Mid-Hants News 176

MID-HANTS News How to Build a Steam-Powered Light Show Young Restorers Tackle Sir Fred Pile Wadebridge Heading for Main Line?

£3.00 No.176 Winter 2020/2021

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Editorial Dear Members,

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In this issue, the letters from the Management team pay tribute to the Railway’s staff and volunteers, who, despite 2020’s lockdowns and Covid restrictions, still managed some extraordinary accomplishments.

The letter from Stephen Evans, the Society’s chairman, highlights how a generous donation is making it possible to explore the feasibility of converting No.34007 Wadebridge for main line operation. Wadebridge is over 70% owned by the Society for the last 12 years, and was put into the restoration queue after her boiler ticket ran out in 2016.

FEATURES Steam Illuminations

The technical innovations that produced one of this year’s most successful attractions.

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12 No.34058 Begins

And a much-needed good news story. Our Steam Illuminations event has been covered by all major local and national news outlets, and even enjoyed some time on the front page of the BBC website. In this issue, Simon Horn, the designer behind the world’s first steam-powered, digitally controlled, light show, explains the innovations and technology required to transcribe the magic of a stadium-style light show onto a moving steam train.

Restoration

How a young team is gaining experience restoring our ‘secret Bulleid’.

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14 Signal boxes – Part 1

Now, the end of 2020 sees our most recent lockdown, where we again down tools and lock the gates. All these challenges notwithstanding, we have learned much and grown together, and we are ready for 2021!

Happy ‘retirement’ to Tony Wood After 12 years as Ropley Works correspondent, Tony Wood has announced his retirement. His conversational style and extensive knowledge has helped many of us better understand the more technical side of loco and boiler maintenance and operations. Tony was respected and trusted by interviewee and readers alike, and we will miss his contributions. We thank Tony for his work and wish him all the best in whatever projects he’ll take on next.

Moving a signal box from Wilton South station to Medstead and Four Marks in the early ‘80s.

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16 Autumn Gala

Sue Dixon, Brian Dolton, Steve Morley, Tony Storey

Photos capturing visiting locos as well as our own.

DEPARTMENTS

18 Around the Yards

Completion of the pit road, minor jobs on new arrival No.53808, boilershop and carriage works progress and reports from various steam, diesel

and wagon groups. ____________________________________

23 Building Department Notes

The positive side of closing the Alton section and all the work required before passenger services could be resumed. ____________________________________ FRONT COVER: Steam Illuminations test train arriving at Ropley on 10th September 2020. Photo: Steve Morley BACK COVER: Jubilee No.45596 Bahamas passing Bishops Sutton during a Mad Hants photo charter on 23rd October 2020. Photo: Dave Ryding THIS PAGE: S15 No.506 working hard round Wanders Curve on 17th October 2020.

Photo: Steve Morley S15 No.506 glinting in the sunset towards the end of the first day of the Autumn Gala on 16th October 2020.

Photo: Nigel Stinchcombe OPPOSITE PAGE: Top: 7F No.53808 descends the gradient at Northside Lane foot crossing with the 11.45 service from Alton on 16th October 2020. Photo: Julian Clark Below: Jubilee No.45596 Bahamas at Ropley on 16th October, but possibly portraying a nostalgic scene from the 1950s, waiting to take the Pines Express north from Bath Green Park. Photo: Lee Marlow 2

REGULARS

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Senior Management A look back at the challenges and successes of an extraordinary year. ___________________________________

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The Society Preparations for a ten-year funding programme, and how a generous donation is allowing us to test the feasibility of Wadebridge for main line operation. ___________________________________

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Newsline News of what has been going on around the Railway and tributes to passing friends. ___________________________________

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Between the Lines Some happenings that might not make headlines plus news from station maintenance crews. ___________________________________

24 Canadian Pacific No.35005

Fitting pistons and refurbishing valve gear. Progress on the tender. ___________________________________

25 Medstead & Four Marks Report

The team continues to refurbish the station and area, and welcomes a new guard and signalman. ___________________________________

26 Miniature Railway

Shifting containers and building a new yard. ___________________________________

27 30 Years Behind the Levers

Clive Jackson continues his look back on 30 years as a signalman. ___________________________________

28 Book Reviews

What our reviewers think of some new offerings for your bookshelf. ___________________________________

29 Letters

Our readers’ welcomed contributions. ___________________________________

30 Regional Groups

What has been going on around the Groups and how to join in. ___________________________________

31 Information

A list of Directors, Trustees and Management. ___________________________________

31 Sylvia Smith

Travels down Dartmouth way.

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MID-HANTS News No. 176

‘Mid-Hants News’ is the official organ of the Mid-Hants Railway Preservation Society Limited, supporting body of the Mid-Hants Railway Watercress Line.

Published in February, July and November by the Mid-Hants Railway Preservation Society Ltd., Alresford Station, Alresford, Hampshire. SO24 9JG. Next copy date: Saturday, 13th February 2021 Next publication date: April 2021.

The Editors welcome and appreciate contributions to Mid-Hants News. Opinions expressed by contributors are not necessarily those of the Company or Society. © Copyright reserved Material sent for publication may be subject to editing for reasons of grammar, length, accuracy, tone, arrangement or wording, at the Editors’ discretion.

Photographs sent for publication may be cropped, adjusted, manipulated or used graphically at the Editors’ discretion. Suitable caption detail should accompany each photograph. Contributors may submit up to a maximum of six photographs for any one issue.

Typeset by Oaklands.

Printed by Stephens and George, Merthyr Tydfil The management team of the Railway is listed inside the back cover. The Railway's website address is: www.watercressline.co.uk.

Correspondence should be addressed to the appropriate person c/o Alresford Station, Alresford, Hants. SO24 9JG. Please enclose a suitable s.a.e.

Tel: Alresford (01962) 733810 Fax: (01962) 735448 E-mail: info@watercressline.co.uk 3

Senior Management Richard Lacey Chairman MHR Ltd

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WRITE these notes as the Watercress Line is preparing to start delivering its much-anticipated Steam Illuminations services against the backdrop of Tier 2 Covid restrictions. How welcome will that activity be once again! The amount of effort that has gone into preparing for the event is huge, as it is breaking new ground for us entirely, and it certainly has not been without its challenges. You only need to ask Chris Ellick and his engineering team about that, just don’t mention BYs! But, as with so many difficulties this year, with supreme effort by the GM, the paid staff, and our magnificent band of volunteers, we are ready for the off and champing at the bit. By the time you read this, the trains will have run and I have every confidence that it was a great success.

Since last I wrote, there has been a great deal going on. Our summer running season under Covid conditions was a great success.

Our Covid prevention measures were warmly applauded by our visitors, many saying how comfortable they felt because they could see the trouble we were taking to defeat the virus. They saw carriages that were cleaned at every end and turn, socially distanced seating with allocated seats, managed check-in and, above all, a new kind of conducted tour of all the best bits of our line.

Covid restrictions required us to rethink the way visitors saw the line. No more could we offer freedom of the line. So, we created the concept of a ‘curated’ visit, where visitors are taken, in turn, to all the most interesting areas. This has been very popular. No

Simon Baggott

General Manager MHR Ltd

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UITE a few people have commented to me that it was a challenging year to take up the job of General Manager. I think that it has been a challenging year for everyone, but I would have to agree that it has been quite tough for all the Railway’s managers. An indication of the scale of the challenge might be that when asked for a copy of all the relevant instructions and risk assessments related to Covid by the local authority, the resulting pack of information ran to 16 documents and over 70 pages.

It has been tough for many others though.

I am conscious that not everyone has yet been able to return to their volunteer role, though it is not for the want of trying on the part of the management team. It has been particularly hard on our trainee firemen, who, because of social distancing, have had to miss the whole year. We’ve tried to run some days when they could gain experience with ‘Dave’ aka Thomas, but it isn’t the same. The Operations Department are putting the finishing touches to a plan to get their training going again in the New Year in a covid-safe format.

However, when I think about this year what I most think about is how much has 4

longer do visitors have to work out what they want to see and how to get there, we now do it for them. In particular, the layover at Ropley has been praised, as has the more relaxed schedule by visitors and staff alike.

This is a clear message for the future.

In all of this, our volunteers played an absolute blinder. Some were concerned about the potential risks given our average age profile, but gradually, as people became accustomed to how we were doing things, word spread that it was safe to come back to volunteering and they did―in significant numbers. Without them, we could not have achieved the income we did, and in August, we had 150% of the numbers we would normally have for routine running days.

In addition, alone amongst heritage lines, we ran a gala in October. As a statement of our intent, it could not be beaten. While numbers had to be constrained and things done differently, we sold out and received a great deal of praise for having done it and for the way in which we did it. I must praise Simon Baggott and the team for having the courage to plan and execute such a bold move. Well done, team!

There have been other successes since I wrote last. Thanks to the great work of David Snow and others, we secured a £250k loan from the Heritage Lottery Emergency Fund and a further £600k from the Heritage Recovery Fund. When combined with the Business Interruption Loan from the bank of £850k, and the magnificent donations to our survival fund of over £150k, for which many thanks to all who contributed, we are in a strong position to weather the pandemic, although our income will still be significantly

less than it would normally be. We can now begin to invest in our infrastructure, and the jobs of our paid staff are secured through until the spring.

There has been a great deal of work internally to try to set our house in better order. We have, jointly with the MHRPS, commissioned a working group to look at the governance of our two organisations, which is vitally important for the future. The company board has been looking at a range of issues, including the principles by which it should operate, our diversity and safety policies, and other important issues. There is more to do, but we are cracking on as fast as we can.

One notable success has been to agree in principle to the move of much of the collection of artefacts and rolling stock of the Somerset and Dorset Railway Trust to join us at the Watercress Line. The old S&D, of course, was jointly owned by the LSWR so we have common cause there, and both lines are/were single track diversionary main lines.

We have yet to agree the timescales for the move, but we hope that we can make fast progress, not least because the S&DRT’s artefacts dovetail beautifully with what we have and will enhance our overall visitor experience immensely. This is what it is all about in the new environment, great visitor experience. This makes good publicity and encourages repeat visits which enhance our reputation and drive up revenue.

No doubt 2021 will bring more challenge, but I hope there will be light at the end of our tunnel. We have a great team working harder than ever and success has been down to a great team effort. Well done to all!

been achieved on the Railway; running the second most successful event ever just before lockdown and reopening the line; locking down and keeping everything and everyone safe; seeing the formation of the hugely successful and productive Watercress Film Unit; reopening before just about every heritage line with a completely new service; running the first dining trains in 2020; getting grants and loans and donations which total around £2 million; running pretty much the only gala in 2020; refurbishing the West Country Buffet; rebuilding the pit at Ropley; refurbishing almost a mile of track including the first brand new rails to be laid in 50 years or more; making huge progress with the update of the Safety Management System (SMS); refurbishing, repainting and having the tyres turned on a coach in five weeks (!); manufacturing 100 seat back screens, fitting lights and creating two generator vans to support the most successful event on the Railway ever.

They say every cloud has a silver lining.

For the Watercress Line, the silver lining has been the opportunity, by staying with very positive messages throughout the year, to really lift our profile. The public needed good news stories and this showed in our three TV appearances, for Flying Scotsman, reopening and Steam Illuminations.

Twice this year we have had live outside broadcasts by the BBC and ITV, and the coverage of Steam Illuminations became something of a competition between them to see who could cover it most comprehensively I think. We have also appeared four or five times in The Telegraph as various of our activities have been covered during the year. Steam Illuminations has appeared in The Telegraph, The Guardian, The i and The Metro, Alton Herald, and been on Wave 105 and other radio stations too numerous to list.

The second most successful event was the visit by No.60103 in February and March. As I write this the bookings for the remaining seats on the Steam Illuminations services were powering past those for earlier in the year, limited only by the speed of the internet. What a year!

If I tried to list all the people who have made this year possible, I would fill the whole magazine, which would, I suspect, be unpopular with the Editors. So I have to content myself with thanking each and every person who has worked or volunteered or dug into their pocket this year. You have all made possible a year that I hope will one day be remembered on the Railway mainly for the massive number of positive things that took place. Thank you all so much.

2021 is going to be amazing!

Society MHRPS – ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

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Stephen Evans Chairman MHRPS

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HE MHRPS has continued to play its part in the joint effort to raise funds to see the Watercress Line through two lockdowns and develop Covid-safe services. I join Richard Lacey, Chairman of MHR Ltd, in paying tribute to the tremendous work of David Snow and our General Manager, Simon Baggott, and others, in pulling together our successful bids for National Lottery Heritage Emergency and Recovery funding. To this, I add my own thanks to all who have contributed so generously to the Watercress Line’s survival appeal. We have weathered the Covid storm this year but will continue to need your help as we deal with whatever 2021 chucks at us.

Although the Watercress Line will be in crisis mode, or something like it, while the pandemic lasts, we are also taking a longterm view. The MHRPS is starting to prepare a 10-year ‘funding our future’ programme to facilitate investment in our infrastructure, locomotives and rolling stock and, thereby, enhance the all-round visitor experience.

Crucially we are not looking to raise money through repeated appeals to the Society’s own members (although your contributions will always be very welcome!). Rather, we are thinking about how to draw regional and local authorities, institutions and businesses, and the wider public, into supporting one of Hampshire’s most important heritage, leisure and tourist attractions. As the ‘funding our future’ concept develops, we will embark on a consultation process involving the MHRPS membership and the broader Watercress Line ‘family’.

