Jack And His Friends

Tuesday was all about fettling and adjusting the track.  Under glorious sunshine the Tuesday Gang spent the time working north and south of Gasworks Bridge.  The following pictures by Guy show how much fun a group can have with a few crow bars, spanners, a can of oil and a few jacks.

The trolley was used to move the tools in to position, we will soon have the rail tops nice and bright!

The tools of the trade ready and waiting

Here you can see the welded joint from flat bottom rail to bullhead. It's time to loosen a few bolts for some tweaking.

A quick conference is organised to see what needs to be done,

There is always lots of advice!

 Our fiend Jack is brought in to play

Through careful alignment and a few movements here and there the hollows are gradually eliminated.

Jack has done his bit and the sleepers and ballast are moved in to position.

A gentle nudge and all is well.

On to the next sleeper and the process is repeated.

Sometimes a bit more umpf is needed to help Jack along.  You can see the improvement already in the track towards Oswestry,

Jack is put under pressure again.

Beyond the bridge work continues with fettling the joints and track levels.

Here a bit more work is required to get everything lined up and twist free.

 Jack is back and again provides the force to get everything aligned.

 In advance the nuts were given a spray of penetrating oil

Thanks to all who turned up and to Guy N for the pictures.

Until next time.

(St)Roll On Sunday

Guy N took a walk to take a few pictures of the latest situation.

We start at the crossing where you can see in the fist picture where the rail head is in relation to the crossing.  Even the sign will soon take on a real meaning as we begin to run trains past this point, a just reward for all who have put effort in to the project.

The track materials for the crossing are waiting and in the background is Oswestry cemetery

The P.Way Team are itching to get these sleepers laid and press on with the extension.

Looking towards Weston the area has been cleared and levelled, waiting for the machines to move in.

This telephoto lens shot shows the dip and the track that runs back to Oswestry station.

To the south of the crossing the rails wait to be extended.

The orange lines indicate the position of the ballast bed which will shortly be laid out to allow further track laying.

Lastly where there was a hole is now a not hole.  We shall see if further works are needed before the track is laid.

The Tuesday Gang will continue with P.Way work on the extension and I will update progress later in the week.  Thanks to Guy N for the pictures

Until next time.

A Bit of Tuesday and a Full Thursday Gang

We start off with a few pictures from Colin from the Tuesday Gang, first the work plan is discussed and the necessary materials selected.  A panel a day keeps the extension in play..  Once the rails had been chosen the JCB swings them in to position to start the assembly process.

 This nicely framed shot shows the track all the way back to Gasworks Bridge.

 On the other side of the gap a short length was put in to space out the joints over the crossing.

The last picture from Colin is looking back towards Oswestry.  This view gives you an idea of roughly what has been excavated.  The raised area to the right is roughly level and about the previous level of the trackbed.  The downward gradients starts where Colin stood to take the picture.

We now move on to a gloriously sunny, but crisp, Thursday.  Andy G took the following pictures.  Firstly enjoy the sun and a cuppa, now firmly established as an integral part of the day.  Phil B, Glyn W, Tome, Steve, Dave and Glynn soak up the rays and warm the inner man with a fresh brew.

The objective was to get the last panel in before the crossing, we couldn't get across the crossing as somebody has parked their car in the way...  Well not really, we have to wait until the drains are laid and the ballast bed can go down.  But best move those cars as the gang are rapidly approaching from behind.

The site fencing marks where the drains are being dug.  The gap between the two rail ends is under 200 feet or around three and a smidge rail lengths. Phil is taking a picture to remind us how far is still to go.

Thanks to all who turned out and to Colin and Andy who took the photos.

Until next time.

On Facebook

For those of you that don't do Facebook, and seemingly for very good reasons, I have copied across a few of the more relevant pictures and added some comments.

If you 'Do Facebook' then the link in the top right hand side of this page will take you to the CHR Facebook page and the photos are stored in an album on the Weston Extension.  You don't need to register to see the page.

We start with the genuine Cambrian Railway footbridge donated by Network Rail following removal from Machynlleth.  This is a project a long way in the future but we have amassed many unique pieces from around the network and many are on display in our museum in Oswestry.  When it's time comes the plan is to install this footbridge at Weston.

As a look back here is a picture of the clearance around the accommodation crossing behind Travis Perkins, track will be going back down here shortly to connect the two parts of the current extension.

