Castle Posted May 3, 2015 Author Share Posted May 3, 2015 Hi All, Sorry about the late reply but I have just had a rather busy two days in which I finished work and went straight to Didcot, worked until just before the pub stopped serving food (!) and then got up at 05:00 hrs to help finish the last few details and light up No. 4144. Oh, and then I had to prepare my speech to thank my team and help our chairman and the mayor of Didcot launch her and then spent some time on the footplate with my team. I will do a full write up on the day and post soon but until then here is a taster... Many thanks - I do hope so! I thought 5227 was being kept in its scrap condition to illustrate the start point of many resto projects. In any event, it has given up quite a lot of parts to other engines, namely the "new" 47xx......and its condition will no doubt keep on deteriorating authentically!Hi Horse, That is the plan but only the deterioration is going to a bit slower away from the South Wales sea air! Good to see 4144 in steam. And always a pleasure to read what's going on at big Didcot. But no news on what must be one of the most important items at Didcot 4079. And do you know what if any work is being done or planed for 5227? Hi Farren, Thanks for the compliments about the prairie! Thanks also for the compliment about No. 4079 being the most important thing at Didcot. To be honest we feel that they are all the most important but I do have a particular soft spot for her! They do get under your skin... The plan is that I have asked two of my younger team members to begin a page of latest news within the DRC website so as soon as our first edition is ready I will let you know! As for the 52XX - see above! Just got back from my evening run - I was overtaken by 1501* as I went along the path by the railway on the Ladygrove estate. That engine looks really smart in that black livery! Best Regards, ZG. * This does not imply that 1501 was travelling at any great speed - rather that I wasn't. In fact, I once got overtaken by a powerwalker on the same stretch of path... Hi ZG, Thanks for the little extra caveat on the end of that one - I don't know what the speed limit is on that road but I suspect it's higher that ours! Hi Nigel, No problem, No.7202 is parked right next to No. 4079 AND she is on a pit so I will take a snap for you next time I am on shed. Funnily enough this is something we have been looking at on the Castle and the differences between our project and No. 5051 is quite remarkable - especially at the front end of course! This time a photograph of No. 4073 at Swindon by one of my team answered the questions we had. All the best, Castle 8 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Weaselfish Posted May 3, 2015 Share Posted May 3, 2015 Congratulations and thanks to everyone involved in running the gala Castle. I spent all day there on Saturday and had a great time. 4144 looked wonderful. 3650 shunting the non-working locomotives about was a brilliant idea - very evocative of the last days of steam. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Castle Posted May 3, 2015 Author Share Posted May 3, 2015 Hi Weaselfish, I am glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for all the great feedback. All the best, Castle Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold sjrixon Posted May 4, 2015 RMweb Gold Share Posted May 4, 2015 Sounds amazing.. And the weather wasn't bad. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Castle Posted June 3, 2015 Author Share Posted June 3, 2015 Hi All, As promised - the first in an ongoing series of updates on the progress of everyone's favourite Mk. 1 Castle* is now live on the Didcot Railway Centre website: http://www.didcotrailwaycentre.org.uk/guide/projectitems/4079project.html My roving reporters, Ben and Andy, are both young members of the team and are also both in the initial stages of careers on the big railway too. Enjoy! All the best, Castle *With apologies to No. 4073... 6 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Siberian Snooper Posted September 24, 2015 RMweb Premium Share Posted September 24, 2015 Hi Castle Is it possible for you to get a few photo's of the driving controls for the Steam Rail Motor and the trailer please. Thanks in advance SS Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Castle Posted September 24, 2015 Author Share Posted September 24, 2015 Hi SS, This is no problem! I'm 'on shed' at the weekend! All the best, Castle Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Castle Posted September 29, 2015 Author Share Posted September 29, 2015 (edited) Hi All, Here we go then - the innards of No. 93! This first post will deal with the locomotive end cab. This is the view from the cab windows. The bunker is in front of everything and the rails are there to protect the glass from the coal. Yes, that's right - the handbrake is in the coal bunker... The tray on the left has the gauge glass protector and the wash out plugs in it as she is ready for a boiler wash out. On the wall on the driver's side is the bell code system. Above us is the air conditioning. The doors at this end are sliding and have a rudimentary safety feature in the form of a steel