One piece of great news is the receipt of a huge donation towards the costs of overhauling Wadebridge, a locomotive in which the Society holds over 70% of the shares. The money, running well into six figures, has been given by Mr Alexander Choremi – a long-standing supporter of UK steam railways who lives in Switzerland.

Thanks to his generosity, work will start shortly on partially dismantling the locomotive and conducting a detailed inspection, including non-destructive testing. I am

delighted to say that Mr Choremi has accepted the honorary position of ‘Patron of 34007 Wadebridge’.

The inspection will allow us to establish the feasibility, scope, and cost of bringing No.34007 back into service. We will ensure that the overhaul’s scheduling and resourcing do not detract from existing engineering programmes at Ropley, including work on the Society’s Nos.35005 and 75079. If there are no technical obstacles, the aim is to get No.34007 certified to run on Network Rail metals, opening up the enticing possibility of hauling ‘specials’ on the main line in a strategic partnership with an established operator. It would also make it easier for the locomotive to make guest appearances on other preserved railways while being available to return to the Watercress Line whenever the traffic department needed it.

‘Main line and guesting’ could prove lucrative as well as hitting the heritage headlines for all the right reasons.

Significantly, the very prospect of employing No.34007 in this way is likely to attract funding, for the overhaul, from ‘Spam Can’ enthusiasts across the country. Indeed, this sort of external finance, along with Mr Choremi’s contribution and existing funds ring-fenced for No.34007, should limit the demands on the MHRPS’s own financial resources.

The heritage steam movement is going to face a motive power shortage in the decades ahead, as old engines get older and as overhauls get more challenging. Thus, there will be a premium on securing the services of quality engines. Bringing the MHRPS’s two ‘top link’ locomotives, Nos.35005 and 34007, back into action should open exciting operational and commercial opportunities.

Meanwhile, back to the present. The Evans family are booked, as fare-paying passengers, on the Steam Illuminations service and look forward to sharing in this exciting experience. ‘SI’ is the Watercress Line at its best, innovating and adapting to give our visitors something new to enjoy despite Covid constraints. Hearty thanks and congratulations to all the paid staff and volunteers whose ingenuity and hard work have made this possible. Brilliant stuff!!

HE Society’s AGM on 9 December 2020 was quite different this year, in line with Government regulations relating to the pandemic. Just the Trustees/ Directors met via Zoom, ably supported by Peter Greenwood, the retiring Company Secretary, who ensured appropriate notice and proxy voting.

The main items of business were to consider the Annual Report and Financial Statements for the year ended 31 January 2020, reelect directors and re-appoint the auditors. The accounts and auditors were approved. Steve Crowther and Derek Simmonds decided to stand down as Directors and Rob Latham was re-elected (with 16 votes for and 14 against) after taking proxy votes into account.

Stephen Evans, MHRPS Chairman, led the Board in thanking Steve Crowther for her dedication and significant contribution to the success of the Society since becoming a Director in 2002 and as Chair from 2010 to 2019.

Considerable thanks were also due to Derek Simmonds, a Director since 2014, and to Liam Kenchenten, who left the Board earlier in the year.

Peter Greenwood had recently stood down after more than five years as Company Secretary and was thanked for ably assisting the Board. Peter Smith had since been appointed as Company Secretary.

A full copy of the Minutes (for approval at the 2021 AGM) is on the website at https://bit.ly/2KAWfm9.

Continuing Board members and their specific responsibilities are: Stephen Evans (Chairman), Gregory Watson (Finance)­­, David Ford (Assets management), Rob Latham (Membership) and Peter Smith (Company Secretary). It is planned to recruit more Trustees in the New Year and expressions of interest would be welcome. Please email pajsmith@gmail.com for further information.

Above: No.34007 Wadebridge seen climbing the gradient from Ropley early on the morning of 6th March 2016 during a Matt Allen photo charter.

Photo: Tony Storey

MID-HANTS News Copy date for next Mid-Hants News: Saturday, 13th February 2021

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ILLUMINATIONS

Behind the scenes of

STEAM ILLUMINATIONS M

EET Simon Horn (of Purple Lighting Ltd.), the technical brains behind Mid-Hants Railway’s first ever Steam Illuminations.

By trade Simon is a professional concert and event lighting designer, programmer, and operator who, for more than 10 years, has worked internationally on shows from theatre-sized events right up to stadium concerts. For the last six years, in his spare time, Simon has been exploring his love of steam at MHR where he is an engine cleaner and is hoping to make fireman next year. It was Liam Kenchenten who first approached Simon about a potential project.

The Passenger’s experience Simon’s design delivers a train that is, as he says, “one massive piece of moving eye candy; constantly animated on the outside while immersing the S15 Class No.506 preparing to depart Medstead & Four Marks station with the Alton-bound Steam Illuminations press train on 3rd December 2020.

Photo: Matt Bentley

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passengers in a dynamic lightshow that is fully sequenced to music.” To complete the experience, Simon added his secret weapon – wearable lighting! Each passenger becomes a part of the show by wearing a wrist band that houses remotely controlled, full colour LEDs. Simon also installed some of the most powerful colour LED floodlights in the industry under the carriages, allowing him to illuminate the lineside foliage as the train passes.

The journey is split into sections, with each segment playing a package of songs mixed together to fit the duration of the section with a full lightshow following every verse, chorus, middle 8, bass line, riff etc.

(Simon is also a D.J.) The highly enjoyable narration is provided by Peter Dixon, also known as ‘Voice Over Man’ from the X-Factor. Simon met Peter many years ago while they were working on shows together and when he told Peter about this project, Peter was thrilled to be included.

Simon says “I really hope everyone enjoys the show, and that is what this is; it is a full show wrapped around and inside a train. It’s been an absolute pleasure combining both my major passions and I am excited to see this project grow and evolve in the future as I have plenty more ideas!”

The technical side of things The whole system comprises RGB (Red, Green, Blue) colour mixing pixels on strings or icicle style formations as well as a flexible neon-style LED tape on the locomotives, all custom-built to Simon’s

design and specification. Every single LED has its own processor chip attached to it, allowing each to be controlled individually by a digital signal.

The LED product on the locomotive uses 60 LEDs per metre, running at 24V (Volts) drawing 10W (Watts) per metre. It is in a flexible housing that diffuses the light to make it look like classic neon tubing. An array of hardware is then used to attach the housing neatly to the locomotive, thereby avoiding the many areas that would leave the LEDs a molten mess dripping off the edge of the running plate! The coaches have a 12V system with each LED drawing 0.3W. Now there are two problems with digital LEDs: voltage drop and signal degradation. These problems arise during long cables runs, and, of course, a rake of coaches means lots of long cable runs!

The other problem was the power supply/ control drivers; there was no such off-theshelf product to drive this many LEDs let alone be waterproof.

To overcome these problems, Simon designed and built power and data distribution units (PDDUs) that fit on the coaches’ lamp irons: one PDDU for the loco and three PDDUs per rake of coaches. Each PDDU is powerful enough to operate 1200W of LED light, bearing in mind your typical LED downlight at home draws 10W! Control signals are distributed between the PDDUs via network cabling which link back to the main lighting controller.

A wireless transmitter is installed in the

S15 Class No.506 passing Ropley’s outer home signal with the Steam Illuminations trial train on 10th September 2020. Photo: Tony Storey

The final design, including the underside floods, comprises 14,662 individual LEDs per train. If every LED were to run in white at full brightness, they would draw 12.4kW, and so there is a 20kVA generator on the train to provide our power.

PDDU as well. This is there ready to control future lineside installation light shows that will run in harmony with the onboard lights as the trains pass them.

Also housed in the Coach PDDU is a battery and UPS circuit that would restore power to the inside LED strings if it lost power. The lighting control console also has a UPS and, if it detects a power fail, it automatically turns the inside LED lights to static white.

In addition, the locomotive PDDU has an emergency stop safety feature, so should the crews need to stop the lights on the loco, they can hit an emergency stop button which triggers relays to cut the power to all the LEDs on the loco.

System setup and control The system is highly automated, with the lighting technicians required only to tell the system which timetable to operate.

At the heart of the system is the lighting control console which runs the lighting and the music. The console, a Chamsys MagicQ, manufactured in Southampton, is one of most powerful lighting control consoles in the industry and can control 102,400 channels without the need for external processing. The colour LEDs use three output channels each (Red Green and Blue), so the console could run 34,000 of them!

Within its software is a map which Simon created, telling the console where every LED is in relation to each other and this is how he can build effects that flow seamlessly over the whole train.

Programming the lighting took Simon almost two weeks to complete and consists of just over 1000 scenes or sequences.

As the train travels along the line, the lighting console is automatically triggered

by GPS to play the section and station packages. So, for example, between the outer home and inner home (signals) of Ropley station, a GPS trigger is sent to the lighting console telling it to fade out the current sequence and start the Ropley station sequencing. Simon has even programmed for timetable hiccoughs, “Should, for some reason, a section run longer than planned, the system will automatically run a selection of extra backup songs and lightshows then once the GPS trigger arrives, the system fades that out and starts the next sequence.”

A laptop running the same software as the lighting console serves as a backup should there be any problems.

A magical event!

Simon’s goal for the project was to show the heritage steam industry what was possible. “I want to encourage more people to sit on a steam train who normally wouldn’t, so it had to be something eyecatching on the outside while giving a fantastic experience on the inside.”

If you’ve missed the chance to ride the Illumination Steam train this year, you can watch a video of it on 'The Mid-Hants Railway Watercress Line' YouTube channel. Use this QR code or type https://bit.ly/2JyszWj into a web browser.

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Newsline . . Newsline . . Newsline . . Newsline . . Newsline ROSIE JACOB

WHAT’S NEW IN AT ALRESFORD SHOP?

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ANY longstanding readers will have been saddened by the news that Rosie Jacob passed away on 27th July 2020. Although from a farming background of many years, Rosie decided that she would be a fireman. (She abhorred being described as a ‘lady’ fireman!) She faced considerable opposition from a small minority who still thought that a woman’s place was in the home, and certainly not on a locomotive footplate! What the knockers didn’t realise was that, being Rosie, their attitude only increased her determination to reach her goal.

Reach it she did, and the certificate of competence as a fireman was one of her proudest possessions.

One would think that a demanding job in farming, a growing family, and a place on the footplate roster would have been enough for anyone. Not for Rosie!

Her support for the Railway was wholehearted, and after a day on the footplate, she could often be found washing up on the Watercress Belle dining train.

(Probably a handy way of cleaning her nails!) She was also a willing and enthusiastic RMB steward.

During her time at the Railway, Rosie was the leader of the Watercress Rangers, a group of younger volunteers, a deputy manager of the Countryman lunch train where her skills in recruiting staff (and keeping them happy) came to the fore and she helped with the Santa Trains.

Face Masks with various engines of the line are £5.95.

Beanie/Baseball hats are £15.

P-Way Pete is £16.95.

All plus P&P. To order, please email mhrshop@ gmail.com or phone 01962 734499 during opening hours. Other stock is available by post.

EASTLEIGH RAILWAY PRESERVATION SOCIETY

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HE Directors and members of ERPS have had a number of problems to navigate this year. The Covid restrictions and advice about shielding have led to no work being done on the locomotive since March. The passing of Malcolm Tomlin was reported in the last edition of the Mid-Hants News. I am saddened to report the untimely passing of Philip Noyce, our Company and Society Secretary, in June.

The remaining company board members have co-opted two long standing members (Mike Renwick and Neil Kearns) to the company board. These appointments will be discussed and ratified at an AGM when it is possible to hold one. We are starting to update our structure and administration and are working on plans for the future of No.828.

Neil Kearns Acting ERPS Membership Secretary

For many years Rosie was one of the mainstays of the volunteers who helped to bring the Watercress Line to the position it holds today. She was also an active and popular member of several local railway societies, and her outgoing personality ensured that she made friends easily. She will be sorely missed by a great many people.

FRANK TWINE

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S we went to press we heard the sad news of the death of Frank Twine, popular and successful former PWay Manager. An obituary will be in the next issue. Our thoughts and sympathies are with the family.

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CALLING ALL MEMBERS OF ERPS We are consolidating our member contact list so we need to hear from you. If you haven’t heard from us in the past eight months, please either send an email to Neil.

Kearns@Virgin.net or post a note to 38 Arundel Road, Boyatt Wood, Eastleigh, SO50 4PQ. For the latest news about the Eastleigh Railway Preservation Society, follow us on Facebook (search ERPS in Facebook).

GAVIN BARNES I regret to advise that Gavin Barnes passed away on Tuesday 8th December 2020. He suffered from dementia and was taken into care a few months back. He enjoyed his booking office duties at MHR. Gavin was a booking clerk for many years and enjoyed banter with fellow platform staff. He also enjoyed the cooked staff lunches in the West Country Buffet.

His other interests were RAF aeroplanes and vegetable gardening. He served in the RAF and always kept in touch with his former colleagues. I should add that Gavin also enjoyed dressing up as an RAF Wing Commander during the railway’s War on the Line events.

David Mead

Between the Lines Between the Lines Between the Lines Between the Lines ALRESFORD STATION SITE ENHANCEMENT TEAM (ASSET)

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ESPITE the imposition of social distancing and other Covid restrictions, our loyal, hardworking volunteers have maintained their weekly presence throughout the summer and autumn to ensure that our visitors and fellow volunteers have been able to enjoy an attractive and well maintained station site.

