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Bluebell Motive Power

Discussion in 'Steam Traction' started by Orion, Nov 14, 2011.

  1. Duty Druid

    Duty Druid Resident of Nat Pres

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    Or you could have a slightly older one......

    https://www.flickr.com/photos/duty_druid/38489801652/
     
  2. std tank

    std tank Part of the furniture

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    73096 went to Southall, not Carnforth and, as the photo shows, is now back at Ropley
     
  3. A1X

    A1X Well-Known Member

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  4. BrightonBaltic

    BrightonBaltic Member

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    Really? I am surprised. Why is Bunch letting them have that loco back when they still haven't unbanned him from the railway despite losing the court case on every count and the then management being forced to resign?!
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Aug 6, 2018
  5. Matt37401

    Matt37401 Nat Pres stalwart

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    Cold hard cash.
     
  6. Christopher125

    Christopher125 Part of the furniture

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    IIRC the Mid Hants clarified in a recent 'Steam Railway' that he isn't banned and is free to visit.
     
  7. Jamessquared

    Jamessquared Nat Pres stalwart

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    Whatever the ins and outs, not the subject for this thread.

    Tom
     
  8. nine elms fan

    nine elms fan Part of the furniture

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    Have you been abroad for the last couple of years, your about 2 years behind all this has been well documented, and as Tom has said it has nothing to do with this thread which is about the BLUEBELL RAILWAY.
     
  9. A1X

    A1X Well-Known Member

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    So anyway, 2-3 months for Camelot could make it touch and go for the summer peak, which isn't ideal. Hopefully no other gremlins are going to be found to put that more at risk.
     
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  10. Steve B

    Steve B Well-Known Member

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    While agreeing that this is the wrong place for that particular discussion, I too didn't know that the "5" had returned. Not everyone follows every bit of news about every single railway, so cutting a little slack for those who might have been looking the other way might be nice:)

    Steve B
     
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  11. Matt37401

    Matt37401 Nat Pres stalwart

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    It was a rather significant peice of news though! I take your point but it is worth having a look back on the Mid Hants thread to check it out, even the thread about Mr Bunch buying a new loco might have given the game away a bit!
     
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  12. Jamessquared

    Jamessquared Nat Pres stalwart

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    From the e-Newsletter:

    Loco Update: Progress On- and Offsite

    Summer arrived early (well, we had three nice days in April) then winter returned, and finally summer arrived again in May, with a glorious bank holiday weekend! ​

    But despite the beautiful weather, I still had to scrape the ice of the car early one morning! It has been quite a few months now since I wrote an article for the eNewsletter so here's a roundup of what's been happening.​

    The Loco Works have been busy with both overhauls and maintenance work, and in particular maintenance to the running fleet. S15 suffered an issue with the brake ejector exhaust pipe back in April causing water to be exhausted from the ejector. After removing the exhaust pipe, which runs internally through the boiler of the loco, both ends of the pipe have been re-brazed and the pipe hydraulically tested. ​

    The pipe is now re-fitted to the loco, which was an arduous and time consuming task as we need to thread the pipe through the crown stays of the boiler. As I write the final fittings and preparations are taking place for the boilers hydraulic test. ​

    Unfortunately, our most reliable locomotive--No. 73082 "Camelot"--failed in mid-April while working the service train. After the loco arrived back at Sheffield Park and the cylinder covers were removed, it became clear something had happened to cause the piston heads and cylinder covers to crack. The exact cause is unknown, but new piston heads and cylinder cover castings have been ordered and these should be with us in a few weeks' time. ​

    A significant amount of machining is then required for the cylinder relief valves, for stud holes, and to get a tight fit to the cylinder block. With both these locos out of traffic, the Q class has borne the brunt of the heavier trains, and she will be back in service after her boiler washout. All other trains have been hauled by either the O1, the H class, or No. 323 "Bluebell".​

    Offsite final welding to the inner firebox of "Stowe" is underway, and once complete the inner firebox will be riveted up and returned to Sheffield Park. No. 34059 "Sir Archibald Sinclair's" inner firebox is complete and has been trial-fitted to the boiler and removed again while the final adjustments take place to the throat plate. Once all the dimensions--such as tube plate to tube plate length, water leg widths, and firebox position--have been checked, the inner firebox will be lowered back into position for final welding.​

    Onsite work is progressing very well with the boiler of No. 80151. The repetitive task of drilling, reaming, taping, and fitting the boiler stays is now on-going, with the throat plate area complete and right hand side 70% complete. Work has now started on the left hand side, and once 70% complete then attention will turn to the backhead. ​

    The chassis is now 95% complete, with the slide bars, crossheads, pistons, and piston valves installed, including both the front and back cylinders covers bolted into place. The rods and remaining valve gear will be installed, then the chassis can be pushed outside to await the boiler.​