bar that can be hooked in place if the vehicle is running with the doors open. As you can imagine, this can be a very warm place indeed so that is a common occurrence! Down the fireman's side of the boiler is a rack for the fire irons. At the back is the pipe that leads from the filler flap in the side of the coach body down to the water tank between the frames of the coach. Down near the floor is one of the 2 injectors. The final point of interest this side is the condensation coil for the hydrostatic displacement lubricator. Moving round the boiler at waist level is the lubricator itself. The white paper behind the glasses is a common trick to make the oil dripping up through the lubricator more visible. Above front and centre is the pressure gauge and the whistle valve above that. The wires leading away are for operating the whistle. Under this is the two steam supply valves for the injectors, one each side. Up and to the left is the safety valve. It gets a bit loud in here if they go off! It's a great encourager for good boiler management on the part of the fireman... It's ok by the way, the L and R refer to the placement of the parts of the valve when it is on the ground but when it is mounted it is reversed. The marks are as a reminder if anything gets stripped in situ. We do know which way round left and right are... Underneath that is the gauge frame with the glass and protector removed for the wash out. The try cocks are on the right, the lever to turn the frame on and off is the thing with the red handle and the lamp iron for night running is below that. Just below the lubricator is the regulator handle and valve. The linkage to the left is connected up with the pin on the end of the chain when the railmotor is being driven from either the end cab or the trailer. The two large pipes leading away from the valve are the two supply pipes going down to the cylinders and the small bore pipe goes to the lubricator. The large pipe to the right with the white lagging is the exhaust pipe leading up to the chimney. Below that is the firebox door. The two doors are on slides and are opened when hot with a special tool that comprises of a hook that wraps around the rather furniture like knobs and pulls them open one at a time. The fire is only tended when stationary as having the doors open on the move would cause cold air to rush over the lower tube plate which would not be good for it, potentially causing leaks. This next picture is a busy one. The exhaust pipe can be seen going up to the chimney. Nestled in the crook of the pipe is the brake valve and associated controls. To the right of that is the vacuum gauge. To the right of that is the steam heat and below it is the blower. To the right and slightly above the steam heat gauge is the driver's side clack valve that admits water from the injectors to the boiler. Below that little lot is the reverser. To the right of the reverser is the mason's valve and below that is the second injector. Next to the injector, on the floor is a mud hole door, the old seal and the bridge that fixes it in place when in the boiler. The the left of the reverser quadrant (the bit with the notches in) is for the cylinder drain cocks. The damper door controls are on the other side of the firebox door. A side view of the reverser... ...and a close up of the clack valve. The gangway on the driver's side is the one used as the corridor to the passenger cabin and therefore is kept clear. The unusual shape of the boiler can be seen here as well as the sliding window in the cab side and the large inspection hole in the side of the boiler. In the final corner is the filler pipework for the other side, the spare coupling and the wheel chocks. With that, our tour of No. 93 closes for today. I have pictures of the full interiors right down to the other end of No. 92 - would that be of interest to everyone or shall I just do the other two cabs as per SS's request? If people would like to see them, I shall continue posting this week. Please let me know! One last thing - part of a certain Mk.1 Castle got a paint job. It is currently having a holiday behind No.5051 as this locomotive's tender is undergoing restoration. EDIT: here is some more detail shots of K14's wonderful work in action! http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/100373-collett-4000-gallon-tender-chassis-lining/ All the best, Castle Edited September 29, 2015 by Castle 12 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DavidB Posted September 29, 2015 Share Posted September 29, 2015 Fabulous photos - thanks very much. I've just bought a 7mm scale Railmotor kit for my dad's birthday, so the timing couldn't be better. That machine must be an absolute swine to fire - I've fired a Double Fairlie and that was hard enough, but the Railmotor looks very tricky with the vertical boiler and all. And that tender is just beautiful - if the whole loco ends up as good as that, the magnificent 5043 is going to have some serious competition. Bring it on! David Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Horsetan Posted September 29, 2015 Share Posted September 29, 2015 ..... I have pictures of the full interiors right down to the other end of No. 92 - would that be of interest to everyone or shall I just do the other two cabs as per SS's request? If people would like to see them, ..... Is the Pope a Catholic? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
