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
Follow our restoring of heritage steam engines from Barry wrecks to high performance, mainline certified steam classics
Translate/traduzca/Übersetzen Sie/tradurre/traduire
| 10th May 2002:
'Nunney Castle' arrived today by road from Penzance to make use of MHR's wheeldrop to investigate a hot driving axlebox. So now we have five of UK's most powerful steam locos at Ropley. |
 |
 |
Photos (10th May 2002): Tony Wood:
1. Just unloaded at Alresford this
morning |
25th Anniversary of the reopening of Mid-hants
Railway: reports and pictures of the weekend's events |
|
How's this for a lineup of the most powerful locos in UK !? King Edward I, Bodmin, Canadian Pacific, #92212 all on the pit road at Ropley MPD How do they compare? 92212 homepage 6024 homepage
Four poor quality photos taken at Ropley in the rain in the evening of 2nd May 2002. (Just so you can see I wasn't making this up!): Tony Wood |
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
| 1st May 2002: Early morning at Ropley.
The Cathedrals Express train is hauled backwards via Alton to Waterloo, where the diesel is detached, leaving the steam train ready to depart. Canadian Pacific's drain cocks clear condensate from the cylinders. Although the diesel does most of the hauling to conserve CP's water and coal for the run proper, CP needs the regulator slightly open to ensure proper lubrication. Photo (from Douglas, 1st May 2002): Tony Wood |
 |
| 30th April 2002: It's arrived!
'King Edward I' still has remnants of a fire and pressure on the gauge from arrival under its own steam. A sleeping animal. A warm and welcoming place to shelter from steady rain this afternoon. Photos (Ropley, 30th April 2002): Tony Wood |
 |
 |
 |
A warming fire had been lit on the grate of #73096's boiler this morning in readiness for the steam test
| Now that the final coat has hardened enough, Duncan has masked the side
of the DMU ready for painting the lines.
Foreground : tender frame of Bittern
Photo (21st April 2002): Tony Wood |
 |
16th April 2002: BR Std 5 #73096 frames (ready for boiler to be refitted) were in the yard, and its place in the shed taken by the Class 20 diesel loco*, which was having several new cylinder liners fitted. Duncan was progressing well with repainting the second unit of the DMU*. Some new frame sections around the dragbox* had been cut and fitted to Bittern's frames ready for welding, and materials had arrived for further work on the frames. Thomas was having new boiler tubes fitted and some work on firebox roof stays. New flue tubes had arrived as replacements for those removed from Ivatt tank engine #41312. Canadian Pacific was out on the main line for the EWS driver training postponed from February. *Update 17th April 2002: Class 20 had had a couple of cylinder liners replaced and was being shunted out of the shed that afternoon. DMU (2nd unit) in final gloss, was hardening off for 48 hours before lining and signwriting. Coded welder was welding the frame of Bittern. Keith Loughlin was working on 'James' (#31625) sorting out the rocking grate and repairing the brick arch.
Archives of previous Loco Shed News pages of this website Click to 'Diesel Corner' 'How a steam loco works - inside story' (explained with photos and drawings) Remember, this is only the Loco shed stuff - More news and pics#73096: Heavy General Overhaul 2001/2
MHR Ropley Shed website in Japanese is on-line
here
|
All photos are by webmaster unless acknowledged.
You may copy mine for any non-commercial purpose. webmaster - tonywood@watercressline.co.uk
Copyright © 1997 - 2002: Tony Wood |
| The Watercress Line, The Railway
Station, Alresford, Hampshire, England, SO24 9JG Tel 01962 733810 Fax 01962 735448 tonywood@watercressline.co.uk www.watercressline.co.uk/tw |
How to get to the Watercress
Line
Translate/traduzca/Übersetzen
Sie/tradurre/traduire
(