Work in Progress: 6th December

posted by Nigel Thompson on Fri, 07/12/2012 - 11:23

It's getting colder now. At Woody Bay, high up on Exmoor, the cold wind and rain can make it quite unpleasant working conditions for the volunteers.

Inside the station 'Father Christmas' has made his early Christmas deliveries ready for the Santa Specials starting this weekend. The presents must now be sorted and wrapped ready this season's visitors and their children.

Outside, the gang continued to progress a variety of building and maintenance projects...

1. Martin Williams and Mike Corner mixing up concrete for filling in around a manhole and its cover.

2. This manhole, just below the car park, helps to prevent flooding across the trackbed when heavy rain flows down the A39 and through the station entrance.

3. 'Santa' keeps an eye on signalling engineer, Dick Gunn who was on site carrying out the periodic greasing of the moving parts of all the turnouts at Woody Bay.

4. Later Dick relocated to Killington Lane to grease up the turnouts ready for the Santa Special trains.

5. Graham Varney removing concrete from the base of the LSWR Lattice post signal, formerly from Heddon Mill on the Barnstaple-Ilfracombe line.

6. In the shed Jim McFarlane and Dave Bloomfield discuss the next stage of the wooden frame requirements for the bogie open wagon cover.

7. Ready to cut to length whilst the wagon is stabled behind in the siding.

8. LILLA (left) received some maintenance whilst John Heys unscrews sections of AXE's cab: the first stage of AXE's refurbishment programme.

9. The Brazier provides some localised heat at this end of the shed for those working on AXE and LILLA.

10. The third ex-MoD Box Van refurbishment has been completed this week. All three vans are displayed in the loading dock siding.

11. Hunslet diesel D6652 was also stabled in the loading dock with the three SR-liveried box vans.

12. This is SR No. 47064 recently re-roofed, and repainted.

13. SR Van 47064 by the up starter signal.

Thanks to all the staff and volunteers who assisted with the project and to Jim Pounds for the lettering.

For those interested in the details and stock list of the whole fleet of L&BR works train wagons, please email Nigel or ask at the station.

14. After lunch, with drier weather now, a works train with HEDDON HALL in charge, took some of the gang down to the sleeper stacks to collect more of the scrap sleepers for disposal.

Words and pictures by Nigel Thompson