West Somerset Railway General Discussion

Whats the history of it?

 

AH!! https://www.sabre-roads.org.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?t=15551

Mr Google knows

 

Warthill was also notable for another reason.
An interchange point with a a private estate railway.
The Sand Hutton Light Railway.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sand_Hutton_Light_Railway

 

Did oil bath leaks contribute to this sort of problem in any way.? I thought it was more related to making the locos more likely to catch fire? After all, the majority of steam loco lubrication ends up on the track.

 

Always pleased to inform a debate. We hoary old railway types are out of favour in Somerset, but we know a thing or two...​

Robin

 

The 'all day breakfast' was never intended to actually last all day! We served rather a lot of tea and coffee refills that day, along with copious amounts of extra toast.

During our forthcoming Spring Steam Gala, breakfast will finish at midday, wherever we happen to be. I've just posted this on the SSG thread but might as well repeat it here:

Full details of QB's SSG diagrams and meal service will be published early this week. We will be serving full English breakfasts, hot luncheons and cream teas at appropriate times of day.

It is now possible to pre-book a QB breakfast seat by visiting the Spring Steam Gala page of our official website. We will be on the rear of the 9.05 departure from Bishops Lydeard on all four days of the event. It is most unlikely that 'walk on' QB seats will be available on this first train of the day, as we anticipate selling out all four days in advance.

The remaining services each day will NOT be available for pre-booking and will all be traditional 'walk on' arrangements. There will be a MD-BL breakfast service, a BL-MD luncheon service and a MD-BL cream tea service each and every day of the event.

More details to follow shortly.

Barrie

P.S. We are just back from Andalucia with the hand-picked oranges for QB cook's home-made marmalade. All in the price, although it might have to be rationed!

 

First class news even if the price has gone up. Well done the QB team. Ticket booked for Friday.

 

Did the GWR 4-6-0 s need a large grate when they had the wonderful Welsh Steam Coal ? I grant you there were some routing problems but when running in their own territory was it a problem ?

 

It's actually the same price we charged those folk taking the optional extra (black pud) during Winter Steam Festival last month, except the £10 now additionally includes a guaranteed seat reservation and posh marmalade. The black pud will still be offered, but no longer subject to extra charge.

By my reckoning, not having to issue bills and collect cash should speed up the operation a tad. Every little helps.

I understand bookings are rolling in. Please book early to avoid disappointment!

Barrie (hoping there won't be a computer glitch leading to scenes suggested a page or two earlier).

 

I would like to make it clear I think that is still excellent value.

 

' A steam loco catching fire ' . I know exactly what you are talking about Steve . I'm led to belive the oil baths for the timing chains were quite substantial so a fire would be the last thing you would want but a loco on fire .lol

 

In Peter Smiths book he talks of an unrebuilt catching fire, the signal bobby called the fire brigade out! That was oil splashing from the wheels , that leaked from th oil bath, up into the lagging.

 

My view on them is that the Bulleids are slightly more prone than other locos to slipping. I think that the bigger issue in service may relate to the regulator design. The Bulleid regulator is quite excellent and nicely balanced once the pilot "valve" (which is really a clearance around the operating spindle) is opened and the pressure equalises either side of the "top hat". Personal observation is that lots of drivers assume the regulator works like a traditional sliding regulator with a first and second valve. It doesnt. With a Bulleid one pulls it until you can feel resistance....wait for the equalisation then without great effort open the regulator to the amount required. Many other types require a vigorous pull to start them....on a Bulleid this can result in a sudden and unwanted introduction of a lot of steam, and therefore a slip.

 

'Plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose' This reminded me of discussions in the 1956 Railway Magazine.

At that time the RM published the following letter. "The use of detergents and neutralising chemicals to remove oil and grease from rails and eliminate slipping, suggested in an editorial note in your May issue, would no doubt prove successful in many places. From observations at the north end" (I was on holiday at the time) "of Edinburgh Waverley Station, however it would appear that a less apathetic view by drivers is what is mainly wanted. The other morning I watched a 'B1' start with a six coach load. On being given the 'right of way' the driver heaved his regulator over and I have never seen an engine slip so badly with so light a train. Half an hour later another 'B1' left with nine coaches on a Glasgow train without the slightest sign of a slip - and the start was far faster because of it. These remarks apply not only to 'B1s' but to all classes with the exception of the 'A4s' which always seem to start superbly. M.J.Rowe."

On reading this over half a century later I am embarrassed at the temerity of a fifteen year old to judge driving abilities. I also wonder if the success of the nine coach Glasgow train and the 'A4s' was because these were the turns taken by top Link crews, particularly from Haymarket. I now have the temerity, based on close observation over 70 years, to agree (as a 77 year old !) that the 'Bulleid Pacifics' particularly benefit from a sensitive hand

Michael Rowe

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The same thing happened at the same location at the SSG in March 2014, exactly as described above.

On that occasion the loco was 34007 'Wadebridge'.

Stef.

 

Possibly not. Which begs the question, if every type of coal had the same qualities of Welsh Coal, would we be devoid of Pacifics because it wasn't necessary to build them?

 

I ask because I just don't know but when the long distance trains , ie Birkenhead or anywhere else that might not be traditional GWR territory did the locos performance suffer due to the lack of Welsh steam coal , excepting of course when they were on the trials . I was thinking when they were on service trains , or would one bunker full be enough for a round trip ?

 

Birkenhead was very much GWR territory, and the GWR had loco facilities there, albeit on a site shared with the LNWR. In general it was rare for loco to travel far off their home companies' lines bar the odd exception such as the Great Central engines which occasionally reached Plymouth, so it would be generally unusual for a loco to be serviced at another company's shed.

 

Bit of operational news. Currently 2 teams of volunteers are preparing WD wagons for the Spring Steam Gala. One team is working on a covered van at MD and the other team is working on the open wagons at Washford (with great thanks to the Somerset & Dorset Trust for allowing us to use some of their inside accommodation). Across teamwork in action with volunteers enjoying a spot of hard work. Attached photo of the progress on an open that has had its woodwork primed and metalwork rubbed down and top coated.

 

Hi Paul, GWR did have a shed at Birkenhead with servicing and coaling facilities. The shed was an 8 road north light shed which was joined to but with no rail connection through the shed to the old LNWR shed. If I recall correctly it was opened in 1898 and its GWR code was BKD. Under BR the whole lot was transferred to the BR(M) in 1958 but ex GWR locos remained there until the end of BR(W) steam.