Bluebell Motive Power

Fair enough, but why no link? Surely even the general public if considering a visit to a steam railway might just conceivably like to know what steam engines are there? If you find yourself looking at the .com site there is nothing (that I can see) to tell you that another site with complementary information exists at all.

I'm reminded of one of the lesser whinges on the West Somerset thread, that the WSR website and/or leaflets (I forget the details) had no information about the Quantock Belle. In that case, we are all too well aware of strained relations between various parties, but isn't the Bluebell supposed to be one big happy family? Having two separate websites with a link in one direction but none in the other doesn't seem right.

Edit: it isn't two: I've just seen, on the .co.uk home page "We have five different web sites".

 

From the e-Newsletter:

"LOCO UPDATE: FLEET IS RUNNING WELL

Our running fleet availability has improved over the last month or so, with only No. 323 out of traffic for some maintenance work. The Boiler Inspector will visit in the next couple of weeks to witness this loco's hydraulic and steam tests.

Unfortunately, we have suffered some teething troubles with the Q class, but these are now resolved and she is available for traffic. Lately, we've been running S15 No. 847 and U class No. 1638 on our corridor coach set, with No. 30541 as standby loco and No. 592 or No. 473 running our vintage train.

"Baxter" has been used on goods trains for training purposes and as a Sheffield Park station pilot. Although only an 0-4-0 and diminutive, "Baxter" is ideal for this work and is a strong loco.

The repainting of A1X No. 55 "Stepney" back into Stroudley Improved Engine Green was completed in time for the re-launch of the Stepney Club on the 7 June, 2015. She looks fantastic and is now more recognisable to our younger visitors. Thanks must go to Tony Funnell for doing an excellent job. She'll now be displayed at the front of the running shed, under cover, adjacent to the entrance where people can admire her.

On the subject of painting, our steam crane is progressing well at Horsted Keynes. We recently moved it to a more accessible part of the up-yard so Roger Barton and his team can continue their excellent work. The body of the crane and the counterweights are the next items to tackle.

Inside the Loco Works, progress is being made on No. 928 "Stowe's" boiler, with all the old crown stays now removed. That marks the end of cutting and drilling bits out and the start of putting new plate work, crown stays, side stays, rivets, etc. back in. The former for the new throat plate is complete, and this, along with rolled firebox sections, will arrive at Sheffield Park in coming months.

The main focus in the Works is the completion of No. 73082 "Camelot". The boiler is firmly in place, with a new ashpan. The smoke box is riveted in, the cab and running plate are on, and the tender returned this week from Ashford after having its wheels turned. The next tasks are to complete the internal elements of the smoke box, boiler cladding, and other fittings. Our painters are doing an excellent job, each a volunteer and working to a high standard in their spare time.

Off-site work has started again on No. 34059's boiler after a short period of inactivity at LNWR Crewe's new premises. At our recent visit, we agreed the scope of work and timescale to complete the repair: 2016 will see No. 34059 return to steam!

Lastly, the works' fabric will shortly change, with expired cladding replaced with a modern version, which will be in the same style as the adjacent Above Workshop Facilities and finished in traditional LBSCR colours. Thank you to all those who contribute to the Railway. I look forward to seeing you over the summer.

By Chris Hunford, Locomotive Director"

 

Q class back in use today, although not yet indicated as such on either the loco roster or "services for the coming week" on the website.

 

The Bluebell general enquiries page showing Locomotive roster shows 30541 running Monday - Friday
of this week. I'm out to see her tomorrow, I haven't seen the loco in steam since it's Guildford days.

Mike M.

 

Roster has not been updated for almost 2 weeks, someone on holiday?

 

The. Com website roster is updated more frequently than the. Co.uk one. The later relies on the volunteers who look after it being told, while the former is updated by office staff I believe. The. Com roster has shown 30541 since at least Sunday.

 

New loco roster for July has already been posted:- http://www.bluebell-railway.co.uk/bluebell/loco_roster.html 30541 in use for most of the first half of the month and 847 for the second. I've been planning a visit for next week, so am delighted to have the chance of a run behind the Q, never having done so during her first ticket.

 

Saturday 11 July looks a good day to go John - it appears from the roster that 592 will be running a demo goods in the morning, before taking the Wealden rambler in the afternoon. Plus 541 and 263 on the service trains. Usual caveats apply.

Had my first day on 541 last Saturday - it was lovely!

Tom

 

Issue 19 of the 84030 group newsletter can be downloaded from here: http://www.bluebell-railway.co.uk/bluebell/loco_news/oh_84030.html

Close working with the 82045 group continues. In particular, illustrated are two sets of swing links for the trailing truck, once set for 84030 and one set for 82045. Also the hind truck frame casting has been delivered; a second identical casting has been ordered by the 82045 group, with pattern making costs shared between the two projects.

In other news:

- Photos of the new throat plate former for "Stowe" at the South Devon Railway: http://www.bluebell-railway.co.uk/bluebell/loco_news/oh_84030.html
- Brake pedestal and other cab fittings for "Camelot": https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=588186917989604&id=381518251989806
- Further updates on SECR P class No. 27: https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=588186917989604&id=381518251989806

Finally, recladding of the loco works was due to start this week I believe, and for the next few weeks, access to the loco shed may be a bit restricted. Once finished, the building should be warmer, more weatherproof and brighter.

