracks to the Trenches – one of these will be visiting Apedale from the Welsh Highland Heritage Railway.

The other three types were all 40HP, powered by a Dorman four-cylinder petrol engine. The three types were:-

The Open version. This had steel ends, and a simple roof supported on four poles. The Open version will be represented by loco No.1381, which will visit Tracks to the Trenches courtesy of the Amberley Museum and Heritage Centre in West Sussex. This loco was built as an

The Protected version, which added steel doors and a much more substantial roof to the design. Apedale resident No.1369 will fly the flag for the Protected. This loco was restored a few years ago on the “Salvage Squad” TV programme, and recently spend a period on display in the Dutch railway museum in Utrecht.

Finally, the Armoured locos, which were intended for the most hazardous duties, and afforded the driver a reasonable degree of protection from small arms fire and the like. Loco 461 is a unique survivor of this design, which resembles a small tank on rails. This locomotive visits the event courtesy of the Greensand Railway Museum Trust and the Leighton Buzzard Light Railway.

Phil Robinson, MRT Chairman, said “This meeting of the Motor Rails will be a preservation first, and something which the event organising team and the various locomotive owners have worked very hard to arrange. This is yet another reason why Tracks To The Trenches should be firmly written into every railway enthusiast’s diary!”

On-line ticketing is now available for the event – tickets bought on-line avoid the gate queues and qualify for a free copy of the event guide. On-line tickets are available via  here. Tickets can also be bought for a night-time photoshoot on Friday 12^th September, and for the very limited number of “Access All Areas” passes, giving unparalleled out-of-hours and behind the scenes access, ideal for the keen photographer.

The Tracks To the Trenches event will be on September 12, 13 and 14 at the Moseley Railway Trust’s Apedale site, near Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire. Keep watching the press for more details, or visit the event’s own website, www.ww1-event.org or the Facebook page.

Mining Gala

This weekend is the Apedale Heritage Centre's Mining Gala - a celebration of all things underground and coal related. Although not underground, "Stanhope" is certainly coal related. As we explained to a number of curious small children, we help the Miners out by burning the coal for them. Otherwise they would have to dig a hole and bury the coal again. Sometimes the power we have over the your and impressionable is frightening. We've seen a good number of visitors, and run lots of trains with lots of passengers. Fortunately, the train was augmented up to four coaches, so we just about managed to clear the platform each time. But it was a close run thing at times! The Heritage Centre certainly mounted a good show, including live music and stage acts. I am told the septuagenarian belly dancers were a sight not to be missed, but I missed it. Demonstration freight trains also ran, including over the new trackwork, but unfortunately not all the way to the end. It seems the House of Fun was parked a little too close to the tracks. These trains were used to allow some of our younger members to practise their diesel driving skills. I think you get the idea - the Mining Gala is, without question, one of the most entertaining weekends of the year - and it's all on Sunday as well. What's stopping you? Get in touch with us here.

A day in the life......

The operation of the passenger train on the Apedale Valley Light Railway can seem deceptively simple, especially on a diesel day. After all, one turns up, turns the key and away, right? Wrong. The day starts with unlocking the site and extracting the passenger train from the shed. This usually involves moving the current yard pilot engine which normally sits in front of the passenger train. The passenger loco needs to be checked for oil, fuel, water and missing bits, and then started. The time taken to build the air up for the brake system is dependent on the loco. If it's No.13, a few minutes. If it's the Baguley Drewry - well, let's say there's time to grab a drink and maybe complete a 1000 piece jigsaw. The train is then extracted from the shed, and the driver will carry out a Fitness to Run check on the whole train. Hopefully, the Guard has then arrived. Even more hopefully, he is carrying tea and biscuits. If he is indeed carrying tea, the Guard and Driver work together as a well-oiled team to carry out the brake test. If he's forgotten the tea, the Guard's on his own. If using loco No.13, one man can do the brake test alone (provided he likes long walks), whereas the BD needs someone in the cab throughout. Then, it's up to the station to greet the thronging mass of potential passengers. The loco will normally be detached, and used to carry out a track inspection. The driver also unlocks the gate at Apedale Road station, and locks the access road gates to prevent a re-run of the Great Heck accident. Back onto the train, by which time the Guard has hopefully locked all the facing points. Signatures in the necessary places on the railway log, a brake continuity test and we're away for the day. Trundling up and down all day brings the fare revenue in, not forgetting to wave at the kids, suggest that they come and visit Santa, and arrange shed visits for the older, camera & notebook carrying, kids.  The procedure at close of the day is a bit simpler; the train is driven into the shed, and the next loco to be used on the passenger service is attached at the Door end. Drain down the air tanks (to remove condensate which will rot the tanks), search the train for lost passengers and put the keys away. The van has a battery which runs the compressor for the brakes when steam is used. If it's steam next time, we need to remember to put the battery on charge, and put a Not to be Moved sign on the van. This avoids the Battery Charger Steeplechase, which will bring back memories for those who have worked at BR depots. So, Simples? Not really, but all part of the job to deliver train rides in a safe manner to the public. As ever, get in touch here.

Classic Cars

It's been Classic Cars day down at Apedale. Despite the rather changeable weather (as in changing from heavy rain to drizzle and back again), we have seen a really good turnout of classic cars, tractors, lorries, miniature steamers - if I've missed anyone, I apologise. I was puzzled to see an Allegro in the line of Classic Cars. Having regularly mended one many years ago, the words Allegro and Classic don't entirely align. The main outcome of repairing that car was to learn a vocabulary of expletives which would prove very useful in career based in railway maintenance depots. Nonetheless, our visiting Allegro looked nice and was a credit to the owner. Not least because it clearly got to Apedale without breaking down. Sadly, the planned flypast of the BBMF Spitfire was called off due to the weather. This apparently explains why the sun is always shining in films about the Battle of Britain. So, a big thank you to all the cars, tractors etc (you get the idea) for turning out - we enjoyed your presence, and we hope you enjoyed coming. And we hope Mr Allegro made it home OK. Just to prove we still do railways, the museum fan has now unleashed the next phase - the field railway proper - complete with road crossing. There's a lot to do before September! As ever, get in touch here

Parp!! Parp!!

Parp!! Parp!! It's Classic Cars Day at Apedale this Sunday - with apparently a record entry which is making the event organiser look a bit frazzled. It seems classic car owners don't like the idea of having them stacked two high with the Forklift to save space. How picky. We will be running steam trains on BOTH days - and there's even a flyover by an RAF Spitfire on the Sunday. What's not to like?