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GWSR Broadway Developments

Discussion in 'Heritage Railways & Centres in the UK' started by Breva, Aug 1, 2014.

  1. western

    western New Member

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    You would be better off having the letters CNC profile milled.Or on a plasma CNC cutting machine.
     
  2. davidarnold

    davidarnold Member

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    Thanks for that Western . Is there a cheap modern option for producing the spear fencing, which is going to be a cost sensitive option dependent on the success of the share issue.
     
  3. western

    western New Member

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    You best keep an eye on the "Travis Perkins" site in Cheltenham if it is still there the site had said fencing .When it eventually moves to Tewkesbury rd you might want to approach the developer who plans on erecting houses on said site.
     
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  4. Breva

    Breva Well-Known Member

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    We have had some contact, and they were going to get back to us with someone to speak to, but no luck so far. I have just chased them.
    Note that the fencing is not quite the right model (a later style, and higher) but might be adaptable.
    The GWR design on the gate was the inspiration for the GWSR logo!
     
  5. Breva

    Breva Well-Known Member

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    The Monday gang.....

    A nice day today, despite a dire forecast. Cold and sunny.
    We split into 3 teams: (in the order of the photographs)

    - building a concrete block wall around the feet of the platform 2 footbridge tower. The space in the middle will eventually be filled with concrete, the wall is there to stop the clay from the cutting to slide into it.
    - Laying the drains leading away from the Gents, Ladies and Disabled toilets. A first blue brick was also laid (alas without ceremony) on the end wall, to allow measurements to be taken when the floor is laid.
    - A small team including Breva spent the day mounting the SB name plate, and then 5 out of the 7 window guard rails. The last two, on the northern side, will have to go on at a later date, as we ran out of time today.
    The two attached photographs show the effect with name plate and rails attached. Note also the original GWR lamp post and top, and the new steps. They are almost finished, just one more set of rails to go (in the middle). We recharged our electric drill from the boxes own power supply :)

    Also on site was the fabricator for the footbridge centre span. He has started welding in reinforcement plates along the wasted lower edge, and on the ends, where the structure hangs on the towers.
    It's good to see real progress here. The project is in the hands of the volunteer engineer who ran the Bridges to Broadway project, and he is to be congratulated with the rapid progress made.

    On Wednesday we are due to pour the concrete into the floor of the station building.
     

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  6. The Dainton Banker

    The Dainton Banker Well-Known Member

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    Thanks for the update, Jo.
    The security camera shots over the last few days showed some activity on the track-bed south of the station. Are the contractors still working on the embankment there ? Anything to report on this ?

    Maec
     
  7. Breva

    Breva Well-Known Member

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    Well we did note that today, and last Monday too.
    I suspect it was the contractor tidying up the brushwood on the embankment. They had a chipper on the go that we could see.

    There won't be any track laying for quite a while yet, at least until the summer and the initial success of the share issue is clearer. First comes the completion of Winchcombe PWay works, then the removal of Laverton loop.
     
  8. ianh

    ianh Member

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    Any information on progress with the station roof structure?
     
  9. Gloucester Boy

    Gloucester Boy New Member

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    You may have seen members of the "Clearance" gang, who are working around Pry Lane bridge, have a look at their photo site:

    http://www.gwrclear.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/Winter_2016_gallery.htm which shows them working in that area.
     
    Last edited: Feb 24, 2016
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  10. Breva

    Breva Well-Known Member

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    The last I saw was that an area had been cleared in the workshop at Toddy, and that work was about to start.
     
  11. western

    western New Member

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    The new person responsible for the workshop, has the unenviable task of reorganizing the shop after the removal of various machines (radial drill large center lathe etc).The roof leaks too & repairs are required.There are machines such as the J&S cutter grinder surface grinder & drill sharpening machine that have never been installed due to lack of floor space. Those are some of the reasons why things have been cleared.

    In the case of the drill grinding machine & the cutter grinder.When up & running we will be able to sharpen the rota broach tools in house,for pway.
     
    Last edited: Feb 23, 2016
  12. Breva

    Breva Well-Known Member

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    The Monday gang, or the brain drain. Drainage day today!

    Repeatedly we have tried to fix a day for the concrete pour to form the finished floor level, but again and again the freezing temperatures won't allow it. Next week looks near zero as well, so no date has been fixed as of today.

    The usual 8 turned up today, and instead of doing the floor we continued with laying the foul water drain along the front of the foundations. This will take the waste from the 3 toilet rooms, as well as the kitchen, down to the main sewer by the road.
    At lunchtime the drain was inspected and approved by the building inspector, which allowed us to complete the pea gravelling and final infill. The inspection pits, made of plastic, will have a concrete casing around them, to support square concrete covers to hide the plastic. This is what the boxes are for.
    A storm water drain was put in at the north end, connected to a drain laid back in 2010 and tested - it runs into the track centre drain, and thus eventually into the stream on the other side of the road.
    Ballast was delivered, ready for concreting the feet of the footbridge towers.
    On the centre span, the welder was busy all day welding up the steel reinforcement panels that he had tack welded on earlier. He should complete this tomorrow, and the shotblaster will then do his business on Wednesday and Thursday, making the centre span ready for painting. It is/was the intention to lift this in by the end of the month; possibly it might be delayed a few days but it will go up very shortly and should be great to see.
    Lifting in the centre span will clear platform 2 for all the GWR lamp posts to be installed, and also make way for track laying through the station, as the crane which needs to stand on the trackbed will have been and gone.
    That said, no track laying will take place at Broadway for quite a few months yet. First of all, Laverton loop will be dismantled, replaced with heavy duty plain track, and the components brought up to Broadway and stored by the future head shunt.

