Great Central Railway - News and "Stuff"
Discussion
I found that my "Man Shed" (- Well 20Ton Brake van) was in Quorn yard looking a bit weathered. As I had a couple of half empty clear lacquer spray cans and one of black I did a bit of touching up to make it look a bit more cared for. I may well now buy a couple more cans to do the whole side.
Loughborough Engine Shed was open for guided "Boscastle shed Tours" at the weekend. These have restarted following the shed refurbishment work and scheduled take place on the second weekend each month.
Inside the shed, there has a bit more space, as the frames etc of Thornbury Castle have been moved to Quorn, together with the boiler, ready for movement off site (To Tyseley?). 70013 Oliver Cromwell is still awaiting its boiler and final machining of rods. 777 Sir Lamiel is steadily being worked on with one tender bogie removed and being re assembled. The 04 still needs a new front firebox tube plate and the chassis awaits the wheels and axleboxes to be fitted. The Ivatt std 2 46521, is being stripped ready for 10 year overhaul (most of this work is scheduled to take place at Tyseley). Work on 34039 Boscastle, has concentrated on finishing piping up the tender (It had been on display at Quorn earlier), the boiler is still at LMS. The Black 5 45491 is still having its boiler rework done. 6990 Witherslack Hall has it's boiler back in place and insulation fitted together, with most of its boiler cladding. It will be repainted then returned to traffic around September.
Inside the shed, there has a bit more space, as the frames etc of Thornbury Castle have been moved to Quorn, together with the boiler, ready for movement off site (To Tyseley?). 70013 Oliver Cromwell is still awaiting its boiler and final machining of rods. 777 Sir Lamiel is steadily being worked on with one tender bogie removed and being re assembled. The 04 still needs a new front firebox tube plate and the chassis awaits the wheels and axleboxes to be fitted. The Ivatt std 2 46521, is being stripped ready for 10 year overhaul (most of this work is scheduled to take place at Tyseley). Work on 34039 Boscastle, has concentrated on finishing piping up the tender (It had been on display at Quorn earlier), the boiler is still at LMS. The Black 5 45491 is still having its boiler rework done. 6990 Witherslack Hall has it's boiler back in place and insulation fitted together, with most of its boiler cladding. It will be repainted then returned to traffic around September.
There is a lot to see this weekend with the "Railways at Work" event. Seven locomotives are moving around Lbro before 9.30!
With the return to service of Witherslack Hall, 4 other steam locomotives, 3 diesels and a DMU. Four passenger rakes, two "Pick Up goods rakes and the Windcutters (16T minerals), on both days, means it is an intensive timetable ( latest version now on the GCR website). Lots of live parcels loading and unloading etc. to show how the railways served customers in the 50/60's.
With the return to service of Witherslack Hall, 4 other steam locomotives, 3 diesels and a DMU. Four passenger rakes, two "Pick Up goods rakes and the Windcutters (16T minerals), on both days, means it is an intensive timetable ( latest version now on the GCR website). Lots of live parcels loading and unloading etc. to show how the railways served customers in the 50/60's.
The Black 16T mineral wagon has been finished and we now have ....another 16t mineral wagon to restore to running order. It has an Inner skin as it was used by ICI to transport Soda Ash and we plan to return it to that livery and condition - for a bit of variety. The first job was to clean out the inside.
Then remove the debris accumulated between the skins, including some very long tree roots!
As the paintwork, shows it had a blue livery for a while back in the 1970/80's.
Then remove the debris accumulated between the skins, including some very long tree roots!
As the paintwork, shows it had a blue livery for a while back in the 1970/80's.
Although we wanted to retain the inner skin and restore the wagon as an ICI variant, there were more and more problem areas being discovered so the inner skin has been removed..........More work by the team has seen more rusty steel sheet removed, more trapped debris revealed and removed and more rusty steel revealed....
