We have finally declared the Bessemer canopy complete. The final act was to commission the new lighting two days ago, and we shall have a small formal opening ceremony next week (no-doubt the subject of a future news piece). So we must now turn our Friends of Sheffield Park (FOSP) minds (or mind ... we are a solid team after all!) to the many smaller tasks around Sheffield Park that have been inevitably neglected whilst we were focused so heavily on our latest magnum opus.

But not so fast ... no sooner had we cleaned our paint brushes and sat down in the lobby to reflect on life post-canopy than we were "approached with an opportunity" to become responsible for the finishing of the long-overdue AWF fit-out (AWF stands for "Above Workshop Facility", which is the newly developed staff and office area upstairs in the loco shed).

Unlike other possible options, our resource is, of course, free of charge to the Railway, and we have responded positively to the appeal, which should see the AWF facilities finally completed for use and for only the incremental cost of materials.

The down-side of course is that FOSP only works one day a week, so the actual time-scale may not be as short as everyone might like, but I can use that point to issue an appeal (or would it be a challenge?!) to anybody who might like to expedite progress. 

There is more than enough to do, and we can always accept offers of practical help. If you can paint a wall, or fix skirting, or have decent general DIY skills, then please feel free to come along and join us. We are to be found at Sheffield Park every Wednesday without fail (or you can contact me via the eNewsletter editor).

The ASH project is also beckoning to us from a little distance, and we have agreed to become involved with that project to the extent of our capabilities. But I have cautioned against making us "critical-path" because it isn't reasonable for a part-time volunteer group to assume the pressure of a challenging finish date.

So, back to those smaller tasks we have been neglecting. I have been surveying the whole station area and building a long list of the many items requiring our attention. The idea is to have a simple check-list so that all our FOSP members can see the work before us--large and small--and maybe even select an item they may wish to take ownership of. Also, if any readers have a particular idea, or see something that would benefit from our attention, then please get in touch--we are always open to suggestions.

By Charles Melton

Don't Forget to Sign Up for Track Trek!

There will be a few changes to the annual sponsored Track Trek at the Bluebell Railway this year.

The event has been moved from November to mid-summer, and it will now be held on the evening of 30 June, 2018. Organisers are hoping that this will bring brighter, warmer, and drier weather. Also, instead of the whole line, the walk this year will start at Horsted Keynes at 6 p.m. and cover the five miles to Sheffield Park. Arrangements are being made for free transport of all walkers, by train, back to their original arrival point at the Railway.

Money raised will go towards track replacement work on the Sheffield Park to Horsted Keynes section. More details here .

 

Atlantic Group Update: Bespoke Clothing

	Plastic tooling for mudhole door surrounds (photo by S. Burdett, The Premier Group).

As work on the boiler continues, fabrication of its clothing is the main preoccupation of this report from Fred Bailey:

As no doubt you have seen in previous updates, we are reasonably comfortable with the machining of components, and the fabrication of heavy lumps of metal, but when it comes to the thinner sheet metal required for the details related to the boiler clothing sheets, then we are into a specialist area.

I have spent quite some time trying to find a company to make such items as the decorative mud hole door surrounds, the mouldings that fit to the boiler clothing but cover in the front corners of the firebox, plus that which encircles the backhead.

Also we need a proper outer dome cover and some other parts that will not be seen (very unfortunately), these being the pockets that are inside the boiler clothing where the latter is cut away to clear the tops of the driving wheel splashers. Also we needed that company to have the capacity and capability to do this work at a sensible price. This work is far from being mass produced body panels and involves a mix of pressing onto simple tooling followed by skilled handwork for final forming and finishing.

The company now doing this work for us were very keen to put this through their apprentice school as it provided an ideal opportunity to learn the hand crafts on components with a function and use, not just an exercise. Just this last week two of the apprentices involved in this work together with their Training School Manager and Welding Supervisor visited us in Atlantic House and delivered the first components. To say I was impressed is an understatement! ... MORE

Camelot Locomotive Society Update: An Ensemble Cast

Fred Bailey of the Bluebell Railway Atlantic team has kindly converted the existing BR drawings to modern CAD computer files to enable the manufacture of single-use patterns for the required cylinder covers unique to the Standard Class 5MTs.

An order has been placed for manufacture of these castings and, once cast, they will receive final machining as soon as possible. Also required are new piston head castings and these are currently on order.

Due to the complexity of the repairs required we are unable to give a "return to steam" date for the locomotive, but updates will be made to this page as work progresses.

The photo shows a view inside the cylinder block which is not normally available. It gives a reminder of the precision and specialised level of expertise required to carry out repair work on these ageing locomotives.

SETG Update: Minions Run on Tea

"I think we (we being No. 3417's Loyal Minions) have mentioned before that this railway preservation lark isn't all about glamour, girls, and riches beyond the dreams of avarice. Some of it is dirty and boring and bloody hard graft.

Last Sunday's work day was a fine example of this point; a lot of dirt and heavy lifting punctuated by mild swearing and tea. The work crew consisted of yours truly and Darren and the task was very simple: tidy up the shed.

Of course, before we started work there are certain things that have to be seen to, and Depot Operating Procedure Section 4, subsection 6 was duly dealt with on arrival.

To put it another way, we had a couple of mugs of tea" ... MORE

STOP PRESS | 9 June, 2018

Some exciting summer events for your calendar:

 

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