Mid Hants Railway Loco Shed

Recent News

Recent News from Ropley Motive Power Depot: showing work-in-progress of interest to the steam railway enthusiast
Reports and photos by your webmaster, or by others where acknowledged

11th October 2007: Ropley 'new' signalbox is being commissioned

9th October 2007: U-Class #31806 in the wheeldrop shed will soon have its wheels and axles removed for attention. Delivery of a new set of profiles for (we hope) Bob Preston to weld into a new dragbox is due soon.
No parking outside Ropley Manor today because once the rain stopped a huge transporter took the CCT (covered carriage truck) to Alresford for delivery by rail to our Medstead & Four Marks wagon restoration team. They said they'd be back 'later today' to collect the TPO (travelling post office) to deliver to its purchaser.
Both of these had been in use as stores on this site for the past 25 years.
Doug Mills (firing instructor on Intro FPX) poses with Bodmin while Mike Burke took participants to see other locos' controls and the work in the shed *MOVIE* (3MB, 9th Oct 2007): They all depart for Alresford This was the very last revenue-earning run before the loco was stopped because of a cracked thermic syphon. It is likely to be some time before Bodmin reaches the head of the queue for heavy general overhaul.
	#92212's intestines All these came out of the water-space of its boiler. The superheater elements (alongside the wagon) fit inside the fluetubes (the larger of the two sizes of boiler tube) and are heated by the smoke as it passes from firebox to smokebox, raising the temperature of the steam going to the cylinders. Gavin was in the firebox burning off staynuts: *MOVIE* (3MB, 9th Oct 2007)
	This could have been the final shot of the movie showing the fitting of the firebox into Douglas's boiler but of course where there's a decent steam-tight fit, it always needs persuasion - which takes an hour or two ! Frank was machining the white metal of Douglas's big-end bearings on the vertical borer: *MOVIE* (850KB, 9th Oct 2007) Heavy general overhaul (2007) of rebuilt J94: #10 Douglas
Brake hangers partly assembled on MHRPS's Black Five Report on progress on Black Five #45379
	It has been decided MHRPS Standard 4 #75079 will have a new type BR1B tender. Roller bearing axleboxes to the original BR1B specification are no longer made but TIMKEN have been most helpful, suggesting that the type used on Class 40 diesel locos was very similar and could be sleeved to fit a current specification Timken roller bearing. We now have a set of six to adapt
Ropley 'new' signalbox is being commissioned	Photos and movies (all 9th October 2007): Tony Wood

9th October 2007:

Bittern at Southall 1 Bittern at Southall 2 - two MOVIES (Tuesday 9th October 2007,each 1.5MB) by Henry O'Dwyer,
The chuffing is from the steam-operated air pump.
In Movie 1 the TPWS is being tested - the gubbins* in the middle of the track applies the brakes
* Technical term

Latest information on Bittern's movements Also

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4th October 2007: A broken sack-truck disappeared to someone's (don't know yet) home workshop and has now reappeared refurbished ready for another 60 years of usefulness. Duncan replacing the rotted frame of this window in BSK 34947 with new hardwood mouldings
Cladding is now mostly off the 9F's boiler More about work on #92212 in preparation for boiler inspection
Gavin was noisily removing throatplate stay nuts inside #92212's firebox with an air impact spanner. Click photo for the flash-lit version
A cheerful group of Network Rail recent graduate intake were shown round the MHR Centre of Excellence - to see how it all should be done on the main line! They have done a short course with NR prior to deciding in which area of NR they wish to train further: S&T, PWay, telecoms, etc. Preparations for re-aligning track and points, and current work on the 9F and Douglas in the boiler shop aroused interest. Photos and movie (all 4th October 2007): Tony Wood Heavy general overhaul (2007) of rebuilt J94: #10 Douglas Report on progress on Black Five #45379 Wagon renovations and restorations at MHR

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Steve has made a new cab floor for #10 Douglas

MOVIE: Douglas's big-end brasses being white-metalled (5.5MB)

Heavy general overhaul (2007) of rebuilt J94: #10 Douglas

Photo and movie (2nd October 2007): Tony Wood

Diesel Corner

25th September 2007: "Please do not feed the animals" *MOVIE* (25th September 2007, 1.7MB): Tony Wood
Superheater elements, flue tubes and smoke tubes have all been removed from the boiler of #92212 Photos (25th September 2007): Tony Wood

