There was no blog last Monday as many of us were busy attending the FRT’s Annual General Meeting at Preston on Monday evening. A full quorum was present, no doubt tempted by the last and main item on the agenda which was Alison’s catering! Needless to say, there were no long awkward questions that would have delayed us attending to the sandwiches, sausage rolls and cake. Thanks to all who attended and also to Alison for the food.
This last weekend saw the Ribble Steam Railway’s Gala take place where Furness Railway No 20 and the Great Eastern Railway royal saloon No. 5 were scheduled to appear, the latter making its public debut after an in depth overhaul. 
Wednesday saw the tables laid out in GER No. 5 for the first time.
This was followed by a final loading of equipment on the Saturday morning.
One or two of us felt quite emotional as the seats on the coach rapidly filled and it set off for its first journey. Alson gave us a wave as she went past.
RSR volunteers entered into the spirit of the occasion by dressing appropriately for the serving of drinks in the mornings and then cream teas in the afternoons.
A cake (yes, more cake) appeared at 12.50 on Saturday so that the 160th and 125th birthdays respectively of FR 20 and GER No. 5 could be celebrated. (And, yes, we did leave some for Ade who was driving on Sunday!)
The visiting engine for the Gala was Hudswell Clarke 0-4-0ST No. 750 Waleswood of 1906.
The weather was variable, the heavy rain testing the stamina of those in the open cab of FR 20 on Saturday afternoon, but the crowds turned up and the royal coach was sold out on both days. Trains ran to time, despite it being deemed the RSR’s most complex Gala timetable, and there were many lovely comments received from satisfied customers. Well done to all those involved.
Away from the public eye, work has continued on stripping Great Western Railway 0-6-2T locomotive No. 5643 as part of its overhaul, with Fred seen here cleaning up one of the eccentric rods.
And there is good news for those followers of Peckett 0-4-0ST Caliban where the old saddle tank has finally been recovered by the Ribbe Rail Road Rail Vehicle and sent off to Bradshaw Sheet Metal for replacement, along with Caliban’s smokebox and the ashpan from 5643.
Alan and Sam paid a visit to Bradshaw’s last Tuesday followed by Keith on Thursday.
Finally, over at Embsay, one of Cumbria’ eccentrics has been removed following the discovery that some of the white metal on it had come adrift. It is hoped to effect a repair in the not too distant future.
There has been more progress with the dismantling of Great Western Railway 0-6-2T locomotive No. 5643 where the front buffer beam has now been removed.
This will enable access to the cylinders so that new liners can be fitted. Keith and Fred are seen here with the buffer beam which Fred has been attending to with his cup wire brush to remove old paint and rust.
Andy Booth made a start on removing the old tubes from 5643’s boiler on Friday, cutting them from the firebox end first.
At long last, the coupling rod that was acquired from the Didcot Railway Centre for GWR 4-6-0 locomotive No. 4979 Wootton Hall was transported to the FRT shed by Ade on Wednesday, having arrived at Preston in the tender of FR 20 last Monday evening.
The main event this week has been Furness Railway No. 20’s participation in the Blaenavon Heritage Railway’s Autumn Steam Gala this last weekend. Sam Middleton and John Dixon went down to Blaenavon last Wednesday evening in order to prepare FR 20 on Thursday for the steamings on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. They were joined early Friday afternoon by Tim followed by Ade. Whilst Sam and John headed home on Saturday, Alison and Alan arrived on Saturday evening for the final day of the event.
Sam looked after FR 20 on Friday which enabled the others to have a ride in a 1910 former engineer’s saloon.
Sam then dealt with the inevitable pile of char in the smokebox.
Needless to say, Alison spent some time taking some useful sales income on Sunday.
It is pleasing to be able to report that FR 20 steamed extremely well all weekend and, late Sunday afternoon, was called upon to rescue a train that was in trouble at Blaenavon High Level. Not surprisingly, a crowd gathered to watch the gallant 160 year old locomotive blast its way up the bank into Furnace Sidings station with the ensemble of two locomotives and three carriages behind it.
Needless to say, it was starting to get dark when Ade, Alan and Tim then set about preparing FR 20 for its journey home, removing guard irons and sand pipes and fitting lugs to the tender that could be used to fasten the loco on to the transporter the following morning. And then there was the loading once again of the coupling rod for Wootton Hall!
Fortunately, the journey home for everyone and the loco was without incident and Ade was on hand yesterday evening to shunt FR 20 into the running shed at Preston.
The previous Wednesday at Preston had been spent in moving the stored chairs and tables into Great Eastern Railway royal saloon No. 5. The coach was then moved over the pit to allow inspection and oiling to take place and then into the outer shed to enable 5643 to be re-positioned and its boiler to be moved into the main shed.
GER No. 5 was then moved into the RSR running shed on Saturday and a satisfactory brake test performed using the steam locomotive of the day. The 125 year old vehicle is now scheduled to make an appearance at the RSR’s autumn Steam Gala on the 30th September and the 1st October.
With the interior of Great Eastern Railway royal saloon No. 5 almost complete, it has been time to move out of storage the seats and furniture that have been gathered for the coach. Some of the rubber chair leg feet were found to be absent, which had the potential for the new carpet to be damaged. Phil Burton has acquired some new feet and is seen here attending to the matter. Phil Bell and John Dixon made an early start to enable the gas fitter to attend at 08.00 on Friday morning. We are pleased to be able to report that the gas system is now passed ready for service. In anticipation of this, Tim has conducted axle pad exams ready for the coach to be moved further up the shed this Wednesday.
The Bank Holiday weekend saw Furness Railway No. 20 successfully return to service at the Pontypool & Blaenavon Railway in time for that railway’s 40th Anniversary Celebrations.
