The Yearly Reset!

Christmas is out of the way and the running season at the GWSR is in its final throes, with only three more days left until the clock resets and we start looking forward to the new 2024 running season. There isn't much in the way of timetable changes for 2024 with the Diesel fleet seeing a similar amount of running days throughout. However, there are a few big events relating to our fleet that will potentially have specific celebratory days to look out for. We have previously mentioned that it is the 60th birthdays of both 37215 and D6948 being accepted to BR capital stock, but I neglected to mention that it will also mark the 30th anniversary of 47105's arrival at Toddington! 

The BT4F's 47105 arrives at Cheltenham Racecourse with the final 'down' service of the day on 29/12/23. The Brush Type 4 celebrates 30 years at the GWSR in 2024. (Courtesy of the BT4F 'X' page/Rich Watson/Matt Pickford)

The former Cardiff Canton, Bristol Bath Road, Stratford, Immingham and Old Oak Common allocated Type 4 was purchased way back on the 24 January 1994, having been stored unserviceable at 0845 on 1st November 1993 before final withdrawal on 13th December 1993. A very quick turnaround from withdrawal to preservation! It arrived at Toddington on the 8 April 1994. (Thanks to David M for the correction.)

 

A shot taken from the Brush Type 4 Fund website shows 47105 in May 1994 during its first start up at Toddington post-purchase from BR. The loco still wears its 'Stratford Roof ' and unofficial Tinsley name - 'Goldcrest'. (Courtesy of www.brushtype4fund.co.uk)

Fingers are well and truly crossed that we should, hopefully, see Class 20, 20228 make its long-awaited debut at some point during the year, depending on how the fitting of an exhauster and completion of its overhaul pans out. More on this further down the page.

2024 will also, hopefully, see 20228 make its long-awaited debut at the GWSR. Here, the EE Type 1 is positioned in the shed for our Gala in July 2023.

Having started the 2023 season, the Class 37s will see the season out with the final three days of the Mince Pie Specials before the whole department will be fully focused on maintenance, examinations and ensuring that everything is in tip-top condition for the start of the new season in March. 

Of course, some of the fleet have already been winterised and maintenance has started in earnest. Two of our Type 4s had been removed from traffic at the end of November as they both required heavy maintenance work. 45149 had been stopped after its last working in November so that one of its blower motors could be removed for overhaul - which has been sent away. It has also meant that some of the smaller jobs that had been put off due to the ongoing restoration of the CMDG's other loco, D5343, can be rectified. The antifreeze has also been strengthened, due to the anticipated low temperatures, and the batteries have been charged and topped up. 

'Peak' 45149 gets its batteries topped up in readiness for the winter at the end of November. On the adjacent road, BR(W) Modified 'Hall' 7903 'Foremarke Hall' is already decked out for the Santa Special trains to begin.

Class 26, D5343 continues to receive new metal work around the cabs, although the extensiveness of the plate being removed and replaced is now diminishing. Our new HoD, Dave S, has been the primary metalworker, along with CMDG Chairman, Simon T and, between them, have replaced a significant amount of fatigued metal work around both cabs. Dave has carried out the vast majority (if not all) of the welding, which has seen a huge amount of new steel fixed in place around both cabs. 

Our new HoD is completely oblivious to the creeping spectre that is me and my camera as I snap him, hard at work, in the David Page Shed on the 20/12/23. This photo gives a good sense of the amount of metal that Dave has cut out and replaced on the loco....and this is just no. 1 end!!

This, as you can see from above, has included removing steel on pretty every part of the locomotive front - including around the roof vents and windscreens. Still to be done are the refitting of the lamp brackets and the creation of the recesses for the lights. This has been partially started on no. 2 end, but it is still a long way from seeing a return to service. 

No. 2 end of D5343. As you can see, the lighting recess has been created and one of the lamp brackets has been refitted to the new plate.