Tom

 

Thanks Tom. Slight problem - it's our wedding anniversary that day! Still. I might opt for a ride midweek and pop over for a quick photo or two on the Saturday

 

It looks as though someone's got a bit carried away with the site navigation… website by committee anyone?

Multiple websites isn't the end of the world - I daresay neither the shop site nor the museum are the busiest in the world - but there does need to be a rather more elegant approach to navigating between them. Maybe railways should take more of a 'less is more' approach to the world of t'internet…?

Simon

 

For those who haven't caught up with the news, 1638 has been definitively withdrawn from service after nine-and-a-half years in traffic, during which it bore the brunt of our front-line services. With several relatively minor faults and a hydraulic boiler test required if repairs were carried out, it's been decided, rather than committing workshop time and money to gain just a few months extra on its boiler certificate, that it would to more sensible to use those resources in expediting the current overhaul of 'Camelot'.

Shame we never had 541, 847 and 1638 all running on the same day, but there is 928 to look forward to...

1638 was almost perfect for the railway: she'd handle 5 Mark 1s / 6 vintage coaches easily, and could manage 6 Mark 1s if required, yet wasn't too uneconomical off peak on shorter sets, or running the dining trains. Even last year in her ninth year in traffic, she ran the second biggest mileage on the railway, only a few hundred miles behind 847 for the year. Though 541 seems to be an ideal replacement

Tom

 

Au revoir to 1638 for now, then.
Any idea whether one of the moguls will make it onto the "to do" overhaul list?
Fantastic locos and love them in Maunsell green. I never did make that trip to see 1638 which I kept meaning to.

 

There's no officially defined loco works programme for large locos beyond 73082, 34059, 928 and 80151. which is probably stretching out into the 2018-19 sort of timeframe.

However, I'd imagine that one or other of the moguls would be high on the priority list for both the Maunsell Loco Soc and the Railway once 928 is finished. Even so, I suspect restoring one or the other might be seen as a replacement for 847, i.e. perhaps 8-ish years away.

All the above is speculation...

Tom

 

Some more photos as Camelot continues to come together:

https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=590804974394465&id=381518251989806

(Visible to non-FB members).

Tom

 

Shame about this. 1638 was a great loco and did very well, seeing far more use than anticipated during those 9 1/2 years. Pity there will be no "U" in action for a while. I guess that, along with 75027 and the three 80xxx tanks, 1618 and 1638 must be the most suitable for the line.

It would be good if the "N", No., 31874, could pay a visit when overhauled just to remind us what a Maunsell Mogul sounds like on the Bluebell. I've just checked Klaus Marx's Illustrated History of the Lewes & East Grinstead Railway and it includes two pictures of "N" classes but I couldn't spot any of a "U". although I know "U1" No. 31890 worked a train of condemned wagons. I'd be interested to know if a "U" ever worked over the line prior to closure.

 

Must admit I'm growing quite a liking for U Boats, attractive, can do most things a line needs, not coal eaters, and more interesting than yet another Bulleid, does 31806 have long left or is a period without any working coming up ?.

 

I've had a quick flick through references, and interestingly there aren't vast numbers of pictures of Us in Sussex - plenty of Ns and U1s though! Judging by the shed allocations, they must have worked into Sussex, though whether they specifically worked down the Bluebell - I can't find definitive evidence. One possible thought is that the line was quite often used as a route to get London-based locos to Brighton for works attention, as it kept such transfers away from the mainline, so it is always possible that a few made their way along the line that way. There's a record of one of the Maunsell diesel shunters travelling to Brighton from Norwood Yard that way and spending few days at Sheffield Park stopped with a mechanical failure until a fitter could be summoned to get it on its way again. Yes, a diesel at Sheffield Park ...

Drifting off topic, I did find two nice photos. One of a Q with the Brighton MPD Crane and a Birdcage brake in tow, a scene we could more or less exactly replicate today. And the other of U class 1625 with a rake of six GWR coaches in the mid 1930s on a Portsmouth - Cardiff service near Bath - a shame that 1638 never made it to the Severn Valley!

Tom

 

Thanks Tom. Your research seems to confirm what I thought. In fact, I've just checked through a number of books and it seems that some Us worked on the Sussex main lines up to 1935 - i.e., before electrification - but after that, they were very rare in the county and would have been most unlikely to have worked on the Bluebell Line. In BR days, the most well-recorded appearance of a U in Sussex was a sad occasion - the LCGB Wealdsman excursion of 13th June 1965, when 31803 partnered N class 31411 in a farewell run over the Cuckoo Line before it closed.

Still, 1638 (and 1618 before it) looked the part on the Bluebell and are ideal for the line. Hopefully we won't have to wait too long before one or other goes into the works.

 

A collection of photo's from a Jon Bowers charter with 1638 in 2010. A great loco and well suited to the Bluebell.
http://stephenleek.smugmug.com/Railwayphotos-1/U-Class-1638-Bluebell-railway/