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Bluebell Railway General Discussion

Discussion in 'Heritage Railways & Centres in the UK' started by Jamessquared, Feb 16, 2013.

  1. Mr Bounce

    Mr Bounce New Member

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    Was the one on the platform anything to do with Meridian TV?
     
  2. Ploughman

    Ploughman Part of the furniture

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    Isn't there a rumour of moving the Meridien?
     
  3. CH 19

    CH 19 Well-Known Member Friend

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    I'm sure you are right Steve, I used to walk the line to the Park on a weekend and can only remember the one sign which as a lad thought was quite exciting. Strange how things work out, 35 years later I was working at a chateau in France, and I was asked to go and do some flailing around the 'folly' and when I got there low and behold there was a ornate stone marker indicating the passage of the self-same meridian!! After that I used to take my lunch there and reminisce about blighty and the Bluebell. BTW did our paths ever cross as I was volunteering around the same time, mainly SP station staff, car park and obo attendant.

    Chris Head
     
  4. Jamessquared

    Jamessquared Nat Pres stalwart

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    I don't have a very clear memory from childhood visits, but seem to remember only one. I have a much clearer memory, aged probably about 10 or so, of going for a walk on Chailey Common and being sat on the marker there: I was definitely struck by being partly in the eastern and partly the western hemisphere.

    I suspect it was this one though I remember at that time it was in rather more open country back then (late '70s / early '80s).

    http://www.publicsculpturesofsussex.co.uk/object?id=61
    http://www.thegreenwichmeridian.org/tgm/location.php?i_latitude=50.983090

    Tom
     
  5. Steve B

    Steve B Well-Known Member

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    I suppose it is quite possible as those were the jobs that I did as well, although I never got as far as the Obo, although I did clean it a few times. I have to confess that remembering names has never been my strong point, and it was a long time ago! By the sounds of it your way of getting to SP was the same as mine - bus to Horsted Keynes and then walk along the line (and hope that Horace May didn't catch you as you got to the Park)? It was either that or walk from Chailey cross roads. It was when trying to get there by public transport that the description of the line as running from Nowhere to 5 Miles From Nowhere never seemed more apt! Interesting as well in reading about sleeping cars in the other thread - when I stayed overnight it was in SECR 1050 (first class - the seats were wider) - I would really like to see that running again one day.

    Steve Berry
     
  6. CH 19

    CH 19 Well-Known Member Friend

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    I had a shorter route as I am from HK, down the Lewes road,now called Tremanes rd apparently, nip across a field and picked the track up on the embankment near Cockhaise brook. I could have sworn there was an underbridge/cattle-creep there can't see it on Google maps??. One abiding memory I have of those walks was the tarry smell of the sleepers on warm summer morning and a rusty metalic smell when it was raining. I know I managed to kip in the Maunsell (6686??) a couple of times, luxury.
    Edit, more likely 6575.
     
    Last edited: Nov 15, 2015
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  7. Paul42

    Paul42 Part of the furniture

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    It was removed or infilled.
     
  8. jonpbowers

    jonpbowers New Member

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    Both to be precise! Otye Bridge is (was) the one you mean - it was filled in back in Jan 2006. The digger driver had such fun removing it the remaining timbers were beyond re-using and burnt on site, with the heat melting the adjacent (buried) S&T cabling if I remember correctly!
     
  9. CH 19

    CH 19 Well-Known Member Friend

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    Thank you for that, I was getting a bit worried about the little grey cells for a moment there:(
     
  10. SR.Keoghoe

    SR.Keoghoe New Member

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  11. Jamessquared

    Jamessquared Nat Pres stalwart

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    From the Bluebell e-Newsletter:

    "HRA HONOURS THE BIRDCAGE BRAKE

    At the Heritage Railway Association (HRA) meeting on 11 Nov., 2015, Trevor Rapley was presented with the HRA's 2015 Carriage & Wagon Awards "Best Coach" award for SECR Birdcage Brake No. 3363. This is the third successive award collected by Trevor, who also led the restorations of Maunsell Open Third No. 1309 and LBSCR Bogie First No. 7598.

    Says Rolling Stock Director Lewis Nodes: "A well-deserved award for many years work, demonstrating again the continuing outstanding excellence of the Railway's Carriage & Wagon Department."

    No. 3363, completed four years ago, fell within the scope of this competition because it had been considerably delayed in its judging and presentation.

    The carriage, built in 1910, was restored by a team of volunteers at Horsted Keynes. Having been converted for departmental use for measuring the clearances through bridges and tunnels in 1954, it arrived on the Bluebell in 1999, with water coming through the roof after years sitting in sidings elsewhere.

    Its interior and exterior have been meticulously restored to its 1920s/1930s running condition. Back then, No. 3363 might well have passed over Bluebell steel, since birdcage stock was often used on this line."
     
  12. Paul42

    Paul42 Part of the furniture

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    Special Events have been announced for the rest of 2016 and include in addition the Branchline Weekend : -
    15th - 17th April Diesel Weekend
    30th April Toy & Rail Collectors Fair
    14th -15th May Southern at War
    25th - 26th June Model Railway Weekend
    2nd - 3rd July Food Festival
    30th and 31st July Toy & Rail Collectors Fair
    13th - 14th August Vintage Transport Weekend
    28th - 30th October Giants of Steam
    14th November Track Trek - between East Grinstead and Sheffield Park stations
     
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  13. Jamessquared

    Jamessquared Nat Pres stalwart

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    Thanks Paul. For completeness, Branch Line Weekend is 19-20 March with the LNWR Coal Tank promised.

    Also, the Track Trek is 12 November, not the 14 November. 12 November is a Saturday; I did a double-take about an event on a Monday! I assume that there will probably be some kind of engineering possession and no public trains that day, as I can't otherwise see how you could safely run the event given that it is likely to be 3 - 4 hours for most people, so not really viable in the evening as previous events have been. No doubt all will be revealed nearer the day.