    Due to the specialised nature of the drain work, there were - with eight - almost too many volunteers at Broadway today. This resulted for example in one volunteer cutting a length of pipe, and 3 supervisors!
     

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  13. collet1930

    collet1930 New Member

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    I noticed from some of the photos that the bottom of the footbridge legs are lower than platform height and that you intend to cover them up with concrete, is that right.Or are you leaving a space to get to the bolts at a later date.If so why not have had the height reduced on the towers
    to platform height when they were constructed which I'm sure would have made it all so much easier.Maybe I have got this wrong or is it a H&S issuse which cannot be got around.Lovely work Keep it up,you're all a credit to this hobby we love.
     
  14. Breva

    Breva Well-Known Member

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    The original tower legs were about 3ft long below ground, and encased in a big lump of weak mix.
    The new ones, below ground, are shorter and stand on a big lump of concrete. Bolts hold them down. Currently, these bolts are loose and in a funnel shape, so that they can move to allow adjustment, and a slight opening out to let the centre span slip in from above.
    When the centre span is in, and all adjustments have been made and bolted down tight, the bottom of the new legs will be encased in a concrete cap up to platform height.
    There is no H&S element here.
    The towers have been manufactured a little bit higher to conform to NR's current minimum profile. This means an extra step in the new steps to be made.

    Hope this is what you wanted to know. The picture below shows the bottom of the towers. Since it was taken, the bottom of the legs have been painted in bitumen to protect them once in the concrete.
     

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  15. Sidmouth4me

    Sidmouth4me Member

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    Future electrification? Somewhere for 89001 to stretch her legs

    Ps sorry. Couldn't resist...

    Keep up the good work and I enjoy reading the Broadway blog
     
  16. Breva

    Breva Well-Known Member

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    FYI one of the profile issues here is the re-fitting of the smoke deflectors. They were removed at HIA. All in all, it was decided to conform with current requirements.
    And so that I can get my Kriegslok underneath :)

    Icy cold on site today, shotblaster roaring away!
     
  17. GeoffS75

    GeoffS75 Member

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    A Kriegslok?!?! So that is what is hidden away in Hunting Butts tunnel :)
     
  18. western

    western New Member

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    Are my eyes deceiving me or has the Concrete been poured today on station foundations?
     
  19. Breva

    Breva Well-Known Member

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    Yes, we poured the concrete floor today in all but one of the rooms. The last room, the Gents toilet, will be done with a final load on Wednesday, and also fill the second footings hole at the southern end of platform 2. There was a quite a lot of barrowing, shovelling and raking around to get the quantities in the right place!
    The final layer on the floor will be a screed, (2 ins if I recall correctly) which will be poured after the concrete over the insulation has properly gone off. But today's work will already enable us to lay a first row of blue bricks and commons around the perimeter. We will next be stacking supplies of blues, ready for the brickies to get started.
    A row of blocks was also laid around the platform 2 footbridge tower base. Another row of blocks is next, then 5 rows of blues to hold the earth back on the cutting side.
    The centre span is now in primer and the painter is away for a week. He will resume shortly, to get the span fully painted, ready for its lift.
    A supporter has offered us a spare 'OUT' plate for the booking office - just need an 'IN' now. We will have 2 copies made of each at a friendly foundry. 4 replica 'E. Finch, Chepstow' makers plates are also on the wish list, again based on an original that a friendly supporter has offered to lend us. They will go on the centre span and inside the replica canopy.
     

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  20. steve45110

    steve45110 Member

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    'You best keep an eye on the "Travis Perkins" site in Cheltenham if it is still there the site had said fencing .When it eventually moves to Tewkesbury rd you might want to approach the developer who plans on erecting houses on said site.'

    Interesting throwaway remark here from upthread. The Travis Perkins site is in Cheltenham Malvern Rd shed, closed in 1963. It is the last surviving Churchward straight shed in Britain. There were 9, including Westbury, Leamington and Penzance. It also has a later 2 road extension, from 1936. TP have added 2 more bays to the north side of the shed. Was there any awareness of this unique survivor? It is next to the surviving platform at Malvern Rd station, now a footpath.

    I'm not aware that the extension to Lansdowne is completely dead just sleeping so, it would seem prudent for the future of the GWSR, to come to a deal with the developers to save the shed, in return for good publicity for themselves. Google shows plenty of space for houses along Gloucester Rd and still have space for the shed linked back to the main line. Could be a good move for both the GWSR and the developer, if an approach is made now. Think of the longer term.
     

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