Regarding the use of 16T Mineral wagons for Soda Ash I am puzzled. Obviously they sealed the side doors and put in the complete inner skin to prevent any leaks of corrosive and conductive Soda Ash (there is a report of 100 miles of chaos regarding signalling circuits when a few non sealed wagons were used!). They had wagon covers to prevent rain getting in. However later on in BL days there were no covers and so water would have been trapped. Would this have been when holes were cut at the bottom of the side inner skins to release the trapped water? Would this slurry of swarf, dirt and cast iron cuttings then have filled between the inner and outer skin? The pictures show how high the trapped material went and how much there was. Certainly when the wagons arrived on the GCR there was usually a large pool of water inches deep in the wagons with inner skins.
Are there any ex ICI or BL workers who remember these wagons in use?
Are there any ex ICI or BL workers who remember these wagons in use?
RacingPete said:
Looking good.
One question from me on wagons on a heritage line, when do you get to use them? - I haven’t seen a goods train run up and down a heritage line and assume the cost benefits of getting a train in steam means it needs to pull paying customers. Love the updates, just really intrigued.
The Great Central has four Freight trains in regular use at Galas, photo charters and some other events. They are usually about 18 vehicles long - but were combined to give a 50 wagon "special" last year to celebrate the GCR 50th Anniversary.One question from me on wagons on a heritage line, when do you get to use them? - I haven’t seen a goods train run up and down a heritage line and assume the cost benefits of getting a train in steam means it needs to pull paying customers. Love the updates, just really intrigued.
They have a Van train, Mineral "Windcutter" rake, Mixed Goods and a Tanker train. There are also Ballast wagons which operate with the Permanent Way dept.
January 26/28th Winter Gala will see some of them out so come along and give them a wave!
Still here!
But we have been busy working on our Windcutter wagons. The last one was used by ICI for transporting Soda Ash and so it had a complete inner steel body. Unfortunately the corrosive material gets trapped between the outer and inner skin. This causes a lot of corrosion which is only seen when the gap is opened up. Thus what looked a "reasonable" outer skin has turned into a major job with the removal of the inner skin, entire floor and the lower 6 to 12" of the body and stanchions.
The side doors and their hinge beams have also been removed and repaired...but we are nearly finished and have started on the next one - we have 30 wagons so it is a never ending process!
In more general news the paid staff had a meeting yesterday so the mood in the shed was grim, but I don't know what the outcome was.
In other GCR news, the Engine shed at Loughborough will be moved so that there will be two tracks to the North from the station, on the original alignment when the Gap project is completed. The two tracks will go over the canal bridge and then down to a single track on the, to be built, embankment and past PreciSpark.
But we have been busy working on our Windcutter wagons. The last one was used by ICI for transporting Soda Ash and so it had a complete inner steel body. Unfortunately the corrosive material gets trapped between the outer and inner skin. This causes a lot of corrosion which is only seen when the gap is opened up. Thus what looked a "reasonable" outer skin has turned into a major job with the removal of the inner skin, entire floor and the lower 6 to 12" of the body and stanchions.
The side doors and their hinge beams have also been removed and repaired...but we are nearly finished and have started on the next one - we have 30 wagons so it is a never ending process!
In more general news the paid staff had a meeting yesterday so the mood in the shed was grim, but I don't know what the outcome was.
In other GCR news, the Engine shed at Loughborough will be moved so that there will be two tracks to the North from the station, on the original alignment when the Gap project is completed. The two tracks will go over the canal bridge and then down to a single track on the, to be built, embankment and past PreciSpark.
Edited by Flying Phil on Friday 12th April 11:22
mcdjl
When the engine shed was first built (1974 ish) they deliberately left space on the West side for any future track to go North. This would be a single track as double would have a very difficult "s" bend North of the shed. This was the previous thought with the gap project. It is also only a single track bridge over the Midland Main Line.
However, when looking at the future traffic requirements, there would need to be sufficient space for a full length train to be stabled North of Lbro station. I think it was found that a sufficient length of double track could not be fitted just to the North of the shed on the canal bridge and embankment (Remember there is a storm sewer outflow now built there). So it has to be double track from the platform, on the original alignment. So the shed will have to go. It was S/H when bought (ex WW2 RAF Langer) and was increasingly delapidated and so needed refurbishment and updating. These upgrades will make it more economic over the next five years and some may be used in the future wherever the shed(s) is to be located.
