Work in Progress - 26 May

posted by Nigel Thompson on Sun, 29/05/2011 - 22:58

For a change of scenery today, The Thursday Group volunteers work party visited the L&BR CIC owned Chelfham Station.

The variety of railway equipment on site is gradually being sorted out with surplus items disposed of, sold or scrapped. Today's task for the gang was to prepare the remaining ex-MoD wagons for regauging from the MoD's 2'6" gauge. These wagons will be transported to Woody Bay in due course. We brought lifting jacks and sleepers with us to assist with this task.

1. Martyn Budd positions a sleeper underneath the first bogie flat wagon prior to jacking up.

2.More sleepers are put under the wagon.

Four bogie flat wagons were purchased and stored at Chelfham several years ago pending regauging. In 2008-9 the first was regauged and converted to become a bogie open wagon SR No.28320 which is in service at Woody Bay for locomotive coal storage and transport. The second was refurbished as bogie flat SR No.28321 for the transport of long rails etc.

3. After jacking up the bogie is wheeled out from under the wagon. The wheelsets were removed for regauging.

4. The gang move sections of the original railway's SR 'Howard' goods bogie van. These wooden roof and side sections are preserved to assist with dimensions for a future project to build a replica of this historic vehicle.

5. Moving the Howard van panels onto storage onto a smaller flat wagon.

6. The Howard van panels had been stored on the other bogie flat wagon.

Later the gang jacked up this wagon and removed the bogies. Also there was time to begin dismantling some of the brake rigging and axle box stays ready for the lifting out of the wheelsets for regauging.