115 mph

It's been a busy couple of days at Apedale. The main task has been preparing for the Great Man to visit over the next few weekends - no photos of that, as we don't want to spoil the surprise for our visitors. Elsewhere on site, we were priveliged to host a working visit from a mainline railway organisation on Friday - both us and them got a lot from it, with their people able to get hands-on with track maintenance away from the many (and very necessary) safety requirements of the mainline railway system. They gained experience and aching muscles, and our mainline track is probably now in the best shape it's been since it was first laid ("fit for 115mph" said someone). In the workshops, something of a milestone was passed with the last of the radiator tubes for Motor Rail 1320 being assembled, a mere 44,000 radiator fins later. "Stanhope" was steamed on Saturday; this loco will work all the Santa Special trains. This will be last time Stanhope will work for a while, as it is due a major overhaul which will see it out of traffic for most of 2018. We'll miss this loco very much, as it's undoubtedly the railway flagship and the firm favourite of the crews. We are heavily booked for the Santas, but we may be able to accomodate a few wanting a last ride behind the centenarian - next Sarturday 9th December is currently lightest on bookings. The headboards we use are fairly inoffensive, so if photography is your interest, it shouldn't cause too much upset!

Very Wintry Track Maintenance

A necessary part of owning and operating a railway is the need to carry out maintenance. The track - laughingly referred to as the Permanent Way - is no exception. The Permanent Way is anything but - the passage of trains (always the enemy of the railway cvil enginer) will always cause movement and distortion in the track. In time this manifests itself as a poor ride, and if left uncorrected can lead to derailments. So, we use the winter closed period to correct any problems. The ideal day to do this would be a nice Summer's day - but life ain't like that, which led our determined volunteers to brave the snow showers and sort out the various minor defects which a season's hard usage produces. It's fair to say that a day on the PW gang obviates the need for an evening in the gym!

Motor Rail 1320 and a Bomb Wagon

We've not see Motor Rail 1320 for a little whil on this page - this is the First World War loco which was "improved" post war by having a new diesel engine fitted to it with all the engineering subtletly of a bull in a china shop.With the help of a PRISM grant, the loco is undergoing a full restoration to "as at quarry" condition, to make an interesting comparision to the "Tin Turtle" MR1369 which is in "as built" condition, more or less. Good progress has been made, and today saw the loco make a rare out of doors appearance. The bodywork framing has been fitted, which is always a joyous experience for all concerned. The key tasks remaining are to complete the radiator re-build, make and fit the body panels, and - biggest of all - re-fit the engine. The engine is currently away with a specialist contractor. Opportunity was also taken to photograph another restoration project coming along very nicely - a rebuild of a Hudson-built RAF Bomb wagon from the Fauld depot. This one was formerly part of the passenger train at Cadeby, many years ago.

Winter maintenance

The closed season is, perhaps unexpectedly, the time of year when our volunteers are at their busiest. That's because railways need a lot of maintenance, and things like steam locomotives even more so. As a sample, this weekend has seen the start of preparing the Hudswell steam loco for its boiler exam - a process of stripping ouit the firebars, cleaning the firebox and washing out the boiler. Elsewhere on site, repairs were taking place to a buffer stop which seems to have become the victim of a half-hearted attempt to extend the railway. Meanwhile, down in the workshops, experiments are taking place with a semi-automated rig to weld loco wheels. Before railway engineers read this and write strongly worded letters of complaint - this isn't something we'd counternance on the passenger railway, but as a means of recovering loco wheels on demonstration locos, it has a good pedigree in industry. Experiments so far have exceeded expectations, but - a word to the wise - BOC is expecting a significent rise in sales at the Stoke trade counter. MIG wire and gas may be a little scarce in Staffordshire for a while.

Press Release Time!

The Moseley Railway Trust has reached the end of another successful running season. Highlights of the year are many, but the Stanhope Gala in May was particularly well-received. A new event for 2017 was the Diesel Delights event in October. Of particular note is that this event was conceived and planned by a small group of the railway’s younger members. During this weekend, no fewer than 18 of the railway’s fleet of diesel and petrol locomotives had an outing on the passenger train – a figure which puts many Diesel Gala events on standard gauge railways to shame! 2017 was the first time an event focussed on the non-steam locomotives at Apedale had been run – but it seems set to be a firm fixture in the calendar in future years.

Phil Robinson, the Trust Chairman said “We are delighted with how the Diesel Delights event went. The weekend was a real testament to the abilities of our younger members, who showed that the have the organisation abilities to run a significant event – well done to all!”

The Diesel Delights weekend also saw three locomotives visit Apedale from the West Lancashire Light Railway at Hesketh Bank – a Lister petrol engine (which used to work at a tileworks near to Apedale), a Hunslet and a Motor Rail. This was part of an “exchange deal” which saw the Apedale-based Kerr, Stuart steam loco “Stanhope” return to Hesketh Bank for a few weeks. “Stanhope” ran regularly at Hesketh Bank in the years prior to the Moseley Railway Trust establishing a permanent railway at Apedale.

“Stanhope” is now approaching the end of its current 10-year boiler certificate; it is currently planned that the locomotive will operate the popular Santa Specials at Apedale prior to work commencing on the locomotive’s overhaul. The loco has been well cared for, and it is hoped that it will be back steaming at Apedale before too long.

The 2018 season at Apedale will see the usual array of special events, but the centrepiece of the year will be the third Tracks to the Trenches event, on July 13, 14 and 15 2018. These large and justly popular events mark the First World War Centenary and the role that light railways played in that conflict.

The Trust would be pleased to hear from organisations interested in sponsorship opportunities at this high-profile event, and also from potential exhibitors of items relevant to the 1914-1918 period.

More details of the Trust and the Apedale Valley Light Railway can be found on Facebook or on the website www.mrt.org.uk.

Lyme Lottery

A big thank you to everyone who has supported us this year. A new way of supporting the Trust is by buying tickets for the Lyme Lottery - this is run by our local authority, and is a new scheme to support charities in Newcastle-under-Lyme. Better odds than the National Lottery, and much more of the money goes to good causes. If you win big, please send us a postcard.....https://www.lymelottery.co.uk/cause-data/07f8e060-cd81-4aeb-b9a1-7cb6396d1f8b/leaflets/59661d54-fca5-48a4-9183-b0186878fe09/special-prizes-don't-miss-the-first-draw%20-%20digital.pdf

Local Lad made good

Despite the dire weather predictions, it's been a busy weekend at Apedale. We were honoured to host a visit by the owner of Lister 10805. The loco worked very locally to Apedale at Springfields Tileworks - predictably, now the site of a supermarket. The owner, on the other hand, had come from rather further afield - Norway to be specific. The loco is normally based at the West Lancashire Light Railway, and we are grateful to both the owner and the WLLR team for allowing a "local lad" to visit its old stamping ground for a few weeks.

Elsewhere, significant progress was made by the team of younger members on Motor Rail 21520 - a recent arrival. The wheels are a tiny bit on the tired side, so the loco has been turned over with a view to removal of the wheelsets.