Toasty
The problem with pre fab is that all the wagons are slightly different due to different builders/rebuilders and hard life! So each overhaul is a bespoke job. The other aspect is that if we did replace much bigger sections - remember that there are already some big repair plates fitted on some wagons, then we would end up with a lot of identical "new" wagons rather than the "way they were". Fitting new, straight, steel to old bent rusty steel is our challenge!
[url]
|https://thumbsnap.com/PNzHYRfe[/url]
When the engine shed was first built (1974 ish) they deliberately left space on the West side for any future track to go North. This would be a single track as double would have a very difficult "s" bend North of the shed. This was the previous thought with the gap project. It is also only a single track bridge over the Midland Main Line.
However, when looking at the future traffic requirements, there would need to be sufficient space for a full length train to be stabled North of Lbro station. I think it was found that a sufficient length of double track could not be fitted just to the North of the shed on the canal bridge and embankment (Remember there is a storm sewer outflow now built there). So it has to be double track from the platform, on the original alignment. So the shed will have to go. It was S/H when bought (ex WW2 RAF Langer) and was increasingly delapidated and so needed refurbishment and updating. These upgrades will make it more economic over the next five years and some may be used in the future wherever the shed(s) is to be located.
Toasty
The problem with pre fab is that all the wagons are slightly different due to different builders/rebuilders and hard life! So each overhaul is a bespoke job. The other aspect is that if we did replace much bigger sections - remember that there are already some big repair plates fitted on some wagons, then we would end up with a lot of identical "new" wagons rather than the "way they were". Fitting new, straight, steel to old bent rusty steel is our challenge!
[url]|https://thumbsnap.com/PNzHYRfe[/url]Edited by Flying Phil on Friday 12th April 13:43
Edited by Flying Phil on Friday 12th April 13:44
What a great way to start the day! There is a new GCR Reunification video which shows that the old embankment North of Loughborough will not be rebuilt but instead replaced with a new viaduct with pillars on piles and precast deck sections.
This viaduct makes so much sense! The GCR went on viaducts through Leicester and elsewhere and is a classic image.
It also explains why the engine shed will need to be relocated. To have a single track around the shed and a long section of double track North of the shed (To allow a full length train to wait entry to Loughborough) would mean a double track embankment almost up to Precis-spark. The extra height needed to cross Railway terrace would mean a significantly taller and wider embankment....lots of lorry loads of material!
Using piles and standard bridge decks for the long single track viaduct from the Sewer outflow to the MML bridge will be a lot faster to build, and far less intrusive in terms of lorry movements during construction. It also means though that it becomes one construction project rather than three phases but I suspect because of the modular construction, a smaller workforce could be used?
CAUTION WIMB Alert!
It would also be good if the single track bridge across the sewer outflow had steel lattice parapets ( as per the new Quorn bridges and canal bridge) ....also the viaduct could have blue brick arch facades along the East side where it runs past Precis-spark. This was done on the new MML bridge abutments.
If you really had some spare cash, then a non-structural "Bowstring Girder" would be nice across Railway terrace!
This viaduct makes so much sense! The GCR went on viaducts through Leicester and elsewhere and is a classic image.
It also explains why the engine shed will need to be relocated. To have a single track around the shed and a long section of double track North of the shed (To allow a full length train to wait entry to Loughborough) would mean a double track embankment almost up to Precis-spark. The extra height needed to cross Railway terrace would mean a significantly taller and wider embankment....lots of lorry loads of material!
Using piles and standard bridge decks for the long single track viaduct from the Sewer outflow to the MML bridge will be a lot faster to build, and far less intrusive in terms of lorry movements during construction. It also means though that it becomes one construction project rather than three phases but I suspect because of the modular construction, a smaller workforce could be used?
CAUTION WIMB Alert!
It would also be good if the single track bridge across the sewer outflow had steel lattice parapets ( as per the new Quorn bridges and canal bridge) ....also the viaduct could have blue brick arch facades along the East side where it runs past Precis-spark. This was done on the new MML bridge abutments.
If you really had some spare cash, then a non-structural "Bowstring Girder" would be nice across Railway terrace!
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