The Gwili Railway thread

I know it's possibly a bit early to be asking, considering rosters etc, but would I be right in guessing Haulwen will be the service Loco on 25th August ?, Will be paying my first visit to Gwili then (via 70000 to Camarthen) and look forward to checking out a "new" line.

 

Notwithstanding any unforseen problems, it would be reasonably fair to assume that Haulwen will be the service locomotive on 25 August. However, it would be best to flag it up on here closer to the time to be absolutely sure. I hope you enjoy our railway when you arrive (likewise, we hope that plenty of passengers on the tour decide to take-up the Gwili trip option). We have been in touch with Pathfinder to provide them with a brief 'what's-on' guide to the railway. What with developments on multiple fronts including the extension, Aberayron Signal Box and the Vintage Carriages, it is an exciting time to be involved with the Gwili!

 

Hi David -

The loco roster for the second half of August has not been released yet - however when it does, I'll make sure that it gets posted on here.

Hope you enjoy your trip to us behind 71000!

Cheers,

Phil.

 

Thankyou Phil & Bulleid Pacific, it's rare for me now to have the excitement of visiting a railway I never have before, the sort you don't get on a repeat visit somewhere.

 

Haulwen will be in steam and operating services on 25th August. David1984, we hope you enjoy your first visit to us!

For those interested, Jennifer will be in steam on Mondays and Fridays throughout August, whilst Haulwen will be running the rest of the days each week. As ever, if you're travelling specifically for a particular locomotive, do ring in advance (01267 238 213) as plans do sometimes change.

Looking forward to seeing some of you at Bronwydd Arms this August!

Cheers,

Phil.

 

Thanks Phil :nod:

 

Sorry guys, looks like Pathfinders pulled the plug on this one :frown:

 

Oh well... Probably not enough bookings. Hope you do pay a visit to us in the near future, though.

 

Be a certainty if Im ever in South West Wales , first thing I do on Holidays is suss out the local preserved line :nod:

 

The Aberayron Signal Box Project (abbreviated to AYSB henceforth) took another step forward yesterday after an informal gathering, jointly organised with the Aeron Valley Railway Society, took place at the Feathers Royal Hotel, Aberaeron. It was a privilege to meet two ex-Aberayron signalmen, who have offered us an invaluable insight into the internal layout of the box during the 1950s, and regaled us with fascinating stories from their time on the railways. We have also been advised that the signal box was built after the railway opened to traffic, and photographic evidence from 1911 supports this. However, photographic evidence in the shape of a postcard from c.1912 shows the box in position, leading to the exciting likelihood that the signal box is celebrating its centenary this year- if so, then what a birthday present!

The meeting also raised a conundrum as to a mysterious chimney in the roof; project members believed that there was a stove present in the box (as indicated by a circular hole in the roof in preservation), however both signalmen were adamant that there was none! It is quite possible that the stove was removed when passenger services ceased in 1951, but we are unable to ascertain this for sure, and research is ongoing into this mystery. Suffice to say, the sister signal box at Felin Fach also had a 'chimney' fitted. Answers on a postcard, please!

By the way, if anyone on NatPres has any information regarding the Aberaeron Branch, please PM me by all means; the Project believes that the signal box is the key to opening up an entire social history of the area that hasn't really been covered in detail before, and any reminiscences/photographs etc. would be most welcome. Thanks for reading!

 

Evening all,
Here are a few sneaky pictures of the vintage carriages at the end of today. Fingers crossed for our September target date
GWR 216
upload | Flickr - Photo Sharing!
TVR 220
upload | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

 

More recent progress on GWR 216 and TVR 220 can be seen at

Gwili Vintage Carriage Group » News

As James says, not long to go before the hoped-for debut.....

 

Nice to see our new signal box reflected in the paintwork of 220!

 

Hi I'm planning on popping up at quarter to nine tomorrow? Is this okay... I can paint move things, whatever really is needed. Regards tom

 

Hi Tom

I have sent you a PM

Regards

Matt

 

A brief update-

Vintage Carriage work is really gathering pace, today we delivered seat backs on GWR 216 to our upholsterer for fitting the foam and material, and 4 out of the 8 doors on TVR 220 have now been fitted. Lots of painting going on, yellow lining and cherry red on the bollections. Next up is getting all the doors on both coaches to fit and 16 door handles to fix on.....A vacuum test will take place this week followed by a test run later this month behind the 03- ah well some Swindon motive power then!

If all goes to plan then the GWR 4 wheel train will debut on certain weekends in September- subject to them being completed of course. The idea is that on these special weekends there will be a 2 train service, with the DMU and vintage train running. More details will follow as soon as we can confirm.

Meanwhile the "Vintage Carriage Cafe" at Bronwydd is also coming along, with the kitchen being fitted. This may also debut before the end of the year.

Extension work has not started yet, will post as soon as it does.

Don't forget trains are running daily in August- see www.gwili-railway.co.uk for more information.

Regards

Matt

 

I loved my first day at the Gwili! the carriges are really coming along nicely!.

 

Glad to hear, and welcome to the team! Fuel poverty and AYSB have prevented me from taking an active role with the carriages of late, but I intend to turn up a week Sunday to gather news tidbits for incorporation into a future press release regarding the carriages and with a bit of luck, give a hand in finishing them off.

 

Glad to hear you enjoyed it Tom, welcome on board!

Regards

Matt

 

Hi Guys,
Here is a picture from last nights vac test. Everything went well with only a sticky cylinder to be rectified.
upload | Flickr - Photo Sharing!
Also anyone familiar with the railway will realise that the above picture has been flipped when being scaled by my phone & I’m not sure how to undo to it !