Since my last report, Neil Goulborn’s maintenance team have certainly kept themselves busy painting the following surfaces around the station: the white platform edges, the screen by the door to the gents’ toilet, the front of the West Country Buffet, the containers behind the staff car park, the red hand rails along the back of the goods shed and on top of the footbridge, the car park side of the Platform 1 running-in board; plus other smaller projects including the painting of fascia boards on the goods shed store, gutters, down pipes and eight windowsills along Platform 1.

In addition to these painting projects, our volunteers have also refurbished the window boxes on Platform 1, replaced rotten wood on one of the picnic tables, and undertaken the refurbishment of numerous platform seats, including the double seat that has traditionally been located by the old telephone box on Platform 1. This requires the replacement of several timber sections, which are being prepared and supplied by the Railway’s Building Department, following which our volunteers will drill, paint and reassemble the seat.

Meanwhile, Brian Hirst’s ‘heavy gang’ volunteers have also been productive, undertaking regular work within and around the picnic area with grass cutting, fence line strimming and litter picking.

Clearance work has also been done

around and beyond the water tank and below by the lamp room and water crane, together with the removal of ivy from trees in the area.

Following safety concerns raised by gang members about the extent of decay found in the large tree at the end of the picnic area, the Building Department decided that it would be in everyone’s interests to cut down the tree. This was duly done in mid-September and removed along with twelve bags of chippings.

Lastly, our heavy gang volunteers have also been tidying the country end of Jacklyn’s Lane bridge which had become overgrown with saplings and brambles growing around logs that had been left in situ following the felling of trees some time ago.

In the wake of all this good news, I have to report that we were all very saddened to hear the news of Peter Clarke’s death at the end of August. Peter was a very enthusiastic member of ASSET and local resident who devoted a great deal of time over many years keeping the picnic area tidy with grass mowing and strimming. He was such a friendly and well-liked volunteer who always had time for others and is greatly missed by us all at Alresford.

On behalf of the whole station community, I would like to conclude by saying a very big thank-you to every

member of the team. The care and effort you give helps to create and maintain a very attractive station environment for all our passengers, casual visitors, staff and fellow volunteers to enjoy.

Tony Storey Top: Working on new woodwork for the platform seat. L–R: John Hill, Mike Duffin and Benny Brundish.

Above: Preparing woodwork for a refurbished platform seat. L–R: Kevin Stroud and Neal Goulborn.

Inset: Peter Clarke RIP. A greatly valued member of ASSET. We all miss his cheerful company and are most grateful to his family for the gift of some very useful garden machinery.

Left: Heavy Gang assisting the PWay Dept. at Ropley Soke cutting. L–R: Rick Kitchen, Graham Collicott, Steve Morley, Brian Hirst and Adrian North PWay. Photos: Tony Storey

9

Between the Lines Between the Lines Between the Lines Between the Lines DEAR FATHER CHRISTMAS, PLEASE CAN I HAVE MORE SPRAY CHALK . . .

by Helen Broadbent

W

ELL, what a funny time it has been since we last spoke! There are many regulars (both passengers and volunteers) that I have not seen, as well as many new faces that I have greeted often, over the last few months. It is lovely to have seen those I have seen, and we have all missed those we have not! We have sadly lost several well-loved volunteers and not had the opportunity to say our final goodbyes. I am certain Colin, Rosie, both Dereks as well as others will be watching over our antics for many years to come, with their expertise and humour influencing us all the way.

The changes on the line have been immeasurable, both with the way we operate and, in the most part, our outlook.

Personally, I have felt there are a lot of happy people and we are heading in the right direction to build us back up to something that we are all really proud to be a part of. Thinking outside the box, with both ‘who’ as well as ‘what’ you know, really comes into play and is something I think we thrive on. We are the Watercress Line family and our bond is a strong one, and no matter how many lockdowns it takes, we will come out the other side bigger, better and stronger, supporting one another all the way. We will continue having fun and laughing regardless of being apart, and when we are all back together, we will enjoy it even more, bringing the fun with us.

Looking at the events we have run since Flying Scotsman (which was both amazing and exhausting in equal measure, I definitely think my post was redirected for a month!), we have achieved a

lot with ever changing legislation and limited number of resources. Here I must say massive congratulations to marshals, volunteers and exhibitors alike for managing to pull the Vintage Vehicle Gathering out of the bag – from a suggestion by Ben Zehetmayr to a full weekend welcoming public with a feature in a national magazine in under a month – you are all absolute legends! Special thanks to Guy Perry for sorting the car park, Jack Girling for the emergency ice cream run, Santa Matt for manning the top gate and Chris Ellick for collecting the mats back up after hours, extra brownie points to you all!

As you probably already know, my favourite place on the line is the T-Junction at Ropley: it is from here that I have seen so many changes and received so much positive feedback. Firstly, BACON ROLLS ARE BACK ON OUR MENU! It has taken a long time to get them back but, wow, what a success they have been! It shows that sometimes, with the right people in your corner and a tweak in the timetable, anything is possible. We have even

created our very own Shed Special – it seems to have cheered the lads from the other side of the tracks! So many people to thank for helping make this happen, but aside from a couple of names already mentioned, thanks to ‘Manly’ Marcus McDonald for going above and beyond, for being removals, electrician and just general good sport!

From my, now regular, vantage point, I have seen a huge change in the yard. It has been transformed with a new pit, lights and a massive tidy up. There have been a lot of positive comments from the public too, so well done to all those involved! I look forward to being able to watch them all working hard next year. Passengers have also commended us on the new timetable plus how safe they feel in the whole environment of the Railway. It really is down to the hard work that everyone has put in and a lot of multi-tasking – give yourselves a huge virtual high-five!

My next love is obviously the Santa Specials which we cannot run this year.

Once again a moment of inspiration from Mark Pedley (fuelled by a bacon roll obviously) and a lot of teamwork later, we have Father Christmas visiting with a very traditional experience and wearing his new, beautifully handmade, green coat! Teaming up with Steam Illuminations in the evening, we are the talk of the local area as everyone is excited to visit us. I need to also thank the Urie Group for their hard work helping us make Alresford Shop Covid-compliant by giving us a ramp! Come and admire their hard work if you are on one of the Steam Illumination trains; it looks very smart and has transformed the back of the building.

(Don’t forget, Urie Locomotive Society membership is just £15 for a year, it would make an excellent Christmas present and three issues of Stove Pipe … Uh oh, I appear to have spent too much time with them, I have learned the spiel!)

In all seriousness, I have tried to be a very good girl this year, Father Christmas.

I know you gave us the biggest hit with the customers at Ropley―your Credit Card shovel―but I don’t think you will be able to manage one for everyone. However, my spray chalk for social distancing markers is running low so if you could be so kind.

Also a tin of green paint if it’s not too much trouble? To be fair, I will be quite happy with coal; there is probably some lying about somewhere around here or, better still, a bigger oven? There is so much news and I don’t feel like I have stopped since July but, boy oh boy, are we in for a brilliant year next year―watch this space!

Above: The social distancing Ropley shop credit card shovel.

Photo: Helen Broadbent Left: No.41312, the 11.40 Alresford service on 26th August 2020.

Photo: David Lindsell 10

s

Between the Lines Between the Lines Between the Lines Between the Lines ROPLEY SITE CARE & MAINTENANCE TEAM (THE WEDNESDAY GANG)

ALRESFORD REVIVAL

A

I

N common with other sections of the Railway, the Wednesday Gang has been hit hard by the necessary restrictions to activity at Ropley. Some of us are in the vulnerable category and this has further reduced the available workforce. As the lockdown measures eased, and with a Covid-safe method of working agreed, we have managed to tame the site and make it neat and tidy, as it normally is, by dint of some very hard work by our dedicated team. (Although we did have a rescue party at the ready when the first working party ventured into the jungle!) To ensure the group kept together, regular communication has been paramount, and Richard has kept us on our toes with a weekly cake challenge recipe.

Early in the lockdown, the paint team drew up a list of projects that could be achieved within the lockdown constraints. Ably assisted by members of the station staff, a growing list of paint jobs has been completed, including the shop, booking hall and cellar doors, the fire buckets, gents toilet walls and the TAC room, as well as the annual platform white lining. Well on the way is the complete external repaint of the signal box.

Unfortunately, this year’s circumstances have dictated that the hanging baskets and tubs, which normally grace the platforms, could not be provided as they could not be regularly tended – although three were sat in the fire buckets on the Down platform.

Fortunately, the gardens have more than made up for this with a magnificent display which has attracted much admiration from our customers. Over the last couple of years, two of our members, Michael and Patrick, have developed two colourful beds on the rough ground alongside the path from the workshops to the Harry Potter Bridge and these really came into their own this year. It has made the walk much more attractive.

The orchard has provided a wonderful crop of apples this year and Robin has taken a large amount for juice making. Members and our passengers have also had their share.

This year Covid has hit our workforce hard, as the average age has put a good few of our number into the vulnerable category and self-isolation. Thus new recruits are always assured of a warm welcome to our band. Especially welcomed would be a carpenter!

Top: First Wednesday back – rain, Wendy Davis off to lunch.

Above: Garden back to normal. Below: Good crop of apples.

Photos: Richard Wilson

Below right: Heather Wilson getting top borders into shape.

Photo: Richard Wilson Below: Patrick Hamilton Photo: Adrian Knight

T the end of June, when the Railway started to open again, our gardening team was allowed to meet up at Alresford, following a strict protocol. We found that, while we had been away, Nature had taken over with a vengeance.

The tubs in the car park were bone dry and everything had died but, in other parts, such as the rosebeds, the vegetation was over our heads and the lavender was very abundant.

Our first meeting was true to form, as it rained non-stop, but we managed to clear the tubs and started on cutting down the undergrowth; we also discussed how we should proceed and work separately to keep everybody safe.

Since that time, we have been sad to say goodbye to Jill Ebert, who has moved away from the area but we have been glad to welcome back Phyllis Harris to the team.

Because of the uncertainty of lockdown we had not been able to bring on the usual summer bedding or hanging baskets, but we were able to obtain enough begonias for the tubs and were really pleased with how they flourished.

Another task we undertook was to plant a Camelia bush on Platform 2 in memory of Derek Creesey, who had worked tirelessly on the Railway for a long time. We are very grateful to the Creesey family, who have also given a donation in his memory to Alresford for garden maintenance.

Another thank you is to the South West London Group who, in spite of not being able to meet, have given us a donation for plants, etc. Thanks also to Brian Hirst from the Heavy Gang who has given us some Echinacea plants.

Now autumn and winter are upon us, we are still catching up with tidying jobs, such as lavender trimming, which requires real teamwork and Brian has been sorting out the rosebeds. The next jobs will be planting bulbs for the spring and finding bedding plants that will cope with the cold weather.

We are so grateful to Eric, Suzy and Phyllis for their hard work. We look forward to our visits to Alresford, which help us to keep cheerful and active, even in these difficult times.

Hazel Dolton

11

Sir Frederick Pile

No.34058 Sir Frederick Pile The Mid-Hants’ ‘secret’ Bulleid

by Martin Orford

I

THINK it’s fair to say that in the preservation era on the Mid-Hants, the Southern Railway pacific locomotives designed by O.V.S. Bulleid have played a significant part in both hauling our trains and defining our identity. If you’re of a certain age, you’ll remember the elation when No.34016 Bodmin arrived in the cattle dock at Alresford and, of course, that locomotive saw a long and successful period in service, as did No.34105 Swanage and No.34007 Wadebridge. We also had the pleasure of seeing No.35005 Canadian Pacific towards the end of its boiler ticket and we all look forward to seeing it run again.

“It is so encouraging to see that much of the energy and drive for this project comes from young volunteers who are cutting their teeth on locomotive restoration and learning all the time”.

Martin Orford

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Even if you’ve followed all this Bulleid action over the last 40 years, chances are you won’t know too much about our ‘secret’ Bulleid, No.34058 Sir Frederick Pile. This locomotive arrived on the Mid-Hants back in 2011 but has been rarely seen or heard of since, so it’s time to put the record straight.

First a little history … Built as a lighter version of the Merchant Navy Class, the West Country Class and Battle of Britain Class light pacifics were constructed mostly at Brighton Works from 1945 to 1951, although six of the 110 were built at Eastleigh. The two classes were mechanically identical – just the origin of the names differed.

Locomotive No.21C158 (under the Bulleid numbering system) emerged from Brighton Works in April 1947 and was to be named after General Sir Frederick Alfred Pile CGB, DSO, MC, a senior army officer who was General Officer Commanding Anti-Aircraft Command from 1939-1945. The real Sir Frederick named

the locomotive himself at a ceremony held at Waterloo Station on 28th April 1948.

The 21C158 number did not last for long and the locomotive was renumbered 34058 in December 1948. In its original form with the signature Bulleid ‘air-smoothed’ casing, No.34058 was initially allocated to Nine Elms shed in London, though it also spent a month at Stewarts Lane. Transferred to Exmouth Junction shed in 1951, it remained there for over 12 years and would have been a regular performer on the Atlantic Coast Express, reaching destinations such as Padstow and Ilfracombe. The locomotive was rebuilt by BR under the auspices of R.G. Jarvis in 1960, and the air-smoothed casing removed, though it did return to Exmouth Junction before spending its final year in service at Eastleigh from October 1963 until withdrawal in October 1964. As a rebuild, No.34058 covered only 173,114 miles, one of the lowest recorded totals for the class.

