Internal Combustion progress

As we head towards the Diesel Delight event on October 7 & 8, various projects on the IC loco front continue to progress. The big Motor Rail, 1320, is continuing in ites PRISM-funded restoration project. The frame is now sitting upside down on a wagon, rather dominating the workshop. The frame has been shotblasted and primed. A few repairs were needed, and various castings were somewhat past their best. Since they were fitted in 1918 and probably not touched in 99 years, there isn't really room to complain. Also, the Motor Rail Warranty Department doesn't work on a Sunday.

At the opposite end of the Motor Rail spectrum is the tiny Autin-engined 12/20hp loco number 6031, known as Lord Austin. The loco was ordered for use by the Midhurst Whites brickworks, and they specified that it was for use in a low-height application; hence the cut down brake stand, and an unusual configuration of the gearbox controls. The loco has been finally fitted with its cab to complete the restoration - predictably, a low height cab. Getting in and out is interesting, to say the least, but the photo proves that the owner can manage it. How much vaseline was need to accomplish this feat is not known. The remains of the original cab are, as can be seen, at the "pattern use only" stage.

Finally, it's been an interesting few days in railway preservation in the UK, and not in a good way. We particularly think of friends and colleagues affected at Felin Fawr, and we sincerely hope that the future works out. It is only a few months since "Stanhope" was operating on that railway, and the future seemed so bright.

Superheroes

We have been honoured to host a visit from Dr Ailsa, and his glamorous assistant, who should have been called Craig but wasn't. They cam to lay hands on the Hunslet "Twusk", and more specifically its rather troublesome Ailsa-Craig two cylinder engine. The problem with this one is that the big end bearings were shot. The engine would run but wouldn't generate oil pressure, and would then try to seize. The Good Doctor got to work; after an epic day's efforts, the loco has been restored to health. Well done, chaps! Elsewhere on site, it's been a steam train weekend with the Joffre doing its level best to broil the crew. A new "temporary" building has also been erected - the objective being to give covered accomodation for the increasing population of restored wagons on site.

Snakes on a Train

One could reasonably wonder what is going on here? Have we decided to simplify AVLR operations by fitting some form of remote control, thereby saving all the faffing with running the loco round the train at each of the train? Tempting, but wrong. This is testing the Portable Air Brake Panel (better names are doubtless available). The PABP is intended to allow some of the locos which are not fitted with a permanent air brake installation to be used with the passenger train. Supported by all the necessary risk assessments and the like, this new piece of kit will be the centrepiece of the Diesel Delights event on October 7 & 8. The event will see some of the Trust's vast collection of historic diesels being given a chance to haul passenger trains, for the first timer ever. So, if you want to see an interesting piece of railway brake technology, plus maybe some trains, put the date in your diary today!

Turtle Tricks

A bit warm down the Valley this weekend - more suited to eating ice cream than working on railways! Nonetheless, progress was made on several fronts. We are providing a temporary railway for the North Norfolk Railway's World War One event next weekend - called Tracks and Trenches, which is a strangely familiar title. We're providing two locos - the Tin Turtle and and 20hp open tractor - plus a number of wagons. The locos have been extracted, tested and cleaned ready for the voyage East. Meanwhile, work has continued on MR1320 - which is a close cousin of the Turtle. The engine has reached the "gory oily bits stage", allowing a view of the big ends, mains and camshaft not seen for many, many years.

Working in the sun

The dismantling of Motor Rail 1320 has taken a major step forward with the main components being craned out of the frame. The frame is now elsewhere for shotblasting, and the engine is in a cradle for further work. The photo of the wheels serves to remind of a key reason for undertaking this project. We have received an offer for the old wheels from Gillette, as the flanges are sharper than any of their razors. This is not, by a long way, the only project happening at Apedale. For example, the large Pechot wagon featured large in these notes a while back, at a time when it was using up weld consumables at a formidable rate. After a bit of a hiatus, the wagon has now been finally assembled and finish painted. We are reminded that it dates from 1888, which makes it one of the oldest - if not THE oldest - vehicle on site.

Gala Success

Moseley Railway Trust celebrates successful Stanhope Gala – and looks to the future

The Moseley Railway Trust held the annual railway gala at the Apedale Valley Light Railway on May 13 & 14. The theme for the 2017 event was to mark the centenary of the Kerr, Stuart locomotive “Stanhope”. Kerr, Stuart were a firm of locomotive builders based in Stoke-on-Trent – just a few miles from Apedale.

Three visiting engines attended, two built by Kerr, Stuart, and the third built to a Kerr, Stuart design. With the home-based fleet of Stanhope and a further 1916-built Kerr, Stuart loco, it is believed that this was the largest gathering of Stoke built locomotives in preservation.

The Gala attracted over 1000 visitors. Phil Robinson, the Trust Chairman said “We are very pleased with how the Stanhope Gala went. On behalf of the Trust, I’d like to express my thanks to the visiting loco owners and also to all our volunteers who worked tirelessly to make the weekend a success”.

The centenary of Stanhope was marked with various cakes – edible by humans and edible by engines. The owner of Stanhope – or the “current custodian”, as he described himself – Dr John Rowlands made a speech describing the remarkable story of how the loco survived into preservation. It was a close-run thing! This story has been put into print in a new book written by Phil Robinson and published by the Trust.

Looking to the future, there will be a new enthusiast-focussed event in October. The Diesel Delights weekend – 7 & 8 October 2017 – will see many of the Trust’s collection of internal combustion locos in action. Some will haul passenger trains – in some cases, these will be the first-ever passenger working for locos over fifty years old!

In 2018, the Trust will hold the third of the popular Tracks to the Trenches events, themed around the First World War. The site will be transformed into the Western Front for the weekend – July 13, 14 & 15 2018. The Trust would be pleased to hear from potential exhibitors of WW1-appropriate items, particularly road vehicles.

More details of the Trust and the Apedale valley Light Railway can be found on Facebook or here.

MR1320 and the Coach

In between running a steam service, and hosting "Diana" having a last running day before she heads off to Amerton, various other projects have been moving forward at Apedale. The engine of MR1320 has now been stripped back to "block" stage, using the loco frame as a very convenient mobile workstation. It's fair to say that the condition of many components is as bad as was feared. In particular, the radiator elements are very poorly and also very non-standard compared to other Motor Rails. It looks like someone will have the job of assembling some 22,000 fins onto new radiator tubes. The cylinder liners are also in bad condition, which would largely account for the poor running of the engine. If anyone has any Dorman 4DWD liners down the back of the sofa, do get in touch. Meanwhile, the FR117 coach project is rapidly approaching completion. The coach was taken for a comprehensive test run on Saturday, followed by the slightly scary brake testing process. This all went extremely well, to the point where the project manager was seen to smile slightly at one point.