lofty1966 Posted September 30, 2015 Share Posted September 30, 2015 Is the Pope a Catholic? Does he wear a funny hat? Is he too busy to read the Sunday morning papers ? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Siberian Snooper Posted September 30, 2015 RMweb Premium Share Posted September 30, 2015 Castle, Thanks very much for the photo's, very useful and the informative captions put them into perspective. I look forward to seeing the rest including the interior shots. Thanks again SS. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Horsetan Posted September 30, 2015 Share Posted September 30, 2015 ....just bought a 7mm scale Railmotor kit ..... I will admit to having a sample of the Worsley Works body etch for no.93. God only knows where I'm going to find a suitable power bogie from, though, given that the old Blacksmith range is effectively dead. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Brunel Posted September 30, 2015 Share Posted September 30, 2015 One last thing - part of a certain Mk.1 Castle got a paint job. It is currently having a holiday behind No.5051 as this locomotive's tender is undergoing restoration. image.jpg Let me see - 5051 has 4079's Collett tender, and 6998 has (I think) 5051's Hawksworth tender. Where did 6998's tender go? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Horsetan Posted September 30, 2015 Share Posted September 30, 2015 Let me see - 5051 has 4079's Collett tender, and 6998 has (I think) 5051's Hawksworth tender. Where did 6998's tender go? I thought 5051's Hawksworth was originally from 6998? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Castle Posted September 30, 2015 Author Share Posted September 30, 2015 Hi All, It goes like this: On the main line, most of the time No. 5051 had No. 6998's Hawksworth tender. During this time, No. 5051's tender was displayed with No. 6998. When No. 5051's ticket finished, No. 6998 got her tender back so that. No. 5051 could be displayed in original condition. When the aimed cosmetic restoration started it was found that there wasn't much metal left in a few places - yikes! No. 4079's tender was finished and just taking up space in the works so an agreement was reached whereby No. 4079 loaned her tender as a static exhibit to No. 5051 and No. 5051's tender is lined up for restoration work. That's where we are at... I hope this helps! All the best, Castle Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Castle Posted September 30, 2015 Author Share Posted September 30, 2015 Hi All, Today we will look at the luggage area and the small saloon. First, a last look into the engine compartment, from the luggage compartment. Those tip down seats are present on the main line today in the disabled toilet coach of the HST. Funny how these good ideas keep cropping up isn't it?! Why is there a hand rail in here? Because the whistle chord runs down the middle of it. On the floor there are a few destination boards. We have a wide range of these for all occasions at Didcot. My favourite being the ones that say 'Far, Far Away' and 'Infinity and Beyond'! The one for Looe is kept in pride of place above the door to the C&W Department's convenience... This area is where the large plastic auxiliary water tanks go when No. 93 is performing on the main line. There is a simple hose type connection that links into the fireman's side filler pipe and it is switched on with a ball valve fitted to the tank. This extends the range of the Railmotor considerably but requires careful management otherwise it just spills out all over the track. The sight glass for the water tank you ask? It's underneath the coach body so no checking on the move... The doors are beautifully panelled. The one on the right has the door knob on, the lever and bolt is on the one on the left. Leather straps for raising and lowering the windows are of course standard throughout. The other door here leads into the small saloon. The flooring is of a duckboard style construction. There are another pair of tip up seats here too. Note that all the doors this far are single sliding doors but the main saloon doors in the distance are double. Time for a few details: The inside bit of the roof ventilators. The standard brass hanger for the handrail. The switches for the electric gas lights (!). Finally for the luggage compartment, the GWS says thank you for all the help, financial and practical, with the restoration of No. 93. This is the small saloon. It has seats of the walkover type. The following text from the steam railmotor project website explains the seats: "One of the remarkable features of interiors of Railmotors and early Autotrailers was the installation of seating with movable backs that allowed passengers (if they wished) to always face in the direction of travel. This style of seat was more commonly found in tramcars of the period, and as far as is known was not fitted to any other passenger carrying vehicles manufactured by the GWR." "The style of seat fitted by the GWR was