Ferryhill Railway Heritage Trust (Aberdeen 61B)

Hello everyone. Some of you may have seen the article about Mr Cameron and Union of south Africa and possible excursions to Aberdeen in Steam Railway some time ago, so here is the website and Facebook page. We are not working again until the new year now, but current work days are:

Wednsday nights from 7pm
Sunday from 10am


http://www.ferryhilltrust.co.uk/FFRHT/Welcome.html

Facebook page here http://www.facebook.com/pages/Ferryhill-Railway-Heritage-Trust/230007287055687 where more pictures and updates will follow.

Railscot/Brit page full of archive phtos here http://www.railbrit.co.uk/location.php?loc=Ferryhill MPD





We are always looking for new members to join the team, so for membership details email David.Clucas@FerryhillTrust.co.uk


You can see the an old photo of the site including turntable on Google maps by searching for "Polmuir Avenue, Aberdeen" and zooming in.

If anyone knows of people interested in Aberdeen, but who are not on here, do please let them know.

Thanks for looking.

 

Given that Brechin is only 40 miles down the A90 and that, after over 30 years, the Caledonian Railway still has a very small volunteer workforce and very few beans to rub together, I think that the establishment of two more railway preservation schemes in the area (the one mentioned here and at Milton of Crathes) is rather a pity.

I actually find it rather sad that the people involved in these schemes didn't decide to give the CR the boost it needs by throwing their lot in there.

Unfortunately modern railway preservation seems to be more about people 'wanting to have their own train set to play with' than furthering the cause of the movement as a whole. You can't save everything, nor should we try.

 

Thanks for the response Disused. If you read a little more closely, you will see that the Deeside Railway and FRHT are actually in close collaboration, and some imagination and a little geography might allow you to piece the long term ambitions together.

Nor should we try? I have been alive long enough to know, that the difference between those who try and those who don't, is much the same as those who talk a lot but accomplish little, and those who accomplish much and make little fuss of it. What are we if we do not try? There would certainly not be the magnificent achievements displayed on this forum and throughout the country, with millions of supporters, if it were not for groups of people trying and succeeding in their ambitions, hopeless as it may seem to some. Only with positive attitudes can we accomplish anything. I am sure in years to come our local councillers, patrons, volunteers,customers, custodians, visitors and general enthusiasts, and of course the north east tourist industry, along with others who stand to benefit, will agree with you that the effort was indeed "a pity" :rolleyes1:

 

The problem with Brechin is that very little has ever happened to the railway. If it closed down I doubt many people would miss it. The north-east of Scotland has a great railway heritage but is under-represented. The Strathspey is the only decent sized railway north of the Central Belt but is a long journey from Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire. Crathes is developing but like all new start-ups the progress seems to be slow.

Best of luck to Wyndham and the FRHT.

 

So - assuming the A4 runs to Aberdeen next May - where will it turn?

Is there a triangle at Aberdeen or can the turntable be accessed? Inverness is a long way!

 

Ferryhill turntable. This is still connected to the national network, but does require some work.

 

You have completely (and I suspect deliberately, so there's a :rolleyes1: in return) missed my point, Wyndham.

Everybody who begins a new preservation project waxes lyrical about the many benefits that successful heritage railway projects bring to the local economy. Of course they do - it's the way that they justify it to the wider world of people who aren't necessarily interested in railways. I see that you're new here - have a search for the thread about the Folkestone Harbour Branch and see how convinced they are of the huge benefits that it will bring to the local economy.

"Only with positive attitudes can we accomplish anything" is always the defence trotted out by those who want to start their own preserved line to who they see as heretics and non-believers. You're saying nothing new or original there.

The point of my post - which you decided to turn a convenient blind eye to - was to ask why you haven't taken your "positive attitudes" a few miles down the A90 to Brechin, instead of diluting the available volunteer resources and public income by starting more schemes within a comparatively short distance?**

Neil_Scott has said:

Might it be that an injection of fresh blood, enthusiasm and Wyndham's "positive thinking" could make all the difference at the CR? Better infrastructure? Better restoration and storage facilities, which would attract owners of bigger and better locos? Return Brechin and Bridge of Dun stations to their former glory? An extension from Bridge of Dun via Dubton junction into Montrose? All of these would make the CR a more attractive prospect to tourists, but all would need that enthusiasm and positive thinking that you evidently have great reserves of.

You have chosen to interpret my comments as saying that I don't think that reopening the route from Milton of Crathes to Aberdeen is feasible or likely to succeed. That is not at all what I'm saying - I don't actually have any opinion one way or the other on that.

What I am saying is that it's a pity you couldn't take those reserves of being "those who try" and "positive thinking" a few miles down the A90 to an existing preservation scheme which could no doubt really do with the help, instead of starting up new schemes which can only serve to dilute the possibilities of progress and expansion at Brechin.

** Because you didn't want to help someone else in the heritage movement, you wanted to start your 'own' scheme, no?

 

Why do people decide to start new schemes?

Some sites have a closed shop mentality to new ideas and new people coming on board, not all of course, but there are enough to drive away new members, so rather than walk away from the preservation movement they start their own,

Ferryhill looks to have something about it, what else is there in scotland that could be a mainline servicing point that could be an attraction to the public, most are active depots with no access and if its planned to be a destination then i think it could work, its not going to take away anything from exsisting attractions as it is not going to be in competition with the preserved railways in scotland because they are mostly family day out type attractions, where as i would imagine that ferry hill would be more like a small version of burrow hill or didcot, once its been renovated i dont see how someone can just say, help another outfit, they dont always want outsiders trying to poke their nose into what some see as their own little railway so called railway politics dont help either , so i say good luck and proove the doubters wrong

 

In the last 10 years the Strathspey Railway opened a 5 mile extension, built a new carriage shed, introduced 2-train running and has overhauled 3 steam engines. At Bo'ness they've extended the line to Manual and developed a superb musuem. Crathes has made a start. What's happened at Brechin? Frankly, little of note.

