Of the three Hudswells

18th April 2021

When shall we three meet again, in thunder, lightning or in rain? (a Scottish play).

Oh, is it Sunday again already? It hardly seems a week since I was writing about naked Hudswells and here I am again with more to offer you. First of all (for no better reason than it occurred first in this week's timeline of events) came the news that Mrs J Statham had resigned as a Director of the Peak Railway Association. It appeared on the Companies House on-line info, followed by an announcement on the PRA's own website, commenting 'Due to other directors work commitments the meetings have to be held in an evening and this is something Jackie could not commit to on an ongoing basis.' The only odd thing about this is that, so far as I am aware, PRA Board meetings have been in the evenings for years. Iindeed I clearly remember attending my first on the 16th January 2015 commencng at 7pm, having been apparently elected at the PRA's AGM the previous November (I say apparently because I was on the footplate of 14 901 that day so couldn't attend). So PRA Board meetings have mostly been evenings, but I imagine our circumstances can change..

Anyway, most of my Monday was taken up with a run out to a supplier's, but later on I got back in to the workshops to carry out the last tasks on Claire, which was due to leave us the next day. Once Andrew was available we completed this work and then managed to get time/evening light to pose all three Hudswells together for the last time: they had met once before (they are all ex Shropshire Collection, as was Beverley) and Claire and Grace worked together at Avenue.

Tuesday I was off to Blythe Bridge to meet up with Adam and Ian. We were due to collect a Barclay 0-6-0DH 'Meaford No.4' aka 'Clive' which was to come to Darley Dale for wheelset work. Adam wasn't having a good start: coming up Caverswall Road, overhanging branches seized and ripped off one of the air horns from the Merc. These branches had caused trouble earlier allegedly - a Foxfield member was supposed to have taken it up with the council (who are responsible for dealing with such things) but had failed to do so.

Anyway, without further ado the Barclay was loaded and we headed back to Derbyshire. This part of Staffordshire seems rather unfriendly to motorists. On my outbound run I had encountered 'Road Closed Ahead' signs and no diversion route seemed to have been signed, leaving me to fight my way past the entrance to Alton Towers which appeared to be very much open for visitors. I made it to Cheadle and then took a wrong turn, but still arrived at the same time as Adam and Ian. Setting off back I took the right road to Cheadle, but on the approach found more 'Road Closed Ahead' signs with no yellow 'Diverted Traffic' boards that I could discern, right up to the point at which the road was coned off. Adam and Ian, taking a rather more circuitous route than I, duly arrived at Rowsley and meanwhile I was bringing Claire up to Rowsley by rail.

The Barclay was unloaded and parked in Rowsley sidings, and Claire took its place on the low loader. Claire was heading out to pastures new, and I followed it later for unloading the next day, after which Adam and Ian went off to Bo'ness to collect the second of the pair of 165DEs which Jagger is aiming to restore.

Even this wasn't without crisis, as SRPS members suddenly advised a day or so before that the loco could not be loaded owing to an outbreak of Covid 19 which had rendered the headshunt relaying incomplete, but through the kind offices of the diesel department at Bo'ness, the loco was duly loaded in their area and shunted to it by them. Just to continue Adam's woes for the week, on the way south the Merc lost drive so the loco arrived at Rowsley with another tractor after an early hours swap-over.

The Ruston was unloaded, the Barclay fired up and the loco taken down to Darley Dale. This is the first 1960-70s styled Barclay I've had much to do with. It was at least in the period where their cabs had a bit of style (later they took on the appearance of a utilitarian box) but what disappointment. From the driving position you can see the front buffers (though the air intake 'mushrooom', well above the casing top, is right in your view from the left hand driving position) but in reverse? Stood in the cab you can't see the buffers for the fuel tank, if you move across the cab door pillars block your view. Lean out the window (I can just get my shoulders through but I am not your big, butch loco driver type) and you can see the buffers but the brake and throttle controls are just out of reach. No, I'd only give it a five out of ten, but then I am partisan.

After all this excitement I decided to have a quiet day Friday and catch up on paperwork: I intended to 'go down and do a bit later' but never quite got round to it.

Saturday and Andrew and I meandered down with a long list of tasks. First off was a bit of a shunt around: the two 165DEs were paired up together, the recently arrived naked Hudswell brought down nearer the shed, the contents of the cab gone through and various parts that are of no further use (such as the front engine mount casting, now in about 6 pieces) binned. The main part of the day was taken up with re-installing the first traction motor from a Janus back to its gearbox ready to return to the loco, which includes checking the mesh between motor pinion and input gear. What with shims, bolts and o-ring seal it was a long and frustrating business but we left it ready for installation the next day.

Jagger and Luke, meanwhile had extended the new flooring in the cement van and removed more of the old flooring ready to treat the steel sheet underneath. It was a red letter day for Peak Rail too, as D8 Penyghent, made a solo trip to Matlock, so far as I am aware the first loco south of Redhouse area this year. And so back to today. With Claire out of the way I really had to make a start on Alstom's loco, at least until Andrew was available, when we switched to getting the traction motor back in and the horncheck ties bolted back on said Janus. Foxfield's Matt H turned up to see 'his' Barclay in its temporary home and was quite content that we used it for a bit of a shunt to get the forklift around the front to collect some pieces. It picked up our collection on track 1 quite easily - Charlie makes much more of an effort but then it is geared to trip faster.

And that's about it for the week. More transport work in prospect, locos awaiting my attention. D'y'know, it occurred to me that at the beginning of this month I'd been in railway engineering - and most of that with industrial locos - for 43 years. What did I do wrong in a former life? Ah well, back to it. Will you be returning next week for more? See ya then.