Aln Valley Railway

Longhoughton Goods Yard - ?, continuation of general tasks; constructing the “”trolley line”", moving sleepers to aproximate positions, moving rail, wire brushing the 165DE, inspecting rail crane, sorting track components, etc., The yard was again very busy with the on going Plain Track Renewals work. We arrived to find the NwR contractors consolidating ballast to form a parking pad in the yard.Work continued on returning the Permaquip to working order: a nice new pair of batteries have been bought for the machine now. We removed a plate at the back which gave us better access and enabled us to remove two T pieces that were put in when the machine had a hydraulic generator (this having been removed by FE). The hydraulic tanks were topped up but still require more oil once we get rid of air locks in the system. The brakes have been freed off and now seem to operate correctly. We are now able to manhandle the machine along our track. The roller shutter doors were cleaned up and these now work correctly. A Perspex sheet was obtained for use as a temporary window. The next day…. thanks to Cairnsy we had 45 gallons of (used) hydraulic oil which we used to top up all tanks. We used the emergency hand pumps to push oil round the system and push out any air locks. We also operated the turntable a few times. As we had freed up the callipers the previous day they released quite easily and two of us were able to manhandle the ‘quip up and down the test track without difficulty. One of our electricians then isolated the immersion water heater in the rear as this appeared to be on even when the switch was off. This was not only running the batteries down but also getting very hot when almost boiling dry. With this done we refitted the batteries and cranked up the engine - still no drive. At this point we suspected the hydraulic pump wasn’t working. We did however manage to operate the turntable under engine power so lifted the machine and rotated it 180 degrees thus proving the pump was in fact working. Once back on the track we chocked the wheels and took the tension off the drive chains and removed the chains to allow us to test the hydraulic motors - even with quite high revs there was no movement - we now suspect a problem with the deadman’s handle. Various other nuts and bolts were soaked with WD40 and slackened and retightened to ease removal if necessary. Measurements were taken for replacement roof and windows. We now plan to have a look at the electrics again and check the operation of the various relays and solenoid valves to make sure oil is going where it should. The old light box from the roof is to be stripped of the reusable parts, and measurements taken ready for the fabrication of a new box. We also had a visit from some interested enthusiasts, and their sightings have gone off to the IRS so hopefully we will get a mention in their mag.

Longhoughton Goods Yard - BS, DMS, TS, continuation of general tasks; extending the “”trolley line”", moving sleepers to aproximate positions, moving rail, wire brushing stock, painting stock, inspecting rail crane, sorting track components, checking over the permaquip, etc., Due to a combination of it being Brunton weekend and a few volunteers being on holiday, staffing levels were low, but this may have been just as well as the area outside the yard was very busy as there was a big job on today (and continuing till Monday) - the gate had been designated the access point to a Network Rail Plain Track Renewals work site so we arrived to find the normally quiet location crawling with Network Rail, Fastline, SES, and Railsafe Personnel and had to sign in even though we were actually working on our side! Baz and Dave S removed the two batteries that Dave had temporarily wired in to the quip earlier and cleaned up all the contacts and made some new leads, and selected a better earth point. The fuel tank was drained, and the fuel lines removed and a temporary fuel header tank rigged up. Once the batteries were reinstalled we went through all the pre start checks and tried to crank the engine - it fired up no problem but cut out as soon as the accelerator was released, we found this was because the hand throttle idle was set to low - once this was rectified we tried cranking and it fired and then sat idling quite happily. We then tried moving the machine, but with no joy. The engine was stopped and we tried operating the “”emergency”" hand pump to operate the turntable and the brakes. The turntable seems to operate OK but we have a feeling that the brakes are a little stiff through lack of use. The window apertures have been temporarily boarded up to try and help keep out the weather until we can get the re-glazed, plans are afoot… It certainly drew some glances from the Network Rail and Fastline crews in the area when we fired it up!The temporary mesh fence near our top gate was removed and agreement reached with the contractors for them to use the yard as parking was becoming tight. After some gentle pestering of the renewals team we were lucky in having a bit of spoil/ballast dropped in the yard – not a massive amount but as Tesco says “every little helps”. So thanks to Network Rail and their contractors.

Longhoughton Goods Yard - ### CANCELLED ###, continuation of general tasks; constructing the “”trolley line”", moving sleepers to aproximate positions, moving rail, wire brushing the 165DE, inspecting rail crane, sorting track components, etc., ### CANCELLED ###

Longhoughton Goods Yard - BS, DMS, TS, RJ, MH, SY, DT, KSW, continuation of general tasks; constructing the “”trolley line”", moving sleepers to aproximate positions, moving rail, wire brushing the 165DE, inspecting rail crane, sorting track components, etc., Baz and Dave S arrived just after 09:00 and checked over 37995, including topping up the diesel tank. Tom arrived soon after a cut up some of the fencing donated by Network Rail. Baz, Dave S & Scott used the tractor to re-level the sleepers on the “trolley line” and this was re-laid with the flat bottom rail, and so should now be suitable for very slow speed running with the Permaquip when it arrives. Mark, Dave T and Kay primed some more of the Ruston 165DE’s bodywork. Roland continued working on DS1749, the rail crane – for which Northumbria Rail are very grateful – the mixture of WD40 and PlusGas lubricants and now Altrans acid cleaner seem to be making an impression! Once the trolley line had been re-laid the opportunity was taken to tidy up moving the wooden sleepers to the stockpile. Baz then made a start on levelling a bit more of the site. It doesn’t sound much but we achieved a far bit!