The inevitable journey to Woodham Bros. scrapyard came in 1965, but in 1986, No.34058 was purchased by Michael Vout and moved to Bitton on the Avon Valley Railway. For the next few years, Mike and his small team made significant progress in making parts for the loco, but with failing health and wanting to secure a future for his locomotive, Mike eventually gifted No.34058 to the MHRPS with the loco arriving at Alresford in 2011. Despite hoping to continue with No.34058’s restoration at the Mid-Hants, Mike Vout sadly died in 2015.

The following year, things were stirring down in the sidings at Alresford, and December 2016 saw the formation of a new group ‘Friends of 80150’ as we took our first tentative steps towards the conservation of Standard 4 Tank No.80150. The group quickly became established and built up a sizeable team of scrapers and painters which soon had No.80150 transformed from a hopeless Barry wreck into a viable restoration prospect. Of course, while working hard at the far extremities of Alresford, we couldn’t help but notice the large Battle of Britain loco down there too, and we started to wonder whether we might have a part to play with that one day.

Others were of the same mind and, in 2019, Steve Crowther (then Chair of MHRPS) asked me if we would consider carrying out a similar conservation job on Sir Fred. Taking on one ex-BR main line locomotive in scrapyard condition is crazy enough but taking on two is, of course, utter madness.

So we thought about it for roughly two seconds and said “Yes”.

Late summer of 2019 saw the work on Sir Fred start in earnest. We had cleaned up and painted most of the accessible areas of No.80150 by then, so moving on to No.34058 was a natural progression.

Some of the CanPac gang from Eastleigh came up to help us, so we put them and our existing volunteers to work on painting the wheels. We’d just about got them done before the dismal autumn weather stopped us in our tracks and then, just as we were about to resume in Spring 2020, Coronavirus intervened. Not to be deterred, work started post-lockdown with considerable areas of the boiler, cylinders, and frames now glistening in smart new paint.

Most encouragingly, much of this work has been carried out by a very young team who are every bit as excited about working on an ex-Barry scrapyard locomotive as we were, more than a generation ago when Bodmin arrived at Alresford in 1976. Since then, of course, the Mid-Hants has grown into a very professional and accomplished heritage railway, but it was built on hopes and dreams and we owe it to our new generation of volunteers to give them the opportunity to pursue theirs.

Now that we have made a start on Sir Fred, the team will continue to conserve the loco, to provide a strong foundation for its eventual restoration. With many parts provided for us by the late Mr Vout, it really is an exciting prospect for the future.

Just before we were forced to stop work by the second lockdown, we received the excellent news from MHRPS that the Sir Fred team will be permitted to use the weatherproof cover, which was initially bought for Wadebridge, but hadn’t been used.

Sir Fred isn’t likely to go on public display for a while as significant components from the front and rear trucks are broken or missing and need to be replaced before the locomotive can be safely moved. We intend to address these issues in due course, but for now we hope you will agree that the locomotive looks splendid in its fresh coat of heat-resistant boiler paint. Donations towards more tins of paint will help us do much more to restore the dignity of this venerable locomotive.

Opposite top: No.34058 Sir Frederick Pile departing Brockenhurst in 1964 with a Waterloo to Bournemouth semi-fast.

Photo: Tony Storey Opposite far left: Sir Frederick Pile with the conservation team October 2020.

L-R: Jake Butt, Adam Pilton and Jamie Knight. Photo: Martin Orford Opposite left: Sir Frederick Pile at Alresford in 2018. Photo: Martin Orford Below: Sir Frederick Pile at Weymouth shed in September 1963.

(Rail Photoprints Collection)

“Working on Sir Fred, it makes me feel privileged and honoured to work on a fine locomotive like a Battle of Britain at the age of 23.

Not many youngsters can say that.

Also we get to learn new skills working on the locomotive and to know more about it.

Whilst working there, we can have banter amongst ourselves, which is all part of the fun.

It gives us a sense of accomplishment when we have completed a particular task like putting the smokebox paint on.

Made me feel proud”.

Adam Pilton

“I always look forward to coming along on Tuesdays as we always have a good time. We stand back at the end of the day, have big smiles on our faces and feel immensely proud of what we have achieved.

Jamie Knight

13

Medstead Signal Box

About the

Signal Boxes

Part 1: MEDSTEAD & FOUR MARKS

by Mark Walden

W

HEN our Railway started running in 1977, it was very much a basic railway between Alresford and Ropley, with few of the facilities we see today. This was particularly the case with the signalling systems between Alresford and Ropley. Previously, this was part of the Alresford-Alton section, but there was no track between Ropley and Alton. This meant that a ground frame had to be installed to control this section and provide a run round facility at Ropley.

The first box installed at Ropley during the restoration was a ground frame box from Dean on the Salisbury to Romsey line.

However, this little LSWR ground frame box’s adventures are a story for another time.

Finding a suitable signal box It was realised that as our relaying of the track from Ropley to Medstead & Four Marks was starting, we would need a signal box at Medstead. After probing the undergrowth where the original box had been, we discovered the filled-in locking room pit for the original box which had been demolished in 1967. At this stage Chris Hunt of the S&T Department, who had been searching the West Country as usual for LSWR bits and pieces, found the disused box at Wilton South. Wilton South station on the West of England main line

Below: Wilton South Box preparing for lifting beams.

Class 50 to Exeter.

Photo: Chris Hunt

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was now disused, so after enquiries in the right quarters of British Railways, a deal was struck and we were in business pending a site meeting. We knew we had to move the box ourselves and leave the site clean and tidy. We then engaged D.W.Privett & Son of Portsmouth to transport the box and Cox’s Cranes to lift it out.

Meanwhile, back at Medstead, the original below-ground base had been excavated.

Surprisingly, a local resident who had witnessed the 1967 demolition and then rescued the original locking room window, presented the window back to us for the new box. Drawings had now been prepared and our in-house bricklayer Peter Thorne set to work (ably assisted) rebuilding the lower part of the box but also incorporating the old 12-inch square wooden beam from the Bentley box which had had a rather sad demise.

Standard LSWR box design It might be worth mentioning a word about these LSWR boxes as this one was of a standard LSWR design and we, in fact, now have three on the Mid-Hants. The boxes were 11ft by 13ft and only their stairways differed to suit the local conditions. They must have arrived on site as a ‘flat pack’ because they were too large for the loading gauge to be delivered whole.

Moving day We decided to move the box to Medstead in October 1982. Before anything was done, we arranged a site meeting at Wilton with BR, the crane contractor and the haulage contractor. They were all happy with our proposals, including the part where we lift the box over the station house into the car park. All the work was to be done under the watchful eye of BR, but no possessions were involved. As we had previously moved the Netley box to Ropley, BR were more relaxed about this one which again meant working alongside a live running line.

So, working parties were mustered and spent three days at Wilton preparing the box for lifting. This involved breaking out the brick fireplace and chimney that occupied the back third of the box and suitably woodbracing the hole. At the same time, two large

holes were made in the stone block base at each end into which were inserted two long wooden beams. The beams protruded from the box wall directly under the box wooden floor and four crane straps were attached to them. With the crane and transport in place, the box was lifted out and onto the transport and, after being suitably sheeted to avoid load shed, the box then departed for Medstead. Interested locals had been watching the job progress, and as soon as the box was lifted away, a number of them immediately started taking away the stone blocks that had formed the base to use them in their garden rockeries and, of course, this saved us some demolition.

The track extension from Ropley had not yet reached Medstead, although we could see it on the horizon. This meant the area between the platforms was clear, which allowed the transport and the crane to get in front of the site and unload the box onto the new base – phase one complete!

The next phase consisted of the Building department restoring the box and installing all the services up to the point where the S&T department could install the signalling equipment and commission – easy enough to say!

Repairing the signal box Now, the second load of hard work would begin. We learned from the installation of the Ropley box that one area that always needed a lot of attention was the box’s wallplate. This was the lowest wooden member that sits on the brickwork and inevitably, over 150 years, gets damp and then rotten and needs replacing. This meant jacking up the box and placing it onto folding wedges and then replacing the wall plate a bit at a time. Once this had been done, the wallplate was suitably weatherproofed and the whole box lowered into its new home on the new brickwork. At the same time, it was necessary to remove a lot of the internal and external cladding to inspect and replace bits of the structure that had rotted over the years. Inevitably, this all had to be done in the winter but was very ably done by Jack Pyle assisted

by Ian Cooper. At the same time Peter Thorne was able to replace the fireplace

and chimney, a feature that has been appreciated by signalmen over the years.

The final structural element to be dealt with was rearranging the landing and stairs so they came down in the front rather than to the back.

After completing all the structural work and the services, we were left to decorate and erect signage to match the Southern Railway, post-WW2 era style of the Medstead station. The box was then handed over to the S&T department to complete the overall signalling system and was finally commissioned in 1985.

Above: Class M7 No.30053 standing next to the signal box at Medstead & Four Marks station on 23rd March 2012. Photo: Tony Storey WILTON SOUTH BOX Far left top: Breaking out the chimney breast.

Far left centre: Class 33 on Meldon Stone empties.

Bottom left: Wilton South Box craned off.

Left above: Prepared base at Medstead.

Below: Wilton South Box craned onto the base at Medstead.

All photos: Chris Hunt

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Autumn Gala

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2020 AUTUMN GALA Top Left: Jubilee No.45596 Bahamas passing Bishop’s Sutton with the 11.15 departure from Alresford on 18th October. Photo: Tony Storey Left: A familiar blue tank engine, sometimes known as ‘Dave’, was giving shunting demonstrations at Ropley on 16th October.

Photo: John Barrowdale Below left: Ivatt tank No.41312 passing Arleside on 18th October with the Railway's demonstration freight train. Photo: Tony Storey Top right: Ex-S&DJR Class 7F No.53808 pulls up the bank from Butts Bridge on 18th October.

Photo: Steve Morley Right: S15 No.506 passing Wanders Curve with a full head of steam on 17th October.

Photo: Dave Ryding Below right: Standard Class 4 No.76017 working the 12.30 service from Alton seen running down the bank to Ropley at North Street on 18th October. Photo: David Lindsell

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Around the Yards

Ropley Works

by David Sibley [Ropley MPD Works Manager]

S

INCE returning from the first lockdown the main focus has been to ensure the running fleet was ready for reopening and re-organising/tidying the workshop. There has also been the small task of rebuilding the pit wall, yard lights and water supply.

Pit Road The wall between the yard and pit was built many years ago using wooden sleepers – which have slowly rotted away. The sleepers were dug out along with the top surface of the pit surround and water pipes.

The wall was rebuilt with steel uprights concreted into the ground and concrete sleepers on a concrete foundation. Before backfilling (yard side), a duct was laid ready to house an air and electric supply.

Around the pit, the water supplies were relaid (mains-treated and washed out) with the outlets against the new wall. The pit tracks were re-laid, grouted and fixed to the existing wall (the old track was corroding and working loose). Two of the old lamp posts have been cleaned up, painted and reinstated, with the old lamps being replaced with new LED lamps. There is a new fence between the yard and pit being erected and eventually the pit surround will be concreted giving a level base for working from. A BIG ‘THANK YOU’ TO ALL THOSE THAT DONATED MATERIALS/ MONEY/TIME TO HELP PROGRESS THIS PROJECT. Workshop The main aim is to make the workshop more user friendly and to make better use of the available space. The container that caused a lot of consternation has been evicted, with the mezzanine relocated.

Some of the floor has had a screed cover to make it smooth but there is still more to do, and the walls are being painted white. The white-metalling area has had a makeover, the welding area moved and tidied, and there is now a dedicated fitting area with the tool and consumable racks easily accessible.

Locos No.1 was used for training and some of the reopening trains, probably the most miles it has done for a while―about 600! It has had a washout and, while stopped, the regulator valve has been overhauled and the smokebox door re-sealed.

No.53808 arrived from WSR having had a piston and valve exam. We undertook a couple of minor jobs, coupled the loco and tender and then undertook some running in before releasing to traffic for the October Gala.

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No.506, No.925, No.41312 and No.76017 have all been running well in service with nothing more than routine maintenance.

For Nos.506 and 925, both annual boiler exams fell due during lockdown so were processed in June/July when we started to return to work.

No.41312 is currently in the works for maintenance and annual boiler exam.

No.925 will come into the works when No.41312 is finished for its regulator valve to be overhauled.

Project Work No.75079; the overhauled bogie was refitted in June. The tender brake gear is progressing with the new crossbeams machined. A lot of the boiler fittings are being produced, most recently the duplex valve, steam heat valve and injectors. The new cab is ready for riveting together and work has started on preparing the boiler for removal.

08288; the loco has run, undergoing initial testing earlier in the year. It is now back in the works for finishing off; steel work repairs, radiator overhaul, repainting (most of the loco is in undercoat).

TSO4423; we have a coach in the bottom end of the wheel drop for minor bodywork repairs and a repaint so the coach can be used in the train of lights.

Andy Fuller 50027 With the luck of being allowed to return to working parties and combined with great weather, the roof repairs that started in early 2020 were finished properly along with several coats of paint. There are a few more minor repairs to make to small rain leaks which will be done when time and weather allows.

In early June, 50027 was involved in the Railway’s shakedown runs which also involved driver training and refreshers for those available. It has also helped out and rescued several service trains as required. Since then the power unit and engine room walls and floors have been given a good clean.