Next we have a few before and after pictures.  The location is behind Travis Perkins' yard.  The photo from 2016 was taken after many years of underground work by Alun E who kept vegetation in check after the trains stopped running.  Alun kept hope alive for many years and sections further down the line were almost lost in a dense jungle.  All this is great testament to a fine man, thank you Alun, we miss you.

And here is the view in early 2019, a bit of a difference!  By Easter we should see trains along this section fingers crossed!

Looking the other way we have the before view, the bridge in the background is Shrewsbury road and you can just about make out the supports, this section has now been lowered and track laid.  Again we start with a view from 2016.

So much has changed in this view from February 2019 from roughly the same location.  It's all down to the hours put in through CHR from planning and fund raising through to the volunteers who turn up in all weathers to work on the project.  

The next picture is a view at the Weston station site.  The tank wagon has now moved so that the platform can be built alongside the goods shed. Clearance work on the ground is underway so that a start can be made on the various foundations and drainage required for the station 

Whilst at Weston we take a look at the track slewing in progress to release the rolling stock stored outside the goods shed, again this will allow access for the building works for the new platform.

Moving back to near Oswestry we can see the curve exiting the excavated section and linking in to the long straight heading to Weston.  The gap has closed slightly since this picture and the sections will be linked once the drainage work is complete.

This is the remaining ballast bed with just enough space for one further track panel.  The team are ready and waiting with all materials as soon as the drains are finished. That will once again connect Oswestry to Weston, however the section beyond the cattle creep requires a smiliar level of attention, that should be the next phase.

Next is a pleasing view from the bridge of the gentle curve past the cemetery as the line exits the cutting.

We finish with a view of the welded joints on the slab under the bridge, these were done by external contractors.  You can also see the special base plates that are used to fix the rail to the slab, this avoids having sleepers so the overall height can be reduced to maximise clearance under the bridge.

Remember to keep watching also on Facebook if you use it.  Thanks to CHR Facebook for the pictures.

Until next time.

Tuesday's Toils

Tuesday saw Steve, Glyn, Glynn, Dave, John A, John W, Colin, Tom and Andy working either side of the accommodation crossing behind Travis Perkins. By the end of the day there were less than 200 feet left to go to connect up the two parts of the first phase of the extension.

The now well oiled team swung in to action laying out out the concrete sleepers.  Well oiled is not the right phrase, drenched is probably more accurate.  It was another of those wet mornings but the team carried on regardless, probably wondering why they were working in the rain and not drinking tea back in the shed.

The first view shows the freshly laid sleepers waiting for the rail to be swung in to position

In the next view John W leaves on an expedition (to find shelter?) whilst the others get ready for the arrival of the rails.

In the next picture the full crew are now engaged in the various activities of track assembly.  Closest to Andy, behind the camera, team fishplate get cracking whilst the key team work in the distance.

In the afternoon and without the rain the team moved to the other side of the gap.  Steve, Glyn, Colin and John are keying in the rail with Glynn supervising.  Behind them you can see that there is space for one more track panel on the ballast bed.  The earth in between is where the crossing will be built but only after the drainage work is complete.

So that was Tuesday and another step forward for CHR.  Further south at the Weston station site preparatory works have begun to enable access to build the station.

Thanks again to all who took part and to Andy G for the photos

Until next time

A Suburban Story Part III

This is an unplanned post so consider this as a bonus!  You always get value for money here.

At the moment the guard's compartment is the home to John's woodworking shop.  Once John and the team have finished the plan is to turn this space into a wheelchair zone, the double doors form an ideal access point and additional fittings will be provided to make the journey safe and comfortable.  This will include fitting windows to the end wall for good visibility.

So here are some before pictures.  We start with a general view in the guard's compartment with the handbrake wheel in the foreground and the desk behind.

The double doors will allow access, as you can see there is still plenty of restoration work on these to be done.

Water has caused some damage to the doors and this will all have to be attended to.  Reg and company on the outside and John and company on the inside.  Already John has replace some of the internal woodwork but there is plenty still to do.

Outside along the bottom you can see the area that has been cut away and the grey patch is where the original parcels plate would have been specifying load details.

As you can see there is still quite a way to go before the coach will enter service but we are determined to make this a quality job.

We will keep popping back in to the shed to see progress.  Pictures again from Guy N and thanks to all involved with and supporting the restoration.

Until next time