    No. 928 "Stowe's" frames and wheels are progressing well. The overhaul of the front bogie is complete, the driving wheels are undergoing prep and painting, and the frames are being cleaned, prepped, and painted on both the inside and outside. Inside the machine shop, the axleboxes are being machined. Once complete, they will be trial fitted to the driving wheels ready for scraping. Our plan is to re-wheel the loco in the next two to three months.​

    In the loco yard, improvements have been made to the area where the Class 2 No. 84030 is being constructed, with levelling and concreting of the area and construction of a canopy. This improvement will allow the wheels, pony truck frames, and axleboxes to be fitted ready for the frames to be lowered onto the wheels.​

    With the Railway now into the daily running season, and a number of special events coming up, I hope you can make time to visit, travel on a train, and see the progress being made across the whole railway.​

    By Chris Hunford, Locomotive Director
     
  13. Jamessquared

    Jamessquared Nat Pres stalwart

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  14. Jamessquared

    Jamessquared Nat Pres stalwart

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    Atlantic House Open Weekend
    July 7/8

    More information on the annual Bluebell Atlantic Open Weekend, July 7th and 8th, with the opportunity for supporters and visitors to see the latest progress with the construction of 'Beachy Head'. Atlantic House at Sheffield Park will be open from 10 am to 5pm both days.

    There will be a small auction of Railwayana, Pictures , Models etc on Sunday afternoon at 2.45pm. Viewing will be from Saturday morning. Commission Bids can be left if you can't attend on Sunday afternoon.

    Items include:
    • A BR Firing Shovel.
    • A S.M.J. 'Beware of Trains' cast iron Notice.
    • An original Matthew Cousins Painting
    • Hornby and Bachmann Locomotives
    • and other items.
    There will be a progress report and presentation before the Auction at 2.30

    Tom
     
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  15. S.A.C. Martin

    S.A.C. Martin Part of the furniture

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    I’ll be there. First chance to see the Atlantic this year!
     
  16. Jamessquared

    Jamessquared Nat Pres stalwart

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    I hinted at this earlier, but there are photos now on the "What's new" page of the rewheeling of 84030, a significant milestone in the project.

    See http://www.bluebell-railway.co.uk/bluebell/whats_new.html for 1st August for a report and photos.

    (Note also Beachy Head's tender has now moved onto rails and away from the front of Atlantic House during the same sequence of crane moves, an enabler of another significant step in that project).

    Tom
     
  17. Praise for the Bluebell time...

    I was sad to miss being able to say hello to Tom the other weekend (unless he was on the O1, in which case I would have seen him from a distance at SP as the last train of the day drew in), but an absolutely delightful evening was had by my girlfriend and I on the Golden Arrow that evening, hauled by the immaculate H class.

    The food and service were both excellent, the waiting staff not only attentive and very professional, but also very good humoured. And we were impressed that - unlike other eating establishments we visited during our week 'dahn sarf' - the fact that my GF is vegetarian was both remembered and not an issue. All too often she is made to feel awkward in eateries by choosing not to eat meat, whereas the GA staff treated her no differently to the carnivorous diners. This was both noted and appreciated. The food and wine were both excellent and the cost of drinks not excessive.

    Heading from SP to EG and back on the second run was gloriously atmospheric as darkness fell (although it did feel a little odd getting dark an hour earlier than it does in our part of Scotlandshire!)

    The only down side for us - and this of course isn't the Bluebell's fault - was that one of the blokes in the two couples opposite didn't stop talking for even a second all evening. On and on and on and on and on... And he had a voice which was a grating cross between Alf Garnett and the worst kind of monotone train spotter. It was when he started going on about the merits (or not) of different types of supermarket bread that we started pulling faces, kicking each other under the table and stuffing napkins in our mouths to prevent ourselves from saying "Oh do shut the .... up, for goodness sake!"

    But that idiot aside, it was a wonderful evening, we left a (thoroughly deserved) tip and we will DEFINITELY be back. And we'll bring friends next time.

    Now, Mother's Pride or Warburtons... ?
     
  18. S.A.C. Martin

    S.A.C. Martin Part of the furniture

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    On behalf of the Pullman staff - thank you for your kind words. I actually served you at one point during the journey. I always enjoy it when the H class is on the front of the train - it's a very special locomotive.

    Many thanks once again - I will pass on your kind words to our train manager for that day.
     
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  19. Jamessquared

    Jamessquared Nat Pres stalwart

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    Glad you had a good time, and sorry we didn’t catch up - I was on the H class that day, but we handed over to a second crew for the evening Arrow.

    It’s the finest loco on the railway ...

    Tom
     
  20. S.A.C. Martin

    S.A.C. Martin Part of the furniture

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    I will always have a soft spot for the various terriers, the Adams Radial, and the O1, but I have to say that the H class is most certainly our finest locomotive today.

    A glorious sight and what a great sound too.
     

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