FR 20 successfully completed four return trips along the length of the main line on Saturday, Sunday and Monday with Andrew Barclay 0-4-0ST Rosyth No. 1 working from Big Pit to Whistle Inn Halt with a Mark 1 TSO coach and a brake van; the latter replicated the opening day train formation in 1983.
The hard work work hauing the coaches up the incline from Blaenavon resulted in the smokebox and its door losing some of its paint. Opening the smokebox door found a deep pile of char that filled four wheelbarrows!
Back at Preston, last Friday saw an action plan being agreed with our qualified gas fitter for piping gas into the kitchen of Great Eastern Railway royal saloon No. 5. Phil Bell will take this forward. The banquet chairs have been brought out of storage for cleaning and some TLC, whilst Phil and Anne Burton have been devoting some time to giving the vacuum gauge a good polish.
John Dixon is seen repairing one of the brass radiator covers from GER No. 5
We start this week’s blog with the very good news that Furness Railway No. 20 underwent a successful test run yesterday on the Pontypool & Blaenavon Railway following repairs to its right-hand front cylinder cover, piston and motion. Alan, Andrew and Sam Middleton made the journey down to Blaenavon to help prepare the loco and to witness the test. The above photo shows a spotless FR 20 approaching Whistle Inn Halt at the top of the line.
The second footplate view is of the loco descending back to Furnace Sidings with Alan centre. FR 20 is now scheduled to operate at the P&BR’s 40th Birthday Celebrations this next weekend on the 26th, 27th and 28th August. It is also due to appear alongside L&NWR Coal Tank 0-6-2T No. 1054 at the Gala on the 8th, 9th and 10th September. Our thanks go to Ryan Pope and the people at the West Somerset Railway who have arranged the repairs.
Back at Preston there is more good news in that the new carpet was laid in Great Eastern Railway royal saloon No. 5 last Friday. 
The photos show the carpet in the two saloons. As you would expect, it makes a big difference to the vehicle.
The previous Wednesday, Anne and Phil Burton had completed the reupholstery of the guard’s compartment and John Davis has completed the upholstery on the last door. There are, however, still quite a few jobs to complete, including the kitchen where our gas fitter is due to attend on Friday.
Finally, work has also continued on the overhaul of GWR 0-6-2T No. 5643 where Jon Dixon is seen suitably togged up whilst removing old paint and rust from the frames.
Firstly, Furness Railway No. 20 has been re-assembled after repairs to its
Secondly, at long last and after some struggles and enforced learning, the
We are pleased to report that work on the repairs to FR 20’s motion has been progressing well at Williton, courtesy of West Somerset Restoration, following the fusion welding of the right-hand piston head and cylinder cover. The piston head has now been reunited with the piston rod and both cross head cotters fitted after the necessary machining. It is planned to reassemble the motion on FR 20 at Blaenavon this Wednesday after which the locomotive will undergo an in-steam test.
Back at Preston work has been progressing steadily on the overhaul of Great Western 0-6-2T No. 5643. We were pleased to be joined by Jonathan Dixon who was given the task of cleaning down part of the frames.
Jon has not been the only member working on this task and the results so far can be seen above.
Following the issue of a new cup wire brush to Fred last week, he has been making best use of it by removing old paint and rust from the reservoir on 5643’s vacuum brake system.
Bob Thomson has continued his work on 5643’s regulator valve.
Keith is seen here removing some stubborn nuts from one of 5643’ radial spring hangers.
Firstly, FR 20’s front right hand cylinder cover and piston head should now be back at Williton after repair, for machining. We have the above photograph, courtesy of West Somerset Restoration of one of the old crosshead cotters (left) and a new crosshead cotter fitted snugly into place. So things are progressing with the repair and re-assembly of FR 20. This has obviously given the Pontypool & Blaenavon Railway confidence to advertise FR 20’s participation in their three-day Gala on the 8th-10th September.
Back at Preston the dismantling of GWR 0-6-2T No. 5643, in connection with its ten-year boiler overhaul, has continued with the removal of its vacuum cylinder, which has been plucked out from within the frames.
Sam is seen here working to remove one of the radial wheel springs.
Meanwhile Fred has once again been busy removing old paint and dirt from components. As can be seen here, he doesn’t ask for a new cup wire brush until the old brush is completely bald!
Work has also continued apace on the completion of the restoration of Great Eastern Railway royal saloon No. 5. Anne and Phil Burton have been working on upholstering the guard’s compartment.
Whilst John Davies and Tim have been busy fitting the remainder of the chenille on the side panels of the east saloon and corridor.
Sam has completed the wiring of the lights and Phil Bell has started to lay the linoleum on the kitchen floor. John Dixon has been removing old wood and nails from the corridor floor.
He has then commenced the job of laying a plywood base in readiness for the fitting of the new carpet.
Finally, FRT Members should now be receiving the latest edition of The Iron Horse magazine.
Back at Preston, work has started in earnest on 5643’s rolling chassis which is now located in the main FRT shed. Removal of the bunker for the first time in preservation has revealed some wasted angle support which is now being cut away so that it can be replaced.
The boiler is now in the outer shed and work on descaling it has also commenced. It is expected that the tubes will now be removed in August.
Ade has once again been working on Caliban and is seen here fitting the valve rod covers.
Meanwhile, John Davis spotted some unwelcome rot in the corridor floor last week which John Dixon can be seen cutting out.
Over at Embsay, Hunslet ‘Austerity’ 0-6-0ST Cumbria has been having a boiler wash out. Matt Anderson has taken the opportunity to remove the grate and fit an ashpan sprinkler, which can be seen in action above. Looks good!
The second photo shows the arrangement in the cab.