The beauty of having a few more helpers has resulted in those to-do jobs actually being done! The radiator shutter grills have been freed to allow for easy opening and closing, depending on the weather on the day. We have also fitted new mains input and outputs for the pre-heater and onboard battery charger, along with mains LED lighting throughout the loco, to help the drivers with their prep. and the volunteers when working in the loco.

The Boilershop

by Sam Rowbotham

No.35005 Canadian Pacific The new inner firebox wrapper was lifted into the outer firebox wrapper in Ropley yard in late August. Some adjustments were made to set it in the correct position with the aid of an overhead crane inside the boiler shop. The foundation ring rivet holes have been reamed to final size and new rivets are ordered. A start has now been made on reaming and tapping stay holes in the backhead. This is a huge, longwinded job which will take 12 months and an urgent appeal goes out to anyone who can help here especially during weekdays.

Contact sam.rowbotham@watercressline. co.uk if you can volunteer. Current work continues, inserting a plate in the lower area of the throatplate and the front corners are being welded in. One very dedicated volunteer is progressing well with the blueing-in of boiler face joints, focusing on the main steam pipe to superheater header flange.​ No.499 Urie S15 The boiler was moved into the boiler shop just before lockdown after years of being stored outside. Initial assessments showed one very visual replacement required and that is a new throat plate now on order

from the South Devon Railway. Work started next to remove the old one, which required the burning and punching out of foundation ring rivets, and rivets along the lap to the sides and boiler barrel, and removal of all throat plate copper stays.

Extra work required the complete removal of the foundation ring, and the rest of the rivets have been burned and punched out.

More work will focus on drilling out and removing the many side stays to facilitate the removal of sections of the firebox (outer wrapper) sides. In addition, there has been a section of wasted plate removed from the lower smokebox tube plate. The new material has been cut to shape and requires final fettling to fit prior to welding in. Other work progressing includes the removal of various mounting studs for replacement and general descaling and removal of paint.

Above: Sam Rowbotham working inside the firebox of S15 No.499.

Photo: Russel Sachs Below: Removing throatplate.

Photo: Ed Crabb Opposite page: Inserting firebox into No.35005’s boiler. Photo: Johnny Day

DS58, the 10-ton crane’s boiler Initially, this boiler just came in for a retube, but as so often happens in this area of work, further action was required.

Some foundation ring rivets have been removed and replaced. Two stay tubes, which have a greater wall thickness than normal tubes and are welded in, needed replacing. These have now been welded in and passed NDT. The normal tubes are now being fitted and expanded, with a view to passing hydraulic exam before the year 2020 ends.

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Around the Yards The Mid-Hants Wagon Group by Chris Le Corney

W

E were at last permitted to restart wagon works at Alton in September, alongside the design and start of implementation of a toilet/washroom shed in the yard which, when completed, will save us having to use the MHR customer facilities on Platform 3.

Notwithstanding the resources diverted to the above, we have made good progress on wagons here in recent weeks. LMS vanfit M 517317; and BR vanfits B 772824, B 760337 are completed and are currently waiting shunting out for Fitness-to-run exams.

Work has started on BR Meat B 870073.

Timber for the new doors has been delivered and David Edwards has made these up at home and got them to the undercoat stage.

Aside from the doors, the remaining timber and steel work on the van is in reasonable condition. The vacuum cylinder will need overhauling, and there is currently no vacuum pipe, so this will have to be made.

Up at Medstead, the comprehensive long-term overhaul of BY S 653 has been completed and is a tribute to all those who have worked on it – it looks splendid. It was used for the Real Ale train in August, and subsequently has been fitted with a generator for use with the planned Winter Train of Lights.

Carriage Workshop

by Ali Steele

T

HE carriage workshop is working flat out to manufacture Perspex screens to make our carriages Covid-compliant.

Here at the Watercress line, most of our carriages are of the ‘open’ type, the clue being in the name. Our plan for when services resume is to partition every seating bay with a specially made screen.

This consists of a timber frame fixed in place on the back of every seat, encasing a clear Perspex screen. We are really going to town with them, as we want our passengers to still enjoy a nice experience, and the nicer we can make these screens, the more pleasant that experience will be.

For our Steam Illuminations service, we made one hundred screens, each made of six pieces of timber… so six hundred sections of timber! Machining the sections up, preparing the surface for varnish, and then doing the actual varnishing has been a mammoth task. The whole workshop has been involved, with several of our volunteers really pulling out all the stops and coming in more than they normally would, which we have really appreciated (you know who you are, thanks so much).

There is, of course, plenty of other work going on. Rob has finished metalwork on the Hampshire unit, having rebuilt the down (south) side engine bay, which was in a poor

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Work continues on the GW Iron Mink W 105761, with Dillon’s steel work repairs to the roof, and the sides and ends are currently in grey undercoat.

Jamie has taken on the overhaul of lowsided B 726064 to a high standard, and this is nearly finished. Its load, the Fergie tractor, is also having a repaint and some mechanical in the yard, led by Jose.

David Taylor has been in the lead in the overhaul of the Queen Mary brake van

S 56302. After replacing some rotten tongue and groove, and repainting the whole vehicle, it is now complete and looks great.

Maroon CCT S 1765 has had the underframes de-rusted and largely painted and requires some tongue and groove timber replacement and repainting.

The model railway PMV S 1995 has come up from Alresford for some TLC. As well as needing repaint, there are some T-shaped, steel work, sections on the sides which are corroded. Ian is welding in replacement sections. There is some tongue and groove needing replacement also, and Dillon has taken the vacuum cylinder home for his usual complete refurbishment.

BR vanfit B 763661 is also in the yard and needs a fair bit of work. The side timber needs repairs or replacement and the roof needs attention. LMS van M 520771 has a rotten north side door, and this has been removed, prior to a new wooden frame and timbers being constructed. The cattle van S 53845 is also in for a couple of rotten tongue and groove plank replacements and repainting.

Finally, a wood store has also been completed in the yard.

Covid issues this year, and repainting Mark 1 coach roofs in 2018, and the Butts bridge closure in 2019 has somewhat disrupted our wagon works in the past few years, so we are not short of overhauls to catch up on!

Top: LMS van M 517317 Alton 7th Oct. 2020. Above: BR Meat van B 870073, Alton 4th Nov. 2020. Photos: Chris Le Corney state. It is now being painted before final reassembly.

We are also playing host to our friends the two Phils from Alresford Train Care. Since getting hold of our new carriage jacks, the Phils have been appearing more frequently at Ropley, as so many aspects of carriage and bogie maintenance are simplified if the bogies are whipped out, and with the jacks it is a very straightforward procedure. As I write, we have two carriages off their bogies.

In the workshop TTO (Tourist Third Open) 3906 is on stands while its bogies are away having their tyres turned. It is having some minor interior and exterior work while the bogies are away, having not been in service for roughly eighteen months.

Down in the paint shop at the end of the wheel drop shed, our painter Jose is getting stuck in to what I think is his first carriage repaint, TSO (Tourist Second Open) 4423.

4423’s bogies have returned from tyre turning, and are having some work done on them on-site before going back under once the work is finished in the paint shop.

Hopefully, it won’t be too long before we can see you again here at the Watercress Line, and when you do visit, don’t forget to pop into the carriage workshop viewing gallery and see what we’re up to.

Top left: Training with the jacks.

Centre left: New Perspex screens.

Left: TSO4423 in paint shop.

Photos: Ali Steele

No.80150 update

parts of the pony truck beneath. Back in the works, a new duplex valve for the vacuum brake has also been completed, together with an identical one for No.75079.

Individual sponsors have been very kind to us recently and have donated money for a new set of steam pipe covers, a pair of damper control handwheels and for parts to make a new steam heat reducing valve.

The ‘push for parts’ is now in full swing; our online donations page is open https:// uk.virginmoneygiving.com/fund/80150 and cheques to MHRPS 80150 fund are very welcome too. You can rest assured that any money you give to us will be converted into new parts for No.80150 as soon as possible. Or maybe there’s a particular part you’d like to sponsor? How about a new four-feed sandbox? Or the two side sandboxes? Or new levelling pipes which connect the tanks to the bunker? Email me at friendsof80150@watercressline.co.uk or drop me a line c/o Alresford station and let’s see what we can do!

Finally, I must thank our wonderful ‘Friends of 80150’ volunteers for being so pro-active in helping to get Ropley Works up and running again after the initial lockdown.

Unable to work on their favourite projects, they nonetheless got stuck in with the most menial cleaning and painting tasks to help make Ropley Covid-secure and pave the way for the Railway to reopen for business.

A great job and well done!

Follow us on Facebook, (search for ‘Friends of 80150’) for regular updates on No.80150 and No.34058.

By Martin Orford

W

HILE the activities of our group have expanded to include No.34058 Sir Frederick Pile, considerable progress continues to be made with our flagship project, Standard 4 tank No.80150.

The last time I wrote for the Mid-Hants News, the cab roof had arrived and was being fitted out by the 75079 group. Work on this was completed in early 2020 and we were optimistic about getting it fitted to the loco soon afterwards, until Covid intervened.

Following this inevitable delay, November was looking like a good prospect but then along came Lockdown 2. Patience will no doubt win out in the end…

While we were stuck in the first lockdown, the opportunity arose for a major publicity coup and, in collaboration with our friend the Deputy Editor Gareth Evans, we were able to propel No.80150 to ‘superstar status’ with a colossal six-page feature in the August edition of Heritage Railway magazine.

Following the successful fundraising for the cab roof, we changed the focus of our appeal to the smokebox, front end platework and chimney.

In a three-way collaboration with the Toddington Standard group, who are restoring No.76077, and Loughborough Standard Locomotive Ltd, a new smokebox ring for No.80150 now exists, with delivery of the smokebox door imminent. Our friends at the North Yorkshire Moors Railway have found us their pattern for the Standard 4 tank chimney and this was packaged up, ready to go to the foundry.

The new front cover plate which sits under what remains of the smokebox, was test-fitted recently and completes the platework for the front end, which has such an important role in protecting the moving

75079 Progress Report by the 75079 Team

T

HE team have been back together at Ropley and are picking up where we left off. Before lockdown, we had a massive ‘put-away’ to ensure everything was safely stored, ready for our return to work. Luckily, one of the first things we were asked to do on return was to transfer all our parts in store to a new storage container so that our life-expired container could be scrapped.

During the transfer, we made an inventory and improved corrosion protection. We have a very full container!

Not all work stopped during lockdown as our machinists carried on using their machines at home and small pieces of fabrication were also continued using our own workshop facilities. Some of the bigger jobs, such as the tender brake cross beams, have had to wait until the machine shop at Ropley reopened, but even they are almost complete. The number of castings needing machining continues to decrease but there

Top left: No.80150 cab roof completed and ready for fitting. Photo: Martin Orford Centre left: No.80150 front plate test fitted. Photo: Martin Orford Left: New smokebox rings for Nos.80150 and 76017. Photo: Andrew Meredith

are still many awaiting their turn.

One of the first major jobs on return to Ropley for a small number of the team was to work with Mark Drinkwater to replace the bogie under the loco. The loco was checked over, extra lubrication applied to the axle bearings, and gently pulled out of the shed; the first time in the open air for many years. Similarly, the bogie was checked, lubrication checked and supplemented as necessary, and pushed into the wheel drop and lowered. The loco was then pushed in and positioned over the bogie. The screws whirred, the bogie came up and, without much ado, was reunited with the loco. The job was completed by fitting the collar that holds the bogie onto the pin. No.75079 is again a 4-6-0, at least until the driving wheels come out. The loco is now securely stored in the wheel drop until work commences on the strip-down to enable the boiler to be removed.

During lockdown, the new cab for No.75079 which had been lifted down to ground level to enable final assembly and

riveting together, was used as one of the obstacles to prevent entry to the shed.

Now that the cab is more accessible, work has continued on the roof hatches, seam welding, and preparation for riveting. The Ropley MPD team have moved the cab to a new position in the shed, closer to the air and electricity supplies, giving the team more room to make riveting and welding easier. The next test for the team will be how to do the riveting and still maintain social distancing – clearly the normal workshop PPE, including eye protection, will be worn now other precautions are necessary.

The tender frames have also been on the move. The Ropley MPD team have moved them from the car park to near the main doors of the shed and closer to the air and electricity supplies. Some work may be done to rivet the frames while in their new location, but there are plans to make the frames mobile so that they can be moved into the shed when riveting is being done.

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Around the Yards Urie Locomotive Society Engineering Report

by Barry Stratton and Mark Pedley

I

N this time of uncertainty for everyone, the continuing rebuild of No.499 has proceeded with various safeguards and it is a testimony to the commitment of our team and Mid-Hants loco staff just how much has been achieved. The cylinders have been the main focus.

While at Barry scrapyard, all four cylinder pressure relief valves were removed, but only one was actually unscrewed; the others were smashed off, causing serious damage to two of the iron castings. The potential costs of pattern making, casting and machining were looking frightening; however, there was another option. When No.506 was undergoing overhaul, the front bogie iron centre casting was cracked and this was successfully welded using a specialist company, who carried out the repair at their works; with this in mind, the castings were sent to see if repair was possible. The answer was “yes”! In addition to welding, new threads would need to be machined into the repair and, for this, a special 12-threads-to-the-inch tap would need to be manufactured. (As a side note, LSWR practice was to use 12-threads-tothe-inch for boiler and other specific work where standard Whitworth was unsuitable).

Thanks to Mark Drinkwater for sorting out the job, the castings were ready to return as the pandemic lockdown started. Fortunately, the company was able to store them for the duration.