Whilst the cabs have been externally rebuilt, the internal areas are also seeing a huge amount of work, with more to be conducted. The cabs are being cleaned and repainting undertaken to improve the environments for crew. 

No. 2 cab showing that the refreshing of the cabs is in full swing. The cab seats have been removed and the pipework exposed under the desks for repainting and cleaning.

The external body sides have not been neglected and continue to receive repainting and cleaning, particularly around and under the solebar, where some of the steel has been replaced and where large deposits of dirt, grease and muck had accumulated. 

Taken back in September, you can clearly see where the restoration of D5343 continues away from the cabs.

As mentioned earlier, the second Type 4 out of traffic is 47376 'Freightliner 1995'. The loco had had some repairs to its exhaust system and cylinders during the season, however it was identified that its engine governor was also showing some cause for concern. This has been traced to a governor joint leaking and so the loco was drained and the governor was removed for repair at the end of October. 

47376 'Freightliner 1995' sits in the shed on 8/11/23 having been drained and its engine governor removed for repair.

With the loco out traffic, the BT4F have also continued with the engine room refresh that has been ongoing in pockets through out the year. As can be seen in the photo above, some of the removed engine parts sit on the flat trolley having bee cleaned and primed. As you can imagine, these parts can get incredibly filthy and regular cleaning is required to prevent build up of combustible materials and minimise the fire risk. 

Also winterised has been EE Type 1, 20137 and Sulzer Type 2, 5081. The Class 20 has had its Automatic Voltage Regulator (AVR) removed along with having its coolant strengthened whilst it is stored outside in the yard. The Class 24 has been drained of its fluids to allow some engine maintenance to be completed. 

Alongside 47105, both Class 37s have been kept in serviceable condition in order to act as 'Thunderbird' locos for the Santa Specials....our Steam colleagues having serious issues with their loaned-in locomotive. These issues led to both 47105 and 37215 getting some additional running after rescuing said steam engine. In between this additional running, both Class 37s have received some minor fettling. Both locos have been kept pre-heated and the batteries topped up with charge, to minimise damage from cold start-ups. 

I managed to get up to Toddington just before Christmas for two days, with day 2 being with the 'Wednesday Gang'. Little was going on with either '37' except that the compressors on 37215 needed topping up with mentholated spirits. Both compressors have reservoirs within the pipework that need topping up regularly. This required a quick jaunt to Churchward House in Winchcombe (the offices of the GWSR) to pick up a new 5 gallon container of meths. On returning to Toddington, I decanted the meths into a smaller container and found a funnel. As with most things on these locos, filler points are never in the easiest of places!

Here we have the filler point and bottle for the meths to be poured into. The twist top in the middle of the picture also has an indicator on it to show fill level. Above it is the valve that can be adjusted for flow rate.

The bottom filler bottle was easy to get to but the one for the top compressor was almost jammed right up against the roof of the nose. Above each filler is the valve for flow rate. Paul G, the Growler Group technical officer, asked for these to be lifted slightly to increase the flow slightly. This required a bit of elbow grease with an adjustable spanner to release the valve, lift the plunger slightly and then re-tighten. 

The top filler, as described, jammed fairly close to the roof of the nose!

The following day I was stand by Driver for the Santa Specials. Firstly, I had to get the loco pre-heated, just in case we were needed. The pre-heater is pretty antiquated for 37215 but I successfully (after what seemed like about 55 attempts!!) managed to get it running - not before filling the shed with exhaust fumes! Sadly, the strong wind was blowing the pre-heater exhaust right back into the shed!! The pre-heater in D6948 is so much easier to use!!

With the heater now running it was time to find something to keep me busy until I was needed or until stand-down. One of the more mind-numbing jobs to do was to sort out and organise the carbon brush stocks we have in the GG container. Little did I know just how many boxes and bags of them we had to organise!

That's not too bad........

Oh! Well, I can manage that!

 

Oh, come on!!!! How many more!

