West Somerset Railway General Discussion

As a ball-park figure, I reckon on an average of 70 gal/mile on 7 coach trains on the NYMR. Hanging around at stations doesn't use much. Steam heat does use some but not that much in the overall scheme of things. Even blowing off at the valves doesn't use that much extra - say 5 gal/minute. On this basis, 2000 gal should be ample for a single trip from MH to BL.
My last ever ride behind steam before 1968 was behind 70024 on the Fridays only Manchester- York. (17/12/67?) When it got to Leeds, the water column was frozen. The driver had 500 gal left in the tender. He decided to set of for York (24 miles). I often wonder what the outcome was!

 

I was not intending to stir anything, or to engage in an egg - sucking tutorial, so my apologies if that came across that way. When I first started on the footplate, nearly 40 years ago now.(!?) Damn! I was astounded at the nonchalance and ease with which my ex - Stourbridge Junction mentors managed the footplate. I envied their utter confidence and competence, and it took some time before I realised that I now had it. I know I can put the job right, if my fireman gets into difficulties. I also fire to a plan. The plan is flexible.

I know that, if I put fifteen shovels on a 51XX at point A, it will get me to so far up a bank, where I may have to drop two or three in the back end to take us the rest of the way up the bank. I watch the smoke from the chimney. It will be similar on your line. When you have that confidence, the physical bit becomes easier.

You are, of course, right about the water. If you have water, you can do anything, without it, any of the other criteria, fire and steam, are academic.

As an earlier poster noted, fireboxes are deep, so, if you are going to do some hill - climbing, you fill them appropriately. The results, of course, depend on what your driver does with the loud pedal, but you pick that up as you go along.

The 1,000 or so gallons in the tank of a 45XX, is obviously a tighter proposition than the 2,000 in a 51XX, but both should be sufficient on a 22 - mile run. The problems come if you end up trapped somewhere for a couple of hours or more, because something else has failed. That's when you end up having the station garden hose out, filling the tank.

All the best,

John

 

Thanks Michael

By the way, practice is to turn the steam heat of well before the end station to allow the steam heat connections to become cool enough to couple, hence 19 miles not 19.9 miles

Jeff

 

Where does one start? A long saga of mistakes and incompetence during the extensive restoration. Best forgotten about unless the investigations into the Miss Rule turns up some financial time bombs connected with it.

 

I don't think anybody has real issues with 4160 or similar of that type providing water is taken at each end of the line. The situation must be much tighter though with 4561 which IIRC has only 1050 gallons on board. Its use predates my own WSR footplate volunteering but I did ride on 4566 on the WSR several years ago & there was no margin whatsoever with 5 or 6 coaches MHD to BL on a run without delays. Conversely more recently 5542 (1300 gallons) with load 7 was ok. I don't recall seeing pre pres days photos of the earlier straight tank 45xx locos working to MHD whereas there are quite a few of the 4575 type.

 

Here's a memory of the official launch into service in 2008:
http://www.wsr.org.uk/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?h=Snapshot&p=2008/09/34046_4_240908_dbi

Steve

 

Tank capacity of 4561 on MD BLs was tight.It was advisable to ensure the boiler was filled whilst taking water.

 

They certainly weren't Mk 1s and I would love to see them back on the WSR , but you know and I know that's not practical the way it works at the moment on the WSR at least .

 

You must come on the footplate sometime and observe the actual water consumption of 4160 with 7 on over the 20 miles from BL to MD. (Hoping that we get 4160 back that is!)
Suffice to say if we are in the right place on the platform I always put those platform hose in if it's available. As Jeff has pointed out you can be off shed (away from water) for an hour before the off. If you're steam heating the worst time seems to be when you first put the pipes up in the morning and you can see the condensate dribbling out of all the coaching stock drip valves. Plus if you go off shed with the boiler totally full it makes it hard to keep the loco quite for the hour. So it's pretty normal for 4160 to arrive MD on the first run of the day with 500 gallons or less in the tank. If you take the precautions I've mentioned of putting the platform hose in then you can arrive with a considerable amount more. I think the biggest influencing factor over and above your steady state figures is all the starting away.

 

The argument for reinstating watering facilities at Williton is very strong by the sounds of it.

 

Really?

How many times in, say the last 5 years, has the lack of watering facilities at Williton been a problem?

Robin

 

SRM 93 took on a few pints from the WN garden hose a couple of years ago. I realise that's not normal operations.
It seems to me that a supply at WN would be a good insurance policy, while the BL one would help operationally. It also seems that FoWSR have the plans in place for both, so maybe they could do one & the Association do the other, more educational, one.

 

There are more significant operational needs.

Take just one. The BL layout has a 'missing' track circuit over the points between the QB siding and the up sidings, which means that whenever a movement is made there the signalman has to try and judge when it is clear of the points. That occurs at least once every operating day, not once in a blue moon.

Robin

 

Do you not use two pop whistles by the driver to indicate that a movement is clear of points? Entirely traditional and would seem more reliable than a signalman trying to judge when a movement was clear.

Tom

 

No, that only works some of the time, and light engine moves aren't the problem.

A shunt into the up sidings and/ or back into the QB siding has the loco on the far end of the movement, and if you can judge where the end of your train is six coaches away and round a curve so as to give a pop whistle?

Relevant part of BL diagram attached.

'Missing' track circuit would be between 9 and 12 dummies and TC 'HF'.

Robin

 

Nice to see D1015 running as D1010 today

 

If the loco is on the other end, then this would presumably be a propelling move after the points are changed. On that basis surely the guard or shunter in charge of the movement should be giving the "points require to be turned" hand signal when clear of points?

 

Was nothing wrong with having a loco of Brauntons size just not ideal for the low season running round on load 5,

 

All true.

But so much easier with a track circuit.

The point being that before embarking on 'nice to have' projects such as rarely required watering facilities, some consideration of what would actually help the operators might be wise....

Robin

 

Did they borrow the nameplates off WSRs D1010