A detailed inspection of the condition of the cylinders and valves has revealed good news! As we had thought, the piston bores are in very good condition, with only 18 thou wear from the last re-boring. The piston valve liners are full size, having been renewed, almost certainly, on the engine’s last general repair in early 1961.

Due to some slight wear and pitting it’s probably best to re-bore the valves and we are now looking at the options, as the Railway at present lacks a boring bar. The new drain cock flanges have been drilled and tapped, and studs fitted to accept the newly machined drain cocks. New operating drive rods and brackets have been made and aligned; the drain cock cross drive shaft was in very poor condition and, with the operating arms, has been renewed. Fortunately, the frame bearing housings were in very good condition and required no attention. The cladding sheets to both cylinders are nearing completion and, to enable the manufacture of new cylinder cover cladding, the cylinder covers have been temporarily fitted following remachining of all the sealing faces to remove corrosion and the refitting of the cylinder studs.

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Last time, we mentioned that the motion bracket holes would have to be reamed before we could go any further. It looked an onerous task but, using a combination of the large mag base drill and the hand power reamer, the work was successfully completed. Next job was to rivet the motion brackets to the frames, no mean feat given how awkward access was in a couple of cases. Never knowingly defeated, out came the guns, the team swung into action and suddenly all rivets were in and secure – why did we worry?

More recently The heavy castings which support the expansion links have been refitted and secured at each end by approximately six fitted bolts. With the ‘heavy bits’ done, our attention turned to the running plate.

The valence sections, which have spent years in the darkness of our store, were retrieved to be cleaned and repaired. The R/H side had, at some time, been repaired with a hand-made riveted patch to the inside edge; as this is part of the history of the loco’s working life, we have decided to keep it intact. The front sections of running plate over the cylinders have been cut out in 10mm plate and drilled to fit the frame angles and the motion brackets. To avoid unnecessary vertical riveting, these sections of running plate were laid face down on a bench with the valence pieces clamped and

Above top: BR patch repair to the R/H valance. Above: Lifting the R/H running plate and valance assembly onto the frames. Below: No.499 removed from concrete plinth to facilitate removal of the rear driving wheels.

Photos: ULS Collection

spot-welded in place. The mag base drills swung into action, holes drilled full size and then the riveting could be done ‘down-hand’ away from the frames. Once complete, the assemblies were lifted onto the frames and secured to the frame angles with accommodation bolts. Fixed to the top of the cylinder blocks with countersunk bolts, the final job was to rivet the inside edge of the running plate to the frame angles. Sounds quite straightforward compared to some of the other work we had to do, but, sadly, that wasn’t to be; the holder-up was working uphill and the head-former was working downwards at height, with a flat snap which had a desire to explore everywhere except the rivet. In the end it was a successful job with no incidents, but very tiring due to the level of concentration required. The curved sections of valence which sit in front of the cylinder blocks have been repaired as necessary and are bolted to the loco awaiting riveting.

A major development occurred in July which saw No.499 return to the tracks for the first time in almost 10 years. Sadly, it was only for an hour or so but it was a critical step, as it enabled us to remove the trailing wheelset; we can now access all the horn block liners and axle boxes for repair.

Other various small parts have been made up (often as homework) to ensure the loco will appear as near as possible in early LSWR condition. Steve Gault has expertly made up the first of the lamp iron brackets, the drawings for which Pat Bell obtained via the South Western Circle – thanks to all. Pattern making on the injector delivery flanged elbows and other parts continues.

Work has commenced on the cleaning down of sections of the main frame, with needle gunning down to bare metal. This is a dirty and back-breaking task requiring considerable commitment; however, the results are looking great. The L/H rear frames are now in black and one section between the frames is painted in stone colour.

As a side-line job, we have completed the riveting on No.35005 CanPac’s tender rear dragbox assembly, which we started to undertake on the eve of the lockdown. To provide a better working area around the loco, all the wheelsets have been stored away from the frames and our 5-ton lifting hoist moved from its location over the frames. I think it’s fair to say that at a cost of £800 on eBay, the hoist and gantry have paid for themselves many times over. As winter approaches, our attention has turned to building some sort of roof over the frames so we can continue working no matter how much rain Mother Nature throws our way.

The next few months will likely see the engineering team changing bolts for rivets and doing many background jobs which will make little visible difference. However, with boiler 799 recently moved into the boilershop, I have asked Sam Rowbotham to report next time on the progress to date ... from what we have seen already, he will have a lot to tell!

Building Building Department Notes by Paul Grey

Medstead and Four Marks The roof felt on the Down side waiting shelter had begun to degrade and so a team spent two sessions ripping off the old and fitting a new double layer. Fortunately, the old felt could be removed with minimum effort, much to the delight of the team.

L

IKE many organisations on the MHR, the Building Department ceased work in March due to the Covid lockdown, thus delaying several projects. However, we enthusiastically resumed work in late June.

Alresford In a previous Mid-Hants News, we reported that a safe walking route of slabs had been laid in the Belle siding. Such a good job was made of this that we were asked to extend the walking route to the road bridge.

A puddle on the floor of the Gent’s WC indicated that the Fortic hot-water tank in the loft had just passed its use-by date.

Initially the supply was isolated, and the cold-water header tank drained, with entry made, a while later, into the very small space to drain the hot tank and then remove the defective unit. Easier said than done through the small hatch, but with experience, the replacement went up a little more easily.

To place a Portaloo at the back of the WC Buffet, and plumb it into the sewer, concrete slabs were lifted so that we could locate the soil pipe from the buffet kitchen.

In the early years of the department, enthusiastic members photographed a lot of our underground work, and thus a photo from 1988 was found that showed the trench with the newly laid pipe, thereby giving a clue where to start digging.

A long running project has been the preparation, in the workshop, of a new counter for the WC Buffet. Such is its size that it occupied most of the workshop floor space. With the assembly complete, it has been moved to the buffet to await installation during the closed period in November. Anti-Covid screens have been fitted to the counters in the Goods Shed shop and WC Buffet to protect staff.

On Platform 2, the ASSET needed a lean-to shelter in the compound by their shed to manage jobs (such as bench seat maintenance) in the dry, so one was duly erected. The existing wooden fencing successfully masks the structure, which has been finished in traditional colours.

Alton The station team had finished the conversion of the tea bar cabin into one resembling a period WH Smiths kiosk, and so to complete the appearance, five frames were made to hold the large print newspaper adverts.

Although in good overall condition, the roof felt on the office roof had not bonded very well against the outer wall and under the coping stones, so water was finding its way in. The most expedient arrangement was to secure the felt to the brickwork with timber battens.

One important job impacted by the lockdown was the fitting of new lower sash windows in both the Marketing and Management office windows that have taken a beating over the years by the weather. New ones have been prepared and painting is now underway.

Ropley With the north side car park being used more frequently by the public, an enhancement programme is underway, starting with painting the dull coloured wooden fence and entrance gates with black barn paint, and fitting signs to extend a welcome to visitors.

Winter storms from the southwest have a habit of damaging some of the delicate copper lamp heads, but we are fortunate to have someone able to rebuild them if they become twisted by the strong wind.

The balustrades for the footbridge are the only timber ones on the line, and, due to their traditional design, are prone to trap water and thus start to rot after many years’ service. One such balustrade on the Up side staircase is nearing the end, so a replacement is being made at Medstead.

When assembled it could well need a crane to lift it so that it can be secured to the staircase.

Trackside Besides the number of woodwork projects, there are the occasional brickwork jobs, such as replacing damaged bricks on Mounters Lane and Rookwood Lane bridge parapets. Being out in the ‘sticks’ these jobs needed the assistance of PWay and the Wickham to move staff and materials such as bricks, sand, cement and water. The weather was kind, so the jobs were easily completed.

As described previously in MHN 174 the public footpath across the track at Northside Lane was marked with arris rails, as Phase 1, to deter the public from accessing the track side. This was followed in February by the laying of a timber panelled walkway across the track so it was no longer necessary to step over rails and onto sleepers. In July, our first job (Phase 2) after lockdown was to erect spiked fence panels on the north side. This was followed in September (Phase 3) by the erection of similar panels on the south side, such that this arrangement now offers spectators the maximum viewing angle for our special events.

Top: Alton Kiosk with large frames for newspaper adverts. Above: Northside Lane crossing in July. Photos: Paul Grey Below: Northside Lane crossing in September. Photo: H. Walker

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Canadian Pacific Canadian Pacific No.35005

by the CanPac Team

A

FTER we wrote the CanPac report for the last Mid-Hants News, there were shoots of activity and productivity. However, the shutters are closed again. Through the summer, activity was on three fronts, the boiler and tender at Ropley, and the valve gear at Eastleigh. Ropley Works had refurbished most of the valve gear, including replacing 90% of pins and bushes, and new die blocks etc. Alas we were, and remain, barred from Eastleigh because of Covid concerns and so were unable to complete the re-assembly.

All three pistons were fitted in July, together with the eccentric strap for the centre valve and the remaining valve gear components have been cleaned. We are grateful to the Ropley carriage shop for producing dedicated hardwood plugs to cover eccentric securing bolts which provided a smooth bearing surface for the strap.

There is a small amount of work on the valves that needs to be completed in Ropley before they are transported to Eastleigh. The tender chassis is progressing with the new rear drag box now riveted in place courtesy of the Urie group.

The new tender horn guide castings are now in Ropley awaiting machining.

Great strides have been made with the boiler, as explained in Sam Rowbottom’s Boilershop Report on page 19. The CanPac team are supporting the boiler shop with the mammoth task of drilling, reaming and tapping for boiler stays. More detail on this boiler work can be seen at www.buff.ly/36Opevw which is a shortcut to the Watercress Line film channel. Note this is a capital letter O, not a zero.

Top: Ed Crabb in the boilershop reaming stays. Photo: Will Stratford Centre: Pistons fitted in the centre and fireman's side piston chambers.

Below left: Driver’s side piston, crosshead and slidebars.

Below: Cleaned valve components.

Photos: Brian Carter

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Stations Medstead & Four Marks

by Keith Brown, Norman Day, Gerry Wright

T

HE lockdown which began in midMarch was a worrying time for the gardeners, who live nearby but could only watch from a distance as the spring growth raced away unchecked.

However, from the end of April they were able to attend once a week and could start to bring the growth under control.

Inevitably, planting was less extensive than usual this summer, with just two hanging baskets, together with some Dahlias and bedding. All things considered, the gardens didn’t look too bad and the hedges and banks have had their usual haircut, so the garden team ended the summer in reasonable spirits.

Building maintenance activities recommenced in mid-June and we were able to complete repairs to the Down platform, including repointing some brickwork and rectifying an area of badly-dipped tarmac. We also completed the brickwork for the new seat alcove in the bank.

A good deal of painting and associated work has taken place over the summer including the Down platform footpath gates, the booking hall double doors and one of the Up platform seats. During the autumn, the roof of the shelter was re-felted by the Building Dept. The area behind the shelter has been paved and this is now a clean and easily accessible area.

Operating train services during the summer has been an unusual experience, with only two trains calling per day for 15 minutes and all other trains running straight through.

We have had to make some alterations to our usual arrangements for passengers and visitors, with entry to the station being via the side gate only and the footbridge segregated from the platforms by portable barriers. The station staff have had to undertake a lot of cleaning and sanitizing of surfaces.

On the positive side, the station does look clean!

Congratulations to Jake Butt, who passed out as a guard in time to become a mainstay of the summer services, and to Nick Clarke, who has passed out as a signalman. We have welcomed Keith Porter to the station staff and Fred Carter to the maintenance team.

Understandably, some of our regular station staff have not felt able to return to duty under the present conditions.

We wish them well and hope to see them again in the not-too-distant future when some semblance of normality has returned.

Top: Sunset photo taken Friday 16th October.

Photo: David Scard Above: Paul Nacmanson, manning the signal box at Medstead, 1st August.

Left: Jake Butt’s first turn as guard, on 13.40 Medstead to Alresford, 1st August. He had just picked up the tail lamp from the Alresford end of the train to put it on the Alton end for the return journey.

Photos: Keith Brown 25

Miniature Railway

The Miniature Railway

by Martin Champion

D

URING Lockdown only Ray Briscall and Dave Hill visited the site to carry out essential maintenance on the locomotives that were otherwise securely stored for the duration. In July we gradually returned to work to open up, clear the undergrowth, cut the hedges and paint the fencing. Following acceptance of our risk assessment and the installation of acrylic screens on the coaches, we resumed socially distanced operation. While passenger numbers are much reduced from previous years there has been a steady stream, in part due to the high occupation of the Lodges and campsite during the summer weekends, as well as the main line trains having a longer stop at Ropley.

After many false starts Ben Spraggon secured a reliable contractor who moved our second container from the top car park to the end of the field. This has allowed us to excavate the new yard area (Ben again) and lay track.

While painting the container, Alastair Fell and Mark MacArthur became aware of a lineside fire the other side of Four Acre Field and, together with Richard Matthews, managed to extinguish it before the arrival of the fire brigade who commended their action.

Meanwhile, work continues in extending the track and ensuring that our stock is in full operational order for what we hope will be a more normal year in 2021.

Editors’ Note: The General Manager would like to thank the miniature railway team for continuously operating the railway throughout the Father Christmas period at the Watercress Line. A magnificent feat and the longest continuous period the railway has been in operation, and in winter time too!