The call to rescue never came and so, by the end of the day, all of the brushes had been organised into their own labelled containers, sorted by asset number and safely ensconced back in the container. We had a huge amount of main generator brushes but very few of any for the fuel pumps. 

Back to the previous day, and the biggest job ongoing was out on the DMU. W51363 had been experiencing engine issues towards the end of the season and the DMU Team wanted to find out what was happening. After investigation, it was identified that the pinion gear was significantly damaged. 

W51363's pinion gear. You can clearly see that a number of the teeth are severely damaged. (Courtesy of the CDRL 'X' page)

Wednesday, and W51363 was maneuvered over a pit so that James C, Keith R and Andy D could get the pinion gear and shaft removed for a better look. 

 

W51363 is positioned over the pit. It would later be moved over the old Diesel Pit further over in the yard as it could stay there without having to be moved for the prep and disposal of the steam locos.

 

In the middle of working on the Class 24 and doing a few smaller bits on the Class 37s, Paul G was also assisting given his experience of working on DMUs when he worked at Cardiff Canton. 

The drive shaft is removed to allow easier access to the pinion gear for removal. (Courtesy of the CDRL 'X' page)

The various bits were not going to come off easy....... 

Andy D is primed to let another set of expletives go at the drive gear as it won't release quietly. If all else fails.....shout! It did seem to work, though!

 

'Thing' (or, Keith's hand) puts in an appearance from below the frame to give Andy some guidance. Keith has worked on Leyland 680 engines before....albeit when in the back of buses.

Huzzah!! The final part of the shaft releases itself.

With the shaft all removed, the pinion gear wheel could now be removed but the light had beaten the team on the day. The group reconvened on Saturday to try and finish it off. Not really a surprise as the various parts had probably been in situ since its days in BR service. However, the trio persevered and, after lots of swearing, the gearing came away. 

The offending article! You can clearly see the damage. (Courtesy of the CDRL 'X' page)

Luckily, the CDRL have a spare that can be fitted so W51363 should be fit for the new running season. Whilst the power car was over the pit, other jobs were also completed that required access beneath the vehicle. This included replacing the exhauster belts and undertaking an oil sample test. 

New exhauster belts for fitting. (Courtesy of the CDRL 'X' page)

Finally, back to 20228 and owner, Steve M, has made a start on overhauling a spare exhauster. With it stripped and cleaned, primer has been applied before final painting and then testing. 

With 2024 on the horizon, due to the ongoing works at Stanway Viaduct (which has thrown up a bigger job being required), the timetables have a slightly different look. The PURPLE, BLUE, PINK, and GREEN timetables remain unchanged but we also have a couple of extras thrown in for March. These are - 

LIME GREEN - same as the BLUE, but only between Toddington and CRC.   

ORANGE - same as the PURPLE with the Diesel on the last run between Toddington and CRC. 

Stanway Viaduct during the initial surveying in 2022. (Courtesy of the GWRT Website).

 

Also, don't forget that the repair Appeal for Stanway is still open. If you have some spare money sitting around after Christmas, why not head to the GWRT website and donate. Any amount is helpful. 

https://www.gwrt.org.uk/donate/stanway-viaduct-appeal

Finally, I hope you all have a great New Year and see you around at the GWSR in 2024. 

A loco getting plenty of social media coverage at the moment is push-pull 47/7, 47701 after its movement to the Wensleydale Railway. Not many people know that 47701 was actually a resident in 2008 after the, then, owners approached the BT4F to assist in getting it up and running. The loco would spend the year at Toddington, running in, before moving to pastures new. (Courtesy of Richard Drewitt)

December 2023 Update

Firstly, apologies once again for the lack of updates - illness, car troubles, work and a house move have meant that I have been well and truly MIA for the last 8 weeks! Not the end of the year I had hoped for! Still...time stands still for no man, but it does mean a lack of photos.

