Monday 21st - Smile Please!
Only 6 for Carriage Cleaning today and Phil insisted on posing! It's Holiday Season and our regulars are scattered from East Anglia to Scotland. And it's a total change in the weather - all wrapped up today!
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Friday/Saturday/Sunday - Bumper Weekend
It was a bumper weekend for me, 3 days on the trot at the railway doing various things!
We begin with a change of scenery for me and a small working party on Friday to make inroads on the cosmetic overhaul of a 5 1/2 plank GWR open wagon. This wagon ran in the freight train until it was withdrawn with brake issues a few years ago. It was sent up to Toddington for the loco dept. guys to fix, which they duly did, but it was beginning to look a bit sad. So we scrabbled around to find some bodies and materials and set to.
I made a start by hacking off the old vinyl lettering which was already peeling off in places:
Known as "Oxley sidings" it will retain this identity with the new livery.
Jo kindly answered the call for help and got stuck in degreasing the underframe ready for painting, while Mark washed down the body sides to get rid of all the moss!
Roger foolishly stood still for more than 5 seconds to see what was going on, so was swiftly handed a scraper and told to crack on:
Once I'd taken the lettering off I proceeded with a general light rub down of the paintwork:
The timber is mostly in reasonable condition considering it's 10 years old, but that one plank at the bottom with the lettering still on has dry rot so will be replaced.
Opening the doors we found the beginnings of some rust, so Mark hoovered it out and splodged some green primer on:
Another Alex (!) briefly stopped in the right/wrong place and was handed some sandpaper and joined me in the mass rub down:
Having spent most of the day sanding down, I was determined to get some paint out, so by mid afternoon I did, and managed to undercoat half the wagon:
And yes, it's going into GWR grey livery, hurrah! Lots of nice lettering for me, and from a practical point of view in these difficult financial times, we have enough spare grey paint to do it. Thanks for your help those who joined in with us, same again next Friday but with more paint brushes.
So, onto Saturday.
First job was presented by Jim from the P'way gang who hurried in looking for some wooden posts for a temporary speed limit by the yard points at Toddington.
We found some suitable timber and screws, Dave put it together, and Jim went away happy.
It was good to see Dave back in Upholstery, here cutting some hardboard to size for a seat:
While Jenny and John were on armrests:
Out in the yard, much to our dismay, Dennis found a leak in the newly refurbished RMB:
Happily, it was all sorted by the end of the day without too much bother (i.e. we didn't have to take the roof tank out, phew!)
Joining him was Paul continuing with the work to make these carriages fit for passenger use again next month:
While I was out there I noticed a few rust spots on BSO 9000, and having sat there all year being blasted by the sun, was looking generally a bit faded. So Dave set to with the kurust and filler:
Yet another Dave, we're in SK 24006 now where the sanding down of the sycamore veneer continues:
Back in the workshops, under BSK 34929 I spotted a pair of legs, which turned out to belong to Andy, fitting the under seat heaters, while inside, John was grabbing the other end of the pipe:
Ainsley and Rob were once again scratching their heads over doors, they're never simple! this one came on and off a couple of times today:
By the end of the day it was left on, with 2 of the hinges screwed in. Hopefully progress was made!
Meanwhile Chris was manufacturing another door pillar, 3 more still to go apparently, BSKs have far too many doors, and we've already taken 2 pairs out with our conversion!
Back outside Dave had finished tidying up the problem spots so I broke out the topcoat chocolate to refresh the lower panel. You can see the difference!
This was of course an ideal spot to watch the trains go by:
Lastly Pam did a grand job on filling and sanding duty on CK 16221, seemingly a never ending task:
She was a bit dusty by the end of the day!
Sunday was an afternoon in the guard's compartment for me. Of course, downside with Sundays is there's no one on waving duty in C&W!
Rather grey as we went round Chicken Curve and Foremarke was opened up, but the rain held off:
P&O was on the other train and drifted in just as I signed off:
I think I need a day of rest now!
Thursday 17th - The blogger blogged!
Initially a very quiet start with several regulars away, but it did pick up later. A cooler day outside, but we still opened all the doors with the residual heat inside making things somewhat stuffy.
Certainly a high note to begin on, with a fully harnessed Bob and secured Henry doing a great job in vacuuming the very dusty roof of BSK 34929. Just where does it all come from?
Some of the absences today meant that nobody was working inside 34929, so we were able to do some more varnishing of the veneer panelling, this time the outer corridor wall and centre and north vestibules, the latter in effect receiving a second coat.
A later shot with Bob now well down the corridor. That gleam isn't bad, but we can do better than that, so definitely second coating all round, and maybe even a third in places (the Orient Express coaches have 14!).
With that gleam this is definitely second coating in the centre vestibule.
Ainsley with advice from Trevor fitted the missing section of capping strip for the left of the double doors on the Cotswold side of 34929.
The next job was to fit the rubber door seal. Bob lends a hand.
Meanwhile Des and David are preparing the droplight for fitting in Door 9. It won't me long now before another empty doorway in 34929 is filled.
Welcome back Steve S., another one of our staff returning after a long spell away. With Richard I now absent, Richard II discusses with Steve what they have been doing. Steve holds one of the heat sinks used to disperse the heat from the attached LED lights circuit board..
Some attention to the corridor sliding door in RMB 1876 was being taken care of by Alan. The door was failing to close properly and while stabled in isolation in the nearby sidings had been "locked" with a timber wedge. The door now closes as it should.
A glance around the RMB at the lovely chain link moquette. This was the first coach done out with this design and it immediately received a lot of praise from our travelling passengers and Classic Hospitality who organise the Race Trains. As for us in C&W - we love it!
I guess we ought to take down the Christmas decorations before the rakes are put back to the original formations, though that will now be delayed with the latest situation.
I think this bindweed is trying to hitch a lift via the broken vacuum cylinder drawstring. As it is our part-restored Quainton Road coach TSO 4867 it will be in for a long wait!
Over to the 3rd Rake siding now and our former Main Rake open coaches. Paul and Dennis continue the very lengthy cleaning and general tidying up, with Paul vacuuming the disabled entrace vestibule in SO 4790.
A quick look at the newly re-covered seating in TSO 5042. Our Upholstery Team are doing a great job with about a third of the coach almost completed.
On to RBr 1672 with Dennis checking out the kitchen area.
Meanwhile Paul has also moved in with the vacuuming. Nearer the time when the Main Rake can run again, our Catering Staff will be back in to restock the coach and get it ready for normal service.
Being on board the train in the 3rd Rake siding provided an excellent place to photograph P&O as it came by on its first run to Cheltenham. We were also delighted to see a very good number of passengers on the train. The second train was similar. Things are definitely on the up!
Rod and Trevor were also present to check the working of the guards door in BSO 9000 and double doors in SO 4790 with respect to the same doors on BSK 34929. Jasper waits patiently, having a well-earned rest.
With less available work for the Painting and Prep Team on 34929 until more of the fitting out has been completed, we will be moving on to CK 16221 a lot more. Following on from the greying up on the Malvern side, Jeff has begun the secondary filling where required.
(Photo: Rod)
The blogger blogged! Rod captured Jeff and myself having a post-lunch chat while watching Foremarke Hall entering the station on its second run to Cheltenham.