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Top left: Ben Skelton driving Hefty and passenger train with Covid screens. Photo: Alasdair Reid Above left: Mark MacArthur and Ben Skelton painting the container.

Above top: Site clearance after lockdown with L-R: Ben Spraggon, Dave Hill, Stuart Allenby and Martin Champion. Photos: Ray Briscall Above centre: Tracklaying in the new yard.

Photo: Martin Champion Above: Platform extension under construction.

Photo: Alasdair Reid

S&T

30 Years Behind the Levers PART THREE by Clive Jackson

Medstead & Four Marks On first sight, Medstead &Four Marks station, with its basic station building – a result of the station being a later addition to the Mid-Hants line – has little going for it. There is no cafe, play area or viewing platform, and exhibition areas are discreetly hidden away. However, perhaps because of its lack of visitor facilities, admin offices and major engineering works, for many of its regular visitors Medstead has the most authentic feel of our four stations, making it an unsung jewel in the crown of the heritage MHR. True, the wagon group, Building department and S&T department are all headquartered at the station, but the presence of the wagon group has resulted in the Up siding growing into a reasonable representation of a country goods yard, latterly enhanced by the loading dock complete with ex-Basingstoke canal hand crane. Indeed, the offices and workshops of the two engineering departments look in scale and authentic to the degree that one might think they had always been there. The LSWR type 1 signal box has been shorn of the cantilevered extension it had in its original location at Wilton South, and is thus a close replica of the original box which was demolished as late as the 1960s. Whether the pruning of this extension was a good idea is a matter for conjecture. Certainly, we have a box which externally is near identical to the original, but the extension, while not unique, would have been a rare example worthy of preservation in itself. It would have enabled the box to accommodate an additional few levers, which would have meant less compromising in providing a signalling system which looked authentic while also providing the operational flexibility and safety required by heritage operations.

The original plan for the running signals at Medstead was very much along the lines of that used at the station historically, with Distant, Home and Starting signals in the Up direction and Distant, Home, Starting and Advance Starting signals in the Down direction. The main enhancement was the provision of a splitting signal in the Down Home position, which was required so that Down trains could be signalled through the Up platform when the box was switched out – a feature not provided in pre-preservation days. In the event, the Down Advance signal was moved from Lymington Bottom bridge to become the Down Starter for the Up platform, and the switch out facility was never implemented.

The Up and Down fixed Distant signals were subsequently replaced by two aspect colour light signals showing a fixed yellow.

The advantage of these is that they do not require special precautions in fog, for which Medstead, being nowadays the highest station in Southern England at 650 feet above sea level, is prone.

This is pretty well as the signalling remained in 2019, and arguably was our most authentic steam age signalling installation, as the others have all incorporated subtle but important changes to their interlocking as required by the signalling standards in force during their upgrade.

Following over 30 years of use, however, the Medstead installation is in need of renewal, and repairs are also required on the fabric of the signal box, which is approaching 140 years old. In order to undertake this work without losing the block post at Medstead for a protracted period, a ‘temporary’ signalling system is being provided. It is to be hoped that this ‘temporary’ (an adjective which tends to take on a whole new meaning when applied in a heritage railway environment) installation proves to be more temporary than the knee frame at Ropley as, in addition to having little historical or architectural merit, the cabin has had to be sited at the wrong end of the station for convenient token exchanges.

Alton Although regarded as the poor relation by some on the Railway, I rather liked Alton station in my early years on its platform. The island platform on the Down side, together with the scruffy council yard, reminded me of Aldershot, and the trains in Platform 1, although painted in a funny colour scheme, still had proper slam doors. The paper mill added heritage atmosphere, and with the ex-LSWR footbridge still in use and the whole station painted in BR(S) colours, it was as close to authentic steam age as one was going to get on a station forming part of the national network. Sadly, the introduction of new foreign built rolling stock, significant local development which dwarfs the single storey station building, the condemning of the footbridge and an increasingly challenging parking situation have conspired to reduce the appeal of the station over the years.

Although the signalling system on the MHR side of Alton has been in and working for a number of years now, for most of my time as a Mid-Hants volunteer, MHR Alton has relied on a basic system employing ground frames and a train staff, known as ‘One Engine in Steam’ (OES), renamed ‘One Train Working’ in the post-steam era for obvious reasons. This method of working, employed widely amongst the smaller heritage railways, has the advantages of being cheap and simple to install and maintain, very reliable and very safe. Its drawback is in its name, i.e., only one MHR train can be on the London side of Medstead at a time. This does not limit the one and two train timetables operated most frequently by MHR at all, which is

why we have been able to run under the arrangement for so long, but it does place severe restrictions on the intensive services operated during galas and the like. Operating the OES system as a member of Alton station staff was my first practical experience of signalling. At Alton, two ground frames were provided, one at the end of the platform near Paper Mill Lane bridge, which operated the station loop points, and the second, rarely touched, which operated the Platform 2 crossover and the Meon siding points, near the signal box. Both these ground frames required the train staff to release them; thus the route was normally locked into Platform 3. When I started at Alton in 1987, there was no loop beyond the signal box, just a siding where the loop now is, which provided standage for wagons and other vehicles awaiting restoration. A stop board was provided beyond the signal box, and one’s first duty, having been alerted to the approach of a train by a buzzer in the office, was to walk to the far side of the bridge and signal the train past this board using a large green banner flag. I can remember doing this on the Sunday following the big 1987 storm, when there was still a very brisk westerly wind. With the flag doing its best to imitate a spinnaker, it was a bit of a challenge keeping my feet!

As the train ran into the station, one collected the train staff from the fireman, and once the train was clear, a key fixed to the end of the staff was placed into an Annett’s lock on the Facing Point Lock (FPL) lever, allowing this lever to be released. The FPL lever could then be reversed, which in turn released the points lever, which was also reversed. One then flagged the engine out of the run round loop before replacing the points and FPL. The train staff was then removed from the Annett’s lock and the engine was hand-signalled back onto its train. If the weather was inclement, one could shelter in a garden shed located next to the points. Unfortunately, this structure’s window looked towards the platform rather than down the loop; thus, one could not observe the progress of the loco as it uncoupled and negotiated the hand points at the London end of the station while sheltering inside.

This problem was ingeniously solved by attaching a car wing mirror to the front of the shed.

The inherent safety of the OES system lies in the Annett’s lock, which means that the points are always correctly set when the train arrives and departs, since at this point, the train staff, and therefore the Annett’s key will always be on the engine.

The two lever ground frame was subsequently replaced by a four lever one.

Having the Annett’s lock on a separate release lever meant that it was possible to engage the FPL when the points were reversed, meaning that the points could be properly locked when shunting the carriage set into the siding at the end of the day. The fourth lever operated a shunt signal which was installed at the loop exit.

To be continued.

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Reviews CLASS 33 - A sixty year history

by Simon Lilley I was born in the Sixties, and spent my childhood within the boundaries of the Southern Region of British Railways, so for me trains, like friends, will always be (third rail) electric. But trains cannot live

by Direct Current alone, and as the 1960s drew near, the Southern Region sought to introduce a fleet of Diesel locomotives to handle freight whilst increasing its use of EMUs for passenger services. The Class 33s were conceived by the Electrification Committee, formed at the end of the 1950s to plan the Kent Coast electrification. The resulting locos were powerful but compact (very compact in the case of the 12 locos for the Hastings line) which have proved long lasting, with some still in service today some sixty years after the first entered service early in 1960.

Simon Lilley’s book fleshes out the early development history of the class, which was based on an existing Type 2 built by BRCW, but with a more powerful engine from Sulzer and Crompton-Parkinson electrical gear – hence the spotters’ moniker ‘Cromptons’. There is a wealth of detail on the designs as built, ranging from the ETH to the moquette used for the cab seats.

Subsequent chapters cover the operational eras of the 33s, from initial use on the South Eastern division to expansion to Central and South West divisions and beyond. Each era is covered photographically with varying locations, including some ‘off region’. For a loco initially designed as a freight-hauler, the 33’s spent much of their time pulling passenger stock, or indeed pushing it, as many were modified to run push-pull services, an aspect which is fully covered in the book.

The final chapters cover the later progression through BR 'sectors', changes in livery and owning companies during the privatisation years. There is a short section on preserved examples.

There are a good many photographs within the text of this substantial book (217 A4 pages) Many of these are in colour and include 33026 on a ballast train at Alton and D6534 at Micheldever with a rake of red London Underground stock destined for the Isle of Wight – this was in 1964 and the LUL trains are only just poised to be replaced!

The photographs are mostly reproduced to a high standard and whilst many are threequarter front views, there are a number of detailed close ups, both internal and external to give modellers useful information to get the details right.

In summary, a detailed look at the genesis and implementation of one of the classic locomotives of the last half century and a fascinating technical read with plenty of interesting pictures to entertain the enthusiast or modeller.

Steve Morley Class 33 – A sixty year history by Simon Lilley. Published by Crecy Publishing at £25.

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local trains, goods trains, on shed and in the works. The book covers the period 1951 through 1976 and includes a good selection of early diesels, electrics and DMUs as well; all benefitting from Brian’s high quality, atmospheric compositions.

Geoff Mitchell The Evolving Railway by Brian Morrison.

Published by Crecy Publishing Ltd (www. crecy.co.uk) at £20 224pp, case bound, sewn and laminated Square format: 10” x 10” (262mm x 262mm)

THE EVOLVING RAILWAY

by Brian Morrison Brian Morrison began railway photography in 1951 and this would be the start of a pictorial journey that continued for over 60 years.

In addition to contributing to magazines, Brian Morrison published several collections of photos over the years, each of which followed a themed topic. In The Evolving Railway, however, Morrison has allowed himself a freer rein, and has selected favourite images from his vast collection while telling the stories behind each photo with entertaining and informative captions.

This book has the feel of a labour of love, and it’s all the better for it.

Its medium size, square format, is ideal for displaying Brian’s atmospheric photography to its best advantage. All the photos selected are reproduced in black and white, and with excellent reproduction values, the quality is top notch, especially considering the very reasonable price.

While largely Southern and Home Counties based, locations covered by the book do range from Aberdeen to York, but with all four post-nationalised railway regions making use of the major London terminals, the range of steam locomotives and trains featured is pleasingly varied. Content covers stations, shunting, main line expresses,

RAIL GUIDE 2020 compiled by Colin Marsden Rail Guide is published annually and this year’s edition incorporates the many changes and updates to the UK train fleets and numerous operators. The guide is usefully divided into colour coded sections, eighteen in total, and covers everything from the main passenger and freight companies to our city tramways, from tube lines to Irish Railways. It really is all here in one comprehensive guide. Full details of each operator, maps and train fleets (complete with carriage numbers) or services they provide are listed alphabetically. There really is a huge amount of information available to reference and this is complemented by high quality colour photographs throughout.

There’s even a section depicting the numerous coupling arrangements should that interest you. Our heritage railways are not forgotten either and all preserved steam and diesel locos are listed with their current locations.

The handy A5 size makes it more than suitable to carry when out and about and will appeal to platform end enthusiasts, who can cross off the numbers, and professionals working in the industry as a quick reminder of who does what. It’s the only title published giving a complete overview of our railways and fulfils this task admirably and mine will certainly be referred to often throughout the year.

Tim James Rail Guide 2020 compiled by Colin Marsden.

ISBN 9781910809594. Published by Crécy Publishing at £25.

Letters GRAVITY WORKING AT COWES

BIDEFORD: THE STORY OF A STEAM LOCOMOTIVE

by Clive Fairchild This slim volume of 22 pages concerning the life of West Country No.34019 Bideford is profusely illustrated and shows Bideford climbing Medstead Bank on 1st May 1966, plus two photos by the author when the MHR recreated one side of No.34007 to look like No.34019 as withdrawn, for our 50th End of Southern Steam gala in 2017. Clive, a former MHR volunteer in the early 80s, had a fondness for No.34019, as he was born in Bideford and spent holidays there in the steam days of the ‘50s and ‘60s. Clive’s book makes me recall my own meeting with No.34019 when a kind driver gave me a footplate ride from the Eastleigh coaling stage to the turning triangle and back to the shed in 1966 on this loco, my first on a West Country.

Everything you want to know about this engine’s history is there: naming ceremony, allocations, a less than successful conversion to oil burning in July 1948 for 14 months, its four nameplates, its rundown days at the end of steam, and being withdrawn on 19th March 1967 at Nine Elms Loco shed and then eventually, on to scrap.

Bideford’s tender, however, lives on, as at the time it was in good condition. In 1953, Bideford took on the tender originally built for Battle of Britain No.34070 Manston.

The tender was subsequently taken on by No.34023 Blackmore Vale, but then, in the late ‘80s, was lent to Swanage Railway to run behind No.34072. A few years later, the tender rejoined Blackmore Vale. In the mid ‘90s, the Bulleid Pacific Preservation Society decided to replace the top of the tender, and just use the frame and wheels on Blackmore Vale. The top part of No.34019’s old tender was later sold to Southern Locomotive Services and they refurbished it to go on a new chassis for their No.34070 Manston which was being restored at that time. And so, tender meets original loco again after many years.

J.V. Barrowdale Bideford: The Story of a Steam Locomotive

by Clive Fairchild. Published by the Bideford Railway Heritage Centre. www. bidefordrailway.co.uk Cost: £5 plus £1 P&P.