designed by Henry Safford Hale of North 6th Street, Philadelphia USA, and was patented by him under patents 3478 (1902) and 5957 (1905) They were manufactured in the USA by Hale & Kilburn who had works in Chicago and New York as well as Philadelphia." "The seats were also manufactured in the U.K. by G.D. Peters & Co. who’s works stood alongside the GWR main line at Slough. – The site was rail connected, and delivery of seats to Swindon would have been an easy matter. Peter & Co seats were exported all over the world, and some ended up being fitted to rail vehicles in Australia, eventually being repatriated by the Society for use on the Railmotor Project." There are two types of window in the small saloon. This is the small twin type... ...and this is the large single type. Note the roller blinds that can be employed by patrons. They sport faithfully replicated GWR fabric. A few more details - this is the replica gas light that is actually an electric light. The leather hand straps, reminiscent of London Underground practice. A reproduction notice. One of the many carriage prints present in the vehicles. They are reproductions but very high quality ones and take from originals in the GW Trust's collection. Finally for tonight, here are the catches and handles on the doors. These are standard throughout the passenger compartments. The project website for the railmotor project is still extant and tracks the remarkable story of the survival and rebirth of Nos. 92 & 93. This can be found by clicking on he link below: http://www.didcotrailwaycentre.org.uk/zrailmotor93/archivenews_13/archivenews_13.html Well, that will do for tonight! We will look at some more of No.93 tomorrow night. All the best, Castle 6 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darwinian Posted September 30, 2015 Share Posted September 30, 2015 Really interesting pictures Castle. I notice there is a fire extinguisher on view, is that so the thirsty crew can get to the pub quicker at the end of the day than dropping the fire? Having travelled on the SRM on the tip up seats behind the cab on the RMWeb day a couple of years ago I can imagine just how true "it gets a bit noisy if they go off" must be. It was pretty noisy with just the exhaust beat. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Horsetan Posted September 30, 2015 Share Posted September 30, 2015 ?.. destination boards. We have a wide range of these for all occasions at Didcot. My favourite being the ones that say 'Far, Far Away' .... Do you have any that read "Small......Far Away"? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Castle Posted September 30, 2015 Author Share Posted September 30, 2015 Perhaps a 'Craggy Island' one would be good... 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Gough Posted September 30, 2015 Share Posted September 30, 2015 It's interesting that with wooden bodies, gas lighting, and a rather large coal fire, I don't recall any stories of steam railmotors catching fire. However at least a couple of the GWR diesel railcars ended up as charred wrecks! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Horsetan Posted September 30, 2015 Share Posted September 30, 2015 Perhaps a 'Craggy Island' one would be good... "Chinatown"? "The Very Dark Caves"? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Mikkel Posted October 1, 2015 RMweb Gold Share Posted October 1, 2015 Many thanks for this guided tour, Castle! Especially useful for those of us overseas. I hadn't heard about the walkover seats. Very clever. The brass hanger for the handrail is so elaborate, a little work of art in itself. Somehow the EMUs that I commute on can't quite live up to that! 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Siberian Snooper Posted October 1, 2015 RMweb Premium Share Posted October 1, 2015 Castle, Many thanks for this, it will help with the modelling when I get round tuit. The historical notes are also of intrest. Thanks SS Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Castle Posted October 1, 2015 Author Share Posted October 1, 2015 Hi All, Just a quick post of our tour of Nos. 92 & 93 for tonight - I have had a busy day! This is the vestibule between the small and large saloon. It's only a small space but it is packed with details. This is the drivers side door to the outside world. The storage rack is here alongside another bell code instrument to allow the guard to communicate with the loco crew. Here is the light... ...and the ventilator. The communication cord is also visible here too. On the fireman's side there is another smaller rack. Both sides have a lever like this near the door. I have asked people what they think they are for and answers range from "is it the handbrake?" (wrong but a very sensible guess) to "it must be the ejector seats for irritating passengers" (a fair degree less sensible a guess and very, very wrong!). The lever of course, folds out the steps so that passengers can alight from the railmotor at places where there are no platforms. Then there are the doors to the main saloon. We shall go through them tomorrow! All the best, Castle 9 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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