    Tom
     
  14. Paul42

    Paul42 Part of the furniture

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    The Calender on the .com website shows no services on the 12th November. No services on the Sunday either - Engineering works ? if not might be possible date for a photo charter.
     
  15. Jamessquared

    Jamessquared Nat Pres stalwart

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    Speculation on my part, but I'd take a guess at an engineering possession. I wonder if it is the much-anticipated relaying of platforms 2 and 3 at HK?

    Tom
     
  16. Jamessquared

    Jamessquared Nat Pres stalwart

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    Some photos (not mine) here of the restored porch at Sheffield Park, with the newly made stained glass windows, another incremental step to restoring the station to its Victorian appearance.

    https://www.flickr.com/photos/bluebellrailway/albums/72157661795926052

    For those who have a copy of Klaus Marx' line history, a comparison of the first photo with the photo on page 169, taken 1915, is interesting.

    Also not my photo, for reference what it looked like before:

    http://www.derekhayward.co.uk/Blueb...-Tours/A-photographic-tour-of-the/i-fMHf3jW/A

    Tom
     
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  17. Jamessquared

    Jamessquared Nat Pres stalwart

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    Further to the above about the porch at SP, this from the e-Newsletter:

    FOSP UPDATE: PORCHES, PANELS, PLINTHS, & PLAUDITS

    The completion of the first phase of the Sheffield Park entrance porch restoration is now well on its way.

    During the first week of December we were blessed with yet more dry weather and our contract joiner attended to install the stained glass panels under the watchful eye of the craftsman. The panels were all installed very quickly, but there is the slow business of filling the location grooves in the turned columns with a great deal of putty, and then sculpting this with great care so that it follows the profile of the columns.

    By the time you are reading this, all should be done, and it only remains for Friends of Sheffield Park (FOSP) painters (the ones with the steadiest hands) to touch in the paint when the putty has skinned over. The stone plinths on which the wooden structure rests will then be painted in the colour selected by our Heritage Standards Officer. After a good clean of the interior parts (lots of cobwebs to brush down), this phase will be substantially complete.

    Already we have received many plaudits, and photos have appeared in various online forums [including above]. Nonetheless, we will be planning some kind of formal opening/dedication of the new work at a suitable time next year.

    For those who are wondering, phase two hopefully will see the nondescript concrete/macadam floor of the porch replaced with a facsimile tiled version. A little research (that is, surreptitious photography by one of our members of the original tiled floor in the porch at Mayfield station) has given us the design detail we need. Watch this space for more details when we have some.

    By Chas Melton, Friends of Sheffield Park
     
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  18. Jamessquared

    Jamessquared Nat Pres stalwart

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    Also from the e-Newsletter:

    FUNDING UPDATE: A GOOD MONTH

    November was a very good month with funds raised to improve productivity in both the Carriage & Wagon Department and Locomotive Works.

    Firstly, a benefactor came forward offering assistance and made a donation of £25,000 which will be used to purchase a set of carriage jacks plus the provision of the concrete hard standing required to use them. This will double our capacity to jack up carriages for maintenance in the C&W workshop.

    The Peall Railway Trust responded to an application for funds to purchase an Asquith Portable Universal Radial Drill for the Locomotive Works with a grant of £15,000. Despite having "portable" in its title, this is a substantial piece of machinery. This drill has many uses, the primary one being the replacement of boiler stays; it can assist an engineer performing this task and make him or her up to 2.5 times quicker than when using conventional drills.

    The Peall Railway Trust grant was in addition to a contribution of £2,000 to the Keep Up The Pressure Appeal earlier in the year. That appeal is still running if you can help us out.

    By Roger Kelly, Funding Director
     
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  19. Jamessquared

    Jamessquared Nat Pres stalwart

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    From the Bluebell e-Newsletter, a retrospective on the year in funding.

    FUNDING REVIEW OF 2015

    It has been a good year for fundraising, yet for the first time in five years I did not launch a major appeal in the name of the Railway. That's because Keep Up The Pressure and Cash for Cover are ongoing, and money has continued to come in to both, with some four-figure donations.

    The Locomotive and C&W societies and special interest groups have been doing sterling work, and in so doing they have raised significant amounts. The fundraising efforts of other groups such as the 9F Club and the "Friends" of our stations also are to be commended.

    I must express my gratitude to those benefactors who have contributed five-figure sums this year. These have allowed us to continue our apprentice training programme in the Locomotive Works, restore locomotives, and purchase the items of equipment that I listed in my update two weeks ago.

    Not all funds have come from individuals. This year we received grants from four different trusts, plus East Grinstead Town Council, East Grinstead Rotary Meridian, and Lewes District Council. At the beginning of the year there was the award from the Arts Council of England to renovate the Elephant Van for use as a Children's Play Coach.

    Finally, the year's major down-then-up was the rejection in March of our application to the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) for the Accessible Steam Heritage Project (ASH), followed by its approval in September (following its re-submission in May). In addition to new building and major repairs. the focus of the ASH Project will be on providing facilities that will make us more attractive to a wider public, particularly families.

    The ASH Project will be the subject of a major appeal in April, when every £10 donated will lead to £40 grant from the HLF--not a Double but a Quadruple Donations Dash!

    Thus 2016 will be as busy as any other year. Its success in fundraising terms will depend on the work of the Fundraising Team but mostly, as always, on our supporters and grant giving organisations.

    I wish you all a Happy Christmas and a prosperous New Year!

    By Roger Kelly, Funding Director
     
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  20. pmh_74

    pmh_74 Well-Known Member

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    Think somebody needs to look up what 'quadruple' means...


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
     

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