Well, here it is.....December, and the season is in its final throes. The 'Santa Special' services are underway and, as usual, have sold out way in advance of the services running. Unlike 2022, where the diesels were in use top-and-tailing with our Steam colleagues, the diesel fleet are only on stand-by this year, just in case of failure. 37215, D6948 and 47105 being the selected candidates. These locos will also be in use during our 'Mince Pie Specials' between the 27 Dec and 1 Jan. 

The end of October saw our 'Autumn Showcase' mixed traction Gala and the diesels saw significant use throughout the weekend. With the DMU being used all weekend, the mainline fleet was split between the Sulzer and English Electric camps. The Sulzer-powered locos (Class 24, 5081 and Class 47s, 47105 and 47376 'Freightliner 1995') saw use on Saturday, the highlight of which saw 47105 power the freight train as the 1113 Cheltenham Race Course to Toddington service. The Sunday saw the English Electric engined locos in operation with Class 20, 20137 and Class 37s, 37215 and D6948 in use. The only issue experienced over the weekend saw 37215 lose vacuum at the very end of the day. This fault would be investigated in early November, on my only attendance during this period, especially as it meant it was replaced on its last scheduled running day by sister, D6948. 

Winterisation of locomotives had already started with 'Peak' 45149 being withdrawn from the roster at the end of October so that it could have one of its blower motors removed for overhaul off of site. It has also had its coolant topped up ready for the colder temperatures and had its batteries charged to keep them from going flat. 

On a chilly 29 November, 45149's batteries get a topping up. 'Foremark Hall' gets readied for its turns on the 'Santa Specials'. (Courtesy of the CMDG Facebook Page)

The CMDG's other loco, Class 26 D5343 continues to receive extensive works with more expired metal being removed and fresh metal applied. Most of the cab fronts have now been completed and painted with primer, the holes for the headlights created and the lamp brackets being fabricated. Work has also continued on overhauliung the bodysides, cab interiors and the engine room. 

 

D5343 sits in the David Page shed whilst the extensive overhaul continues. (Courtesy of the CMDG Facebook Page). 

The Cotswold Mainline Diesel Group now has its own Facebook page, so if Classes 26 and 45 are your thing, then you can keep up to date with the happenings in the group by going to https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100086535366200. 

The DMU has seen the most action throughout the last month or so, as the 'off-peak' part of the season draws to a close. That doesn't mean that the DMU group have been inactive....far from it. Both Class 117 cars, DMBS W51360 and DMS W51405 have had time over the underframe pits to allow underframe checks to be concluded in time for their respective B Exams, with W51405 only needing a few belts and W51360 given a clean bill of health. Centre car, W59510 is awaiting spares to arrive for some minor maintenance tasks to be completed. 

Class 117 DMS, W51405 sits over the pit with a 'NTBM' Board on it as its inspection is conducted. (Courtesy of the GWSR DMU Group Facebook page)

This particular picture caused a few comments on Facebook regarding the destination blind. Toddington appears to be quite a popular place name with one particular individual querying why it was showing a place in Yorkshire! Rest assured that this is Toddington (Gloucestershire), although there is indeed a Toddington in Yorkshire as well as one in Bedfordshire!

The Class 122 'bubble car', W55003, has also continued to receive attention on its overhaul journey. The floor continues to see the brunt of the work as the group complete the interior essentials before looking at fitting the internal furniture and decoration. 

The Class 20's have both been winterised with 20137 having its coolant strengthened ready for the lower winter temperatures and for frost protection, given that it will spend the cold season outside. Its space in the shed is, of course, being taken up by sister, 20228, which is in the final throes of its overhaul.

20137 sits in the yard at Toddington, along with 45149, during a much warmer June day in 2023.

47376 'Freightliner 1995' has been removed from the roster for the winter so that repairs can be affected to its engine. The locomotive has been running with some long-standing engine issues, and would need some parts replacing. After the 'Autumn Showcase', the loco was drained of diesel, oil and water before work could commence on the repairs. The engine room would also see more 'environmental' work with some parts being removed and repainted. 