Photos taken at MHR Autumn Gala, September 2007

18th September 2007: A few shots of Schools Class: Repton Outside cylinder valve-gear; Middle cylinder valve-gear; Middle connecting rod and eccentric; and Andy, perched on the brick arch, replaced three missing flue-tube ferrules* with new ones. *Ferrules at the firebox end prevent fire-damage to flue-tubes


	Thomas was lit up ready for shunting duties tomorrow because our 08 shunter needs new batteries. The 08 was shunted into the wheeldrop shed out of the way until it's sorted. Once Andy was happy, Repton was lit with a warming fire. BSK 34947 behind Thomas will be the next in for a repaint now that Duncan has all but completed TSO 4423. Bittern awaits confirmation of a path back from Bristol. Photos (18th September 2007): Tony Wood

13th September 2007:

Several of the top row smoke tubes from #92212 have been removed already as can be seen in both the photo of the front tube-plate and under the dome. The cab of the 9F is almost stripped: Kyoichi was removing small pipes and labelling them - "In English" - insisted Andy d:-)
MOVIE (500KB, 13th September 2007)

Myra was cleaning control components ready for storage
MOVIE (950KB, 13th September 2007)

Work on #92212 in preparation for boiler inspection, Sept 2007

Roger continued painting TSO 4423 whilst Duncan was on the footplate on a service train.
Frank Boait and Bob Allen were on their way to Bristol with Bittern's middle big-end.
Bob Millard was machining axleboxes for "Royal Scot" on the vertical borer.

Photos and movies (13th September 2007): Tony Wood

11th September 2007:

In the yard, David was loading hopper wagons with ash for disposal. Colin was finding grinding-in the clack valves of #73096 more than just a grinding-paste affair so Andy had to re-cut the seats. The Ivatt was lit with a warming fire ready for tomorrow's Introductory Footplate Experience courses. Today's Advanced Footplate Experience courses were on CP. Movie (3MB, 11th September 2007)

Work continues with stripping pipework and controls from #92212 but, being involved, I took no photos. Spud was preparing the boiler tubes for removal, working in the smokebox and the firebox by turn with a dampened 'scarf' of cotton rag to stop at least some of the grit from going down his neck. Andy was showing the boiler inspector the progress with Douglas's firebox. Kyoichi Oda arrived today from Wolsztyn (Poland) - he and tw were removing control and gauge brackets on the footplate.

Frank and Bob were re-metalling the middle big-end bearing of Bittern. Movie (2.6MB, 11th September 2007) It will be machined at Ropley and taken to Bristol for blueing-in (a laborious job involving lifting and assembling the bearing onto the pin a dozen or more times to check for high spots after each stage of scraping. Steve had made a connecting-rod-end substitute to make the machining and scaping slightly less of an effort.)

Duncan was painting the black ends on TSO 4423, in just for a re-paint Movie (1.5MB, 11th September 2007)

Two photos and three movies (11th September 2007): Tony Wood

Frank heats tinned bearing brass and chill to (laser thermometer measured) temperature before pouring molten white metal

7th September 2007: Photos of Bittern at Southall

5th September 2007: Back on Tuesday from exhibition at the Great Dorset Steam Fair, #92212 is being dismantled for boiler inspection. This requires full access inside and out, so all tubes and cladding will be removed.
	#92212 being preparation for boiler inspection, Sept-Nov 2007
	Footplate Experience (Introductory) Course members water the Ivatt, encouraged by instructor Mike Burke
	New points and sleepers (see P-Way report 12th June 2007) for the town end of the up loop at Ropley will increase the radius of the curve. We can then look forward to line-speed runs up through Ropley - not just down as now - during steam galas.
No, we haven't yet made a new tender for the MHRPS Standard 4 #75079. It is temporarily attached to the tender from #92212. Looks good, though ... d:-) This photo appears with our permission also in the latest edition of Steam Railway Photos (5th September 2007): Tony Wood

From: Alan Daniel
Sent: 03 September 2007 21:52
Subject: Bittern's first test run on the main line
Tony
Thought you might be interested in this link
Nice shot of Bittern at Slough on her first main line test run during the early hours of 1st Sept.
Alan
MHR Signalmen's Rostering Officer

Stanier Black Five #45379*

... is under restoration

*Photo: Frank Boait

Final run of 5379

Photo at Bighton Bridge: Tony Wood

Restoration to date

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