The reference to gravity working at Cowes station in the recent article on Medstead footbridge (MHN 175) deserves some further explanation. When opened by the Cowes & Newport Railway in 1862 the station comprised a single line about 100 feet in length, with a platform on both sides. At the platform ends was a level crossing over Cross Street, but in legal terms the railway towards Newport only began at that crossing, while the single track in the station was technically a tramway, where loco haulage was not permitted. This led to the engine of an incoming train being detached as described in the article and the carriages running into the station under gravity, controlled by the Guard’s hand brake. It will be seen that this working also removed the need to shunt out of the station to run round, as the engine was already left at the Newport end of the carriages.

In 1877 this legal anomaly was resolved, so engines could now enter the station, and around the same time the first of several enlargements of the station took place.

The level crossing was abolished and Cross Street was blocked off on both sides, with a wooden footbridge provided to maintain access across the railway. About 1891/2 the layout was improved, giving two main platform roads with a crossover between them and the replacement of the wooden bridge by the metal footbridge now at Medstead. The photo accompanying the article shows this arrangement, which was largely unchanged until closure in 1966.

The normal method of working that could be seen right up to 1966 was for an arriving train to run in almost to the buffer stops, then once passengers had alighted it would be propelled back clear of the crossover. The carriage handbrake would be screwed down by the Guard, and the engine would then be uncoupled and run forward clear of the crossover. The Signalman would then reverse the crossover points and clear the ground signal, allowing the engine to proceed on to the adjacent platform line to run round. Once the Signalman had replaced the ground signal and crossover points to normal, the Guard would release the hand brake in his van at the leading end of the carriage set and allow the vehicles to run down slowly by gravity, bringing them to a stand just short of the buffer stops. The engine would then come on to the Newport end of the stock and couple up. In the BR era Cowes line trains normally consisted of four bogies, although six could just about be accommodated.

The gravity manoeuvre saved time, as it removed the need for a second propelling movement to bring the stock back down the platform road, but it was always unofficial and a few Guards would not do it. If the Area Inspector was visiting Cowes signal box it would not be carried out, but he was well aware of what usually went on! In short, it can be said that gravity working was practised at Cowes for 104 years, but by the time the Medstead footbridge was in place this would only have been for empty carriages during run-round operations, and not for trains carrying passengers – which the ‘powers that be’ would certainly not have sanctioned for many years!

Facts in this letter have been obtained from The Isle of Wight Central Railway, by R.J. Maycock and R. Silsbury (Oakwood Press, 2001), as well as from T. P. Cooper, who has studied the Island railways in detail for many years, and from personal recollections.

George Wheeler, on behalf of Richard Newman (MHRPS Member)

BLAST FROM THE PAST !

West Country Class No.34105 Swanage departing Ropley with an Altonbound train in March 1991. Photo: John Barrowdale 29

Regional Groups

CROYDON

SOUTHWEST LONDON

Meetings have effectively been suspended until further notice. Our church meeting hall has not reopened for hire, and we are obviously also somewhat restrained with current restrictions of more than 6 people from separate bubbles.

Chris Le Corney

During the March meeting, we had a return speaker, Roger Cansdale, talk on the history of the Basingstoke Canal, its history from 200 years ago to today, the builders, owners, and the people who had businesses on the canal over the years. Now the canal is a beautiful waterway, supporting rare flora and fauna and it’s a designated Site of Special Scientific Interest. Roger’s talk was very interesting talk for me as I do cycle the canal with my cycle club and friends, three times a year. Well done, Roger. The committee cancelled the remaining meetings, and we are still in lockdown. In the New Year, the committee will review the situation and if it is OK, we will reopen the meetings for 2021, starting with the 2020 AGM meeting.

Stuart Saunders

THAMES VALLEY I hope, dear reader, you were not disappointed by the lack of news from Thames Valley Group in the last MHN. We are still here. Lockdown occurred only a few days before our March meeting which had to be cancelled as have all subsequent meetings planned. Despite not being able to hold physical meetings there has been some, at times frantic, activity. Sadly, two weeks before lockdown, one of our members, Peter Pribik, passed away. Peter was a life member of the MHR from the early days and a member of the Railway Building Department. He was also a regular at our meetings, his interests shared between railways and buses. He took frequent trips at home and abroad taking many photographs. He also owned a Thames Valley double decker bus which occasionally took to local roads, plus had a half share in a single decker bus. Peter generously bequeathed some of his mementos to the Society and some to his bus group. Members from both groups attended his home several times to help his Executor with sorting his possessions as he had no immediate family. Many bus spares were found in the loft and the photographic output from his many steam trips resulted in sorting through some 15,000 slides to identify those of value and find a suitable home. Now our meeting venue is Covid-secure, we hope to resume meetings soon.

Rob Latham

WOKING AND GUILDFORD Since June we have been holding Zoom meetings on our regular meeting night. These have attracted 15 people most months and up to 18, so around half of our regulars have tuned in. During our meetings, I can give an update of what has been happening on the Railway, based largely on Simon’s messages. For our first meeting, Richard Kirwin arranged a quiz for us based on his famous Christmas quizzes!

Since then, various members have made presentations on such things as German steam, Mid-Hants memories, the US Big Boy, Hong Kong and Australia transport and signalling around Woking.

Some of our members have kept busy on the Railway, mainly meeting and greeting plus cleaning at Alresford. This has proved rewarding as good numbers have been travelling and enjoying their three hour round trips which allow a leisurely chance to see the Railway. Well done to everyone on the Railway for what they have achieved so far.

In October, we continued our zoom meetings with again 18 joining to hear the latest Railway news. Peter Bassett gave a presentation regarding the Real Ale Train on which he often acts as TTI. That was enlightening and Peter, as usual, had some good pictures of the locomotives and stations.

This was followed by Richard Kirwin giving a talk on his work around Woking as a signal technician and this included many photos that could only be gathered from the lineside.

Another enjoyable evening.

We will have to see how things develop generally before we decide when to re-start our meetings at the church hall.

It is a pity around half of our members are not currently involved.

David Pegg 30

Regional Groups’ Programmes Details of all Regional Groups’ meetings can be found by contacting the people listed below. Alternatively, go to the Mid-Hants Railway Website http://bit.ly/2MIgZJi .

ALTON Meetings fourth Thursday, The Community Centre, Amery Hill, Alton GU34 1HN Contact David Mould on 07711824335 or email david.j.mould@hotmail.co.uk CROYDON Meetings first Monday, The Crypt at St Mary Magdalene with St Martin’s Church, Croydon CR0 6QD Contact Chris Le Corney on 01843 843215 PORTSMOUTH Meetings third Tuesday, The Railway Social Club opp Fratton Railway Station, Portsmouth PO1 5BL Contact David Meyer on 02392 671251 SOUTHAMPTON & WATERSIDE Meetings third Wednesday, The British Rail Institute, Romsey Road, Eastleigh SO50 9FE Contact David Mead on 02380 293186 SOUTH WEST LONDON Meetings first Tuesday, Surbiton Hill Methodist Church, 39 Ewell Road, Surbiton KT6 6AF Contact Stuart Saunders on 020 8979 6484 SUSSEX Meetings second Thursday, London Road Station, Shaftesbury Place, Brighton BN1 4QS Contact Nick Kelly on 01273 703489 THAMES VALLEY Meetings fourth Thursday, Church House, Church Street, Caversham RG4 8AX Contact Rob Latham on 01628 633914 WOKING & GUILDFORD Meetings third Monday, St Nicolas Church Hall, High Street, Guildford GU2 4AW Contact David Pegg on 01483 834062

Information / Sylvia Smith MID-HANTS RAILWAY PRESERVATION SOCIETY LTD (Registered Charity No. 284406) Directors: Stephen Evans CMG OBE, David Ford, Robert Latham, Peter Smith, Gregory Watson President:..............................................................................................................................

Vice-Presidents:........................................John Rees, David Snow, Mark Walden Chairman:................................................................................................Stephen Evans Assets Management:.................................................................................. David Ford Secretary:.......................................................................................................Peter Smith Membership Director:..............................................................................Rob Latham Finance Director:...............................................................................Gregory Watson Correspondence should be addressed to the appropriate person c/o Alresford Station, Alresford, Hants. SO24 9JG. Please enclose a suitable s.a.e.

Tel: Alresford (01962) 733810 Fax: (01962) 735448 E-mail: info@watercressline.co.uk

MID-HANTS News

Mid-Hants News is produced three times a year by the Editorial Team of Sue Dixon, Brian Dolton, Steve Morley and Tony Storey supported by the Design & Graphics Team of David Frith and Richard Howells.

Distribution is organised by Allan James, with packing, despatch and delivery

by Alresford Information Office staff and a network of volunteer distributors.

Trains and Boats and Planes (and Coaches)

by Sylvia Smith

I’m going into a siding, again, for a few lines.

I wrote an article a while ago about trains and boats and planes: this article is about two holidays I’ve had so far this year. I managed one before lockdown and have just returned from the second.

Out of the siding and onto the main line.

This year hasn’t been good for anyone: some faced hardship, tragedy and heartbreak. I count myself lucky, as the worst thing that happened to me was the cancellation of four of my five coach holidays; one of which I was able to transfer to a five day break towards the end of February. This holiday, ‘Castles and Manors in Kent and Sussex’, included visits to Bateman’s, the home of Rudyard Kipling; Bodiam Castle, Chatham Historic Dockyard, Leeds Castle, Canterbury and Manston airfield.

When I was 18, I had my first holiday abroad and flew from Manston Airfield to either Ostend or Calais. Over 50 years later, I returned to Manston Airfield to look around the Spitfire and Hurricane Memorial Museum. It’s a fascinating museum—not large, run mainly by volunteers—which contains a Spitfire and a Hurricane as well as other artefacts (motorcycles, uniforms etc.) and it tells the

MID-HANTS RAILWAY LTD Patrons: Lord Montagu of Beaulieu, Alan Titchmarsh MBE DL Directors: Simon Baggott, Mervyn Dunwoody, Stephen Evans, Peter Greenwood, Richard Hawkins, Alison Houghton, David Jones, Richard Lacey, Martin Rossiter, Jim Russell Chairman:................................................................................................. Richard Lacey Vice-Chairman:.....................................................................................Simon Baggott General Manager:................................................................................Simon Baggott Secretary:...........................................................................................Peter Greenwood Finance Director:.................................................................................Martin Rossiter Departments: Operations Manager:........................................................................Richard Bentley Infrastructure, PWay & Buildings Manager:..................................Bernie Dench Engineering Manager:................................................................................Chris Ellick Carriage & Wagon Manager:...............................................................Keith Jackson Catering Manager (WCB, RMBs, Goods Shed):..............................Elaine Scown Watercress Belle:................................................................................Sandra Johnson Countryman Pullman:.................................................................. Christine Mousley Consultant Civil Engineer:.........................................................Martin Choularton Consultant Bridge Engineer:.........................................................Andrew Clayton Archivist:.......................................................................................................Keith Brown Registrar:.....................................................................................................Keith Temple Reservations:.............................................................................................. Karen Butler Safety & Standards Director:.................................................................... Jim Russell Marketing & Publicity:.............................................................................. Jules Johns Education and Interpretation Officer:................................................. Sheila Love Retail Consultant:............................................................................Christine Knights S & T:....................................................................................................................Pat Butler Volunteer Coordinator:..........................................................................Dave Yaldren

story of RAF Manston during WW2. If you’re ever in that part of Kent, and are interested in war planes, it is well worth a visit. And there’s a good café there.

Seven months later I went on another coach holiday, this time it was ‘Steam and Sail in Devon and Somerset’. We had two lots of ‘Sail’: we sailed up the River Exe from Exmouth during which we saw a sandbank which was used, with the help of a few blow-up palm trees, as a desert island for a shipwreck scene in an episode of The Onedin Line.

While on the river, and on the coach back to Tiverton (where the holiday was based), we went close to the Royal Marines training centre at Lympstone but we didn’t see a single Marine. Possibly they were camouflaged. The train bit was done the following day; we were taken to Paignton, directed to the platform, via the gift shop, from where the Dartmouth Steam Railway trains depart.

Our train was pulled by No.7827 Lydham Manor which was built in Swindon in 1950 and worked on the Cambrian Coast Line in north Wales between Barmouth and Shrewsbury. Lydham was withdrawn from service in 1965, sold to Woodhams scrapyard in Barry, and was saved from scrap in 1970 by the new Dart Valley Railway at Buckfastleigh. She then went to Torbay Steam Railway at Paignton (now the Dartmouth Steam Railway) in 1973 where she’s been ever since. In the early 1960s she pulled, with her sister No.7828 Odney Manor, the Royal Train carrying Queen Elizabeth II.

We all had reserved seats and mine was in Poppy and on the landward side but had glimpses of the sea. I did wonder if the mother of the ticket inspector knew her son had bunked off school to be on the trains.

Later we had a cruise up the Dart and saw Britannia Naval College standing grandly on its hill. We also saw the house where Agatha Christie lived.

The wood on one side of the river was used, with the help of a few blow-up crocodiles, as the Amazon rain forest in an episode of the Onedin Line.

While we were on another boat, we could hear the whistles of the train, we had glimpses of it through the trees and saw the steam drifting above the woods.

If any of you have travelled along the top of Somerset from Dunster to Lynmouth on the A39, you will understand and know what fun we had going up Porlock Hill and down Countisbury Hill in a 51 seater coach!

It was a good holiday, despite me travelling on three boats, we didn’t hit a thing.

Above: Manor Class No.7828 Odney Manor Photo: Steve Morley 31

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