47376 sits in the shed, drained of fluids and with some freshly primed components adorning the adjacent trolley, on 8 November 2023.

Sister 'Brush', 47105 is being maintained in serviceable condition as it will be used as 'Santa Special' Thunderbird loco as well as on the 'Mince Pie Specials' at the end of December along with the Class 37s.

As mentioned earlier, 37215 suffered a fault with its vacuum system at the end of the 'Autumn Showcase' and was unable to create any vacuum for braking. This also caused it to be substituted for its sister loco for the final 'PURPLE' turn at the beginning of November. On the 8th November, Paul G, Kev J and Keith R set to looking at what could be causing this issue. Originally, thought had been that the exhausters weren't running (a fate that D6948 suffered back in the Summer), but this quickly extended beyond the exhausters as these were found to be running okay. A fault was traced to the AV2 valve in the nose, behind the exhausters. Seals were replaced which seemed to rectify the issue with the vacuum creation, but it then threw up another fault in the electrical cubicle. 

With Paul G in the nose of the loco, Keith R helps from the outside with the replacing of the seals on the AV2 valve.

This fault was rectified with a clean up of the contactors on the 'Exhauster Cut-Out' button on the bulkhead in no. 2 end. This is used when the loco's exhauster are not required to create any vacuum - for instance when topping and tailing or when it is the train loco when double heading with another locomotive. 

The 8th was the last day that I was able to attend Toddington. I paired up with Andy T who was welding a new safety bracket to the no.1 end bogie. Each bogie has, as part of the brake system, a number of stretcher bars that connect to the brake shoe brackets. If these fail or brake, to stop them getting lodged in the ballast and potentially de-railing the loco, each bar has a pair of safety brackets underneath to prevent them hitting the ballast or ground. The leading wheel set at no. 1 end, on the Driver's side, had lost its bracket at some point in the past - by the looks of it, probably way back in BR days. 

The adjacent brake spacer bar safety bracket to the one that Andy and I were replacing.

 

On the other side.....nothing. Just a rough mounting block.

Andy T had fashioned some brackets during his time down at Carriage and Wagon (Andy splits his time during the week between C&W and the Diesel Department) and having the loco over the pit was a prime opportunity to test fit and, when happy with a set, weld them in place. I was on hand to help with the fitting and then to be on hand with the fire extinguishers when Andy started welding! Once the 'Mince Pie Specials' are finished, 37215 will have more work conducted on the no.1 (top) compressor to identify and rectify the issues we have had with it pushing oil into the air system and why it is over-running. 

D6948 is also being maintained in readiness for Thunderbird duties and for possible use on the 'Mince Pie Specials'. The locomotive worked during the 'Autumn Showcase' event as well as covering for 37215 at the beginning of November. The loco still requires some small jobs completed on its fuel filters to rectify some little faults. This includes replacing some elements on the fine fuel filter which are life expired. The loco has had its exhauster brushes replaced and most of the jobs for the winter are pretty minor. 

Finally, the Class 24 has been Winterised after its first full year back in action after repairs to its engine governor. There are a couple of small faults that need addressing on the 'Rat' but, as with the majority of the fleet, it should be ready for the new operating year in March. 

5081 at Stanway on a ballast job during the Summer 2023. (Courtesy of Paul Fuller)

 

Finally, I don't usually include things involving the wider GWSR on here, as they are usually covered by other blogs/social media channels. However, this is a pretty big deal as it impacts on the railway in quite a big way, and therefore has a knock on effect to what we do. As you may have seen, earlier in the year the railway started to canvas for donations to support quite substantial works on our 15-arch Stanway Viaduct. These repairs started after the last timetabled services in November but, on further investigation, the state of deterioration to the viaduct was identified as much worse and so additional funds are now required. This will no doubt impact on the start of the new season. If you can spare anything then please visit https://www.gwrt.org.uk/donate/stanway-viaduct-appeal