East Midlands Railway Trust/GCR (Nottingham)

If the GCR is to rival the best in the country is it going to create some inclines on the bit between the two existing lines and find some better (NYMR style ) scenery to hide the new housing estates ?
Unique yes .One of the best loco fleets yes .Scenery or inclines -afraid not .

PS the HSTs are air only too (and fuel hungry ) not to mention a lot longer than a 56.

 

D 7076 makes some good points but I'm sure you can carry more people in an HST than a 56 . As for the facts of geography I think we are agreed. However, I was very pleased to see that a couple, who have just moved into the latest new houses on the East side South of Loughborough, were happily waving to the trains on Wednesday.
We also have the best fleet of goods wagons and TPOs.....

 

Pity about the housing estate but the line is not bereft of scenery. Swithland resevoir and the nearby countryside are a joy to to behold from the train on all but the worst days, while Charnwood lake is right by a pleasant lineside spot. And there is the traditional railway scenery of the approach to Loughborough Central, with factory, terraced house backs and sidings. And Swithland sidings with interesting rolling stock on display, maybe another train and a background of electricity pylons - such a characteristic feature of the East Midlands.
Few lines better represent the everyday reality of the railway scene of 50 or so years ago. Especially when the wagons roll...

Vive la difference!

 

More news from the GCR(N) S & T website

"For the first time in fifty years, Hotchley Hill signalbox has a lever frame.

The original Saxby & Farmer 1888 Duplex was ruined by British Rail when the 'box was downgraded to a shunters' cabin. Last year, we obtained a kit of parts to the same pattern, and last week we fetched it from store to its new home.

This week, we set about bolting it together, starting with the standards; the large upright castings that rise from the beam to the floor above. These are heavy, and certainly not something you want to drop. Two people lowering each down from above, and three below guiding alignment with the base casting made quick work of this, and we were soon onto the flat horizontal bars.

The donor frame had groups of ten levers between standards. Hotchley Hill's, from which we are reusing the base, had bays of eleven. Each bay is then spanned by a flat bar at floor level, drilled like Meccano, to support the row of curved quadrants. The bars from the donor frame had twenty holes, for two bays of ten. We cut these down to fit our bays of eleven, and laid them in place.

Then for the quadrants. These were slightly harder to install, needing shuffling into a order where they all fit, but this was easier than experience says it could have been. Bolts dropped into place, and we were even able to include one of the original quadrants that were thrown out all those decades ago, which has been tucked away at the southern end ever since.

Of course, we couldn't resist fitting one lever, the clunk of a catch dropping home is as characteristic of real signalboxes as block bells ringing.
The whole operation went remarkably smoothly, thanks to a great team, and we even had some time spare to weed the front path. A good day's work!"

It is good to read that positive progress in the North is being maintained.

 

As a guest member of the S&T team on Saturday who helped fit in the frame, I can confirm that the S&T team are a brilliant bunch, who have been quietly plugging away and getting some great work done. It may be a while but once completed Hotchley Hill will be a real testament to their time and effort!

 

A list of events for the GCR(N)/NHR in 2022 has appeared:-

 

More steady progress - from the GCR(N) S & T report ;-
"This week, we continued where we left-off a fortnight ago, extending a track circuit from Asher Lane crossing down to the protecting signal at Fifty Steps. This will simplify the area, allow the recovery of equipment, and facilitate future works at the junction when the time comes.

Our first job for the day was to drill and install bonding wires over each joint in the section to ensure electrical continuity. Even with the benefit of a purpose-built petrol drill, each pair of joints takes several minutes, which adds up quickly.

Second, we had to fit insulation at the new end of the section; fishplates with plastic separators. After a quick run back to Ruddington to get the right set of _bullhead_ IBJ components, we got this installed with surprisingly-little fighting the rail ends for alignment.

We were also pleased to welcome a new member of the team, with plenty of willingness to get stuck-in and learn. Another good day."

Whilst other news has been sparse, I have been told that a lot of work is going on behind the scenes with the intention of getting steam running, hopefully in the late Summer?

 

I understand there are a number of industrial tank engines under restoration by various groups at the NHR. Is there anywhere I can get an accurate list and/or some updates on the progress on them?

 

https://www.railadvent.co.uk/2022/07/new-nottinghamshire-home-for-steam-locomotive-no-1264.html

This was a pleasant surprise to find! Not explicitly saying it will be available for use on the NHR but it certainly implies availability once complete!

 

That will be a real "shot in the arm" for the team at Ruddington! Was it 1264 that was restored from "Barry condition" originally, at the back of the GCR shed at Lbro?

 

I believe it is

 

Ironically 1264 was thought to be a project impossible due to the condition of its boiler. How times have changed.

 

Well, it was the firebox really, some parts of it were replaced, it took a while to get it right (I remember the loco on shed with water quite literally pouring out of it not long after it first steamed), and it now sounds as if the whole thing needs replacing.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

I just had a look at the EMRT Website and FB pages to see if anything had been updated lately....to which the answer is a definite NO. Last Update on the Website is getting on for a year ago now, and the last posting on the FB page is from January 2022 and that's repeating the A60 GCR Bridge Appeal !

I note from the "Cutting Edge" FB page that there is an open day at Rushcliffe Halt this coming Sunday (31st July) for anyone interested...

 

I too had looked recently on those GCR(N) , EMRT websites...... and was disappointed!
I'm sure a lot of people are doing a lot of work but, if they want help, they need to be more open about what is happening, I would have thought?
Still, the GCR(N) S&T pages are kept up to date and there are details about the Open Day on July 31st.

 

It’s no good to me groups posting on websites as haven’t visited one in years. For events I expect notification via SM these days, not to have to go searching just in case something might be happening.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

Sheff makes a good point, but if you are expecting contact via SM (Social Media? facebook etc?) then how do you access those - still a significant number of people, who are not on SM?

 

It is a huge frustration of mine that one thing the railway has not been good at in recent years is communication - to the public or to the members and volunteers. The S&T group is a welcome exception

 

Have you thought about stepping forward yourself? I don't mean that in a snide way at all, sometimes it's up to us as the younger generation to take a fresh look at things with new energy!

 

You need both, but so many of us now rely on having event news delivered to us via SM that for organisations not to do this amounts to commercial suicide. Ideally the SM post includes a link to the website for more info.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk