111 – Chasewater Railway Museum Bits & Pieces
From ‘Chasewater News’ Winter 1986/7Magazine cover – a drawing of CLR No.5, the ex Walsall Gas Works Sentinel, by Steve Bent.
Following the “Reorganisation Day” of 22nd November there are at present three bodies which together form the Chasewater Project.
1 – Chasewater Light Railway and Museum Company – The CLR&M Co is responsible for the day to day and long term policies of the Railway as well as being the body to which the supporters and sympathisers of the Railway join.
The Officers of CLR & M Co. are:
CHAIRMAN – Steve Organ
GENERAL MANAGER – Tony Sale
ENGINEERING Manager – Nigel Canning
OPERATING MANAGER – Les Emery
COMMERCIAL MANAGER – Barry Bull
MARKETING MANAGER – Ian Patterson
FINANCIAL MANAGER – Bob Curtis
NON-EXECUTIVE – Colin Marklew
COMPANY SECRETARY – Adrian Hall
2 – Chasewater Light Railway Company – The old Company will remain in existence until its assets, debts and liabilities are transferred to the new Company.
There are at present two directors:
COMPANY SECRETARY – Adrian Pearson
CLR & M Co. NOMINEE – Adrian Hall
3 – Chasewater Light Railway Society – The Society is remaining in existence until such time as the CLR & M Co. attains charitable status, in order to safeguard the rolling stock and relics as well as holding the leases.
At present the CLRS has the following members: L.Hodgkinson, D.Ives, T.Sale, B.Bull and I.Patterson (CLR & M Co. Nominee)
The above mentioned are also the Trustees of the Society.
News from the Line
Loco Department
No.2 is awaiting its turn for overhaul, a change of ownership is rumoured.
No.3 Slow progress with the firebox repairs may result in the frames making way for the GM’s machine (S100) in the shed.
No.4 Asbestos has performed satisfactorily during the season and is due for attention to its side rod brasses and regulator valve during the winter months.
No.5 59632 has also performed well and gets better with every steaming. The vacuum brake system works to the required standard, much to the relief of all concerned.
No.6 All that can be reported is that we have exchanged a spare set of side rods in our possession for some missing boiler fittings (stolen some years ago).
No.7 The Ruston has been used occasionally for shunting but happily the increased use of ‘real’ motive power has made the engine somewhat redundant.
No.8 Invicta may well return to service during 1987 following a full boiler examination, platework repairs and fitting of vacuum brakes.
No.10 The frames of S100 have descended from their lofty perch and are temporarily mobile. Once installed in the shed the wheelsets will be re-removed for attention to the hornguides and following a probable orgy of machining and highly technical stuff, the motion and valve gear can be reassembled – sounds easy, but it could take years (and years!).
No.11 The ancient Neilson languishes outside the shed awaiting its turn for attention. (it’s now got as far as the workshop!)
No.21 The ex Bass Worthington ‘pudding’ awaits its replacement engine.
Wickham DMU
Several windows have been replaced following a spate of vandalism and new rainwater gutters have been fabricated and fitted.
The presence of blue asbestos (the mineral not the engine!) has been noted by the Railway Inspectorate and it will have to be removed from all three DMU coaches in the not too distant future.
Trackwork
Following Gricers Day work was concentrated on relaying Nop.1 road back to the remnants of S100.
This was swiftly accomplished and as mentioned elsewhere the frames of S100 were removed. Once the boiler of S100 is removed the Great Eastern Coach should be rendered mobile, last having moved in about 1973!
Following the visit of Major Olver of the Railway Inspectorate on 3rd December work has centered on the installation of a catch point on Elsley’s siding which has been relaid. The catch point is necessary to stop any stock rolling onto the main line when passenger trains are being operated.
Wooden Bodied Stock
Steve Organ has started the unenviable task of restoring the wooden bodied coaches, or at least making them weatherproof and presentable.
He is aiming to have the three six-wheelers and the four-wheel MR passenger brake fit for running demonstration trains (i.e. non-passenger carrying) by Gricers Day on 11-10-1987.
Needless to say all offers of help will be most welcome as the success of this laudable project rests on ADDITIONAL help coming forward.
So far the ex Maryport & Carlisle coach is nearly in the initial stage of acceptability whilst Mr. X (I can’t remember his name) is having a go on returning the ex MR four-wheeler to its pre MSC scheme condition.
Being highly optimistic, Organic Steve hopes to fit in a renovation of the brake end of the ex LNWR coach as a picture gallery (a what!!!!?)The afternoon ‘Paddy’ on the Hednesford to Cannock Wood line during the late 1950s. The loco is the 1866 built Lilleshall 0-6-0ST ‘Rawnsley’ and the coach is the ex LNWR non-corridor composite now awaiting restoration at Chasewater.
431 Hudswell Group Notes
The fund is approaching the half-way mark towards the purchase of the locomotive, so by this time next year the locomotive should be in the ownership of the group.
The recent visit of the Railway Inspectorate has provided the Group with a major setback as the boiler lagging of the locomotive must be professionally removed before restoration can begin, at a cast of well in excess of £500.
Progress Report on ‘E1’ No.9 ‘Cannock Wood’The ex London, Brighton and South Coast Railway E1 No.110 ‘Burgundy’ seen coasting down te Cannock Wood branch in its later form as Cannock & Rugeley Colliery’s No.9 ‘Cannock Wood’
We have received the following report about the restoration of the E1, which members of long-standing will recall was sold to the East Somerset Railway at Cranmore in 1978.
“Work has progressed well……well sort of. Things have not come apart as they should and caused some anxious moments for crane drivers and merriment for those on the ground.
The first part to come off this project was the right-hand intermediate axle box oiling pot, since then many other parts have been removed, cleaned, repaired, painted in works grey (we have a lot of grey) and given an I.D. disc. This is then entered in a log book recording what the part is, where it comes from and what it does, sometimes accompanied by a small drawing to help relocation when we fling the engine back together!
The front sand boxes took a great deal of effort to part them from the frames due to two hundredweight of one hundred-year-old wet sand which corroded all the metal bits together. These are well on the way to being rebuilt.
The brake rigging has caused some problem with the steam brake being rusted up solid, a badly pitted cylinder bore, the main shaft bent considerably and pull rod equalizer rods bent.
The side tanks came off using the Dubs crane tank and the ‘lift and move quickly backwards’ method, with much screeching and tearing of metal (must remember to burn off ALL the bolts next time!).
The cab roof came off with much reluctance, and when lowered on the ground it collapsed in a heap of rust. As normal the bunker came off with difficulty leaving the bottom of the rear sand boxes still attached by rust, twisted and torn, to the frames.
Boiler work is coming along slowly with half the tubes out, pulled by the digger. Some of the tubes are nearly new with no scale on, but a thin layer of rust. The cab roof is to be repaired, whilst drawings are being prepared for the new side tanks. The bunker will be remade on site by us in the near future. The boiler has been de-lagged at a cost of £800 and should be lifted to enable the wheels to be removed and a start made on the waggly bits underneath.
Further news gleaned from the pages of Steam Railway (Jan 1987) reveals that restoration will cost in excess of £25,000 and may include a new firebox.
The loco will be finished in Southern Railway black livery as E110 and will be in as near to original condition as is practicable.
The unique Rawnsley chimney and the nameplates, etc. are to be returned to Chasewater in due course.”
Visit of the Railway Inspectorate 3-12-1986
Briefly they require some extra work on the track to that previously expected, but this should not present any problems. The use of push-pull operations was agreed until such time as the motorway outcome was known. However, a bell system between loco and coach must be installed and in the near future locos intended for passenger duties must be fitted with vacuum activated steam brake valves.
Apart from this, the major difficulty is the presence of blue asbestos as mentioned elsewhere.
Provided we comply with the Inspectorate’s requirements, a further inspection in the spring should leave us free to recommence regular steam hauled passenger trains.
The Future
The project engineer for the motorway has been to the railway and vaguely indicated as to where the new road may cross the railway. Detailed plans are to be drawn up by the Departments consultants and will be put on public exhibition during the autumn. Prior to this there is rumoured to be a public meeting in Burntwood Baths during April (What’s wrong with the lake at Chasewater?!).
Unless the railway can get a firm idea of how and where it can expand then the good work and impetus gained during 1986 will be lost. To this end, a short list of possible alternative sites has been drawn up to be further investigated if it becomes apparent that we are ‘flogging a dead horse’ by remaining at Chasewater.
Chasewater Railway Museum 