Work in Progress: 10th December

posted by keith vingoe on Fri, 11/12/2015 - 02:42

The Rain it Raineth

This week's report is provided by both Nigel Thompson and Roger Bye:

1. The “view” from the up platform at Woody Bay Station today - confirming that today’s weather forecast of "heavy rain all day" wasn’t wrong! Still, the Thursday Gang Show must go on, and after a “warm up” moving tables, chairs and other things in preparation for the Christmas activities, other work was soon underway.

2. Alistair, Dave, and new Thursday Gang attendee, John, prepare to use stone blowing to adjust the newly laid track levels. This involves using compressed air to force small diameter gravel into voids under the sleepers (apologies to those who knew this already!).

3. By the drooping, temporarily disconnected signal, some of the gang continue excavating the supports for the signal cable pulley.

4. After the combined efforts of several (increasingly wet) gang members, the ballast and rock were excavated, allowing the pulley and associated control wire to be lowered to clear the underside of the newly laid rails.

5. Any euphoria resulting from the completion of that task quickly evaporated when Martyn Budd directed the gang to tackling the job of lowering a point rodding stool at the other end of the station. As can be seen, this required a considerable amount of effort ... and supervision!

6. The gang persevered, despite the excavated hole filling with water as it was deepened, until the rodding was realigned. The managerial instruction, “that’s ok -fill it in”, was obeyed with greater alacrity than usual!

7. As if digging ballast and rock had not provided sufficient exercise, some of the gang were next tasked with digging up the Christmas Tree. Yes, it was still raining, as evidenced by the drops of rain on the camera lens.

8. 9. Out of the rain in the shed, John Heys applies some paint the rear of the cab of his engine, whilst Pete Williams tries explaining to Jim Price how his carefully reclaimed piece of timber had ended up being used for gutter clearing!

10. In the paintshop Jim Pounds continued his painstaking work on Carriage No16.

11. Meanwhile keeping sensibly dry at Rowley Moor Farm, Dick, Don and Nigel were progressing with the assembly of a rail-built double upper quadrant home signal eventually destined for Parracombe Halt when the line is extended. The signal posts are laid out in the barn to enable the fitting of pivots, lamp brackets and other components collected over the past years from various sources.