It's all very well saying that people should go and volunteer at Brechin but what exactly are the ambitions of the Caledonian Railway? What are its purpose and aims?

 

I saw the turntable at Perth Marshalling yard from the train en route to Pitlochry in what must have been days before it was "mistakingly" cut up.There must be only just a handful left on the national network.Once it is gone it is gone .A new build turntable ? possibly as much as new build locomotive (correct me if I'm wrong!) Once a turntable has gone sadly it is gone.

 

An interesting question and one that applies to many a medium sized preserved line.
Broadly speaking the aims probably are
1. Survival
2. Expansion.

People shouldn't underestimate what an achievement the first one is, either, but in the harsh economic climate expansion is really a must to sustain survival. I wonder how many "weekend" railways will still be in being in 10-15 years time?

Lots of railways have big plans, many as yet unfilfilled. In the rush to be the next Severn Valley or NYMR it's very easy to forget the here and now. I tend to agree with the poster above that amalgamation with an established group could really make a difference, rather than starting a new scheme. Of course it isn't possible to expect that those advocating a new scheme will feel anything like the enthusiasm for an existing one, but they should be prepared for a long hard road ahead when starting a railway from (almost) scratch.

There is a very interesting article in this month's Steam Railway about the North Nolfolk- a very good example of a line that has managed to reach it's best potential with a series of sucess stories- and they have been going for 30 years plus! There are lots of railways out there that just need a bit of expertise to steer them in the right direction- always better to have say 2 or 3 established lines in a region reaching potential than a load of schemes struggling to survive.

 

Not really, from where I am writing this evening, within 100 mile radius, I can estimate at least 50 turntables thst would be made available for sale at next to nothing prices, probably a few hundred pounds...
Almost all unused, standard gauge and less than 800 miles from London.... There are literally hundreds of turntables, water towers, water cranes all over Poland... You could even take your pick of roundhouses, gantries and even few coaling towers. This country could recommence steam nationwide within weeks if they had the motive power available.
There really is little to differentiate them from British equivalents... I even know some recently refurbished, circa 2008, .. Even though nothing's used them for at least 20 years.

Given they sold a 100 ton steam locomotive for £4k, you could get a turntable for peanuts, I know two covered roundhouses for sale.... They'd probably give them you.?. I wouldn't try buying a steam loco here mind though.

Google maps.. krakow pleszow... There's about 4 turntables around the yard and shed area, complex and surrounding areas.?.working east there's Tarnow, Rszesow etc etc etc.. None of them used.

 

I thought Ferryhill table had been isolated from the network - no reason why there couldn't be Aberdeen - Inverness excursions then.

So why couldn't DB, who had Perth turntable cut up "by accident" in contravention of network change be prevailed upon to find one of the right diameter, ship it over and re-install it?

Its nine years since 6201 was turned at Perth now. It would permit Highland main line Perth to Inverness runs as well as Edinburgh or Glasgow and points south - looks like good business to me.

 

It has nothing to do with "my own train set", and I am surprised such a mentality is even proposed in an adult conversation. Ferryhill was quite litterally right on my doorstep (25 riverside drive) when I found it, and it is now a 10 minute walk from where I live. Deeside is 20 minutes drive from my parents house also, whereas brechin, strathspey are both 100+ mile round trips. It is that simple. If I lived next to brechin, yes I would chip in there. And it is hardly a short jaunt down the A90 either, it is quite a trek on what is an increasingly congested road.


I have been told that there are only 3 turntables like the one at Ferryhill left on the netwrok, however I cannot assure the accuracy of this. It is now a listed structure and it is nothing short of a miracle that it is still there, given the housing development next door.

Ferryhill has a great deal of potential, working museum, mainline servicing etc, and it will take a long time to extract all the potential, but we are getting there one step at a time.

No it is still physically connected, however the yard itself has not seen attention form network rail/railtrack/br for some decades, and is heavily overgrown. Yes indeed, Aberdeen Inverness excursions are a real possibility too, as are overnight excursions into Aberdeen, given that in time it will be possible to stable an engine or even multiple engines in secured covererd accomodation.

 

They probably could, Theres quite a few in Germany, many in former East Germany, which will be under DB ownership.
The diameter will be in Metric, but I wouldn't have thought adjusting the size of the pit to accommodate it would be that hard, whether the turntable length is in feet or metres it's still long enough and does the same job.

 

I wouldn't have thought it would be rocket science to make one in this day and age. It would be welded rather than riveted nowadays, but in essence it would be a simple fabrication job. Probably cheaper and easier than altering the size of the pit.

 

A turntable hardly seems to be a complex piece of engineering apart from where it pivots and the associated bearings needed to allow that to happen. As 61624 says, it should be very simple to fabricate one together but we have a mindset that turntables are impossible to build.

 

Very careful thought must be put into the associated stresses an the beams and bearings. This some FEA to optimise the design and keep costs of manufacture down. There is no excuse not to given the wide availability of FEA packages.

Quick question anyone here have an idea how much of the load is distributed to the runner rails and wheels on the outside perimeter of the pit, and how much the centre bearing takes?

 

A table in balance should have no load on the perimeter rails. That's a fundamental. The perimeter rails need to take the load when the loco is running on or off. Not a difficult calc for a simply supported beam.

 

Ah, ok. Thanks steve. The thing is, that at one point there was a vaccum motor on the Ferryhill table, and so, this makes me think there must be some kind of load on the perimeter rails. Is it safe to assume this is a negligible load?