Track weekend 1st & 2nd November 2008

We are at  this time  of the year again when we have done the last track weekend,the weather was kind to us rain wise or should I say snow!A cold north easterly wind blew but that didn’t stop us oh no!We hardy(some might say foolhardy souls) carried on regardless like we have done throughout the year whatever the weather threw at us .Saturday was a easy day filled with replacing wooden sleepers from the crossing down towards the tunnel,it involved taking the spikes out of the BRMk1 baseplates lifting the rail up with the railjack sliding the old timber and baseplate out and replacing it with a serviceable sleeper.The BRMk1s were replaced with pan11s which in turn were drilled and screwed down onto the sleeper and then clipped to the rail.Sunday was a productive day more so because there were enough volunteers to create two work parties working either side of the level crossing, team one was led by Andy Lee.His gang did the sleeper replacing but unlike saturday the pan11s were not used due to a shortage of funds which we hope will be filled with donations we need every penny the railway cannot be built on goodwill,sweat and toil alone.The replaced sleepers were then taken by rail trolley down to the coaches unloaded and stacked ready for use for the replacement sleeper fence which prevented snow from accumilating on the tracks in days gone by.Twenty-two sleepers were replaced in total with five volunteers attending.Team two led by Alastair Connel concentrated on the set of points,firstly the left hand switch rail were unscrewed from the sleepers then using the railjack it was prised away from the stock rail until a curve was created from the switch toe to the crossing nose.The switch rail was then screwed down into its new position and the old holes plugged up to stop ingress of water,with that done the loopside stock rail needed to be adjusted to maintain a 1435mm spacing using a tie bar (fits to the foot of the rails and is tightened using a crowbar)  to bring the rail in towards the already altered left switch rail(looking towards the crossing)drill and screw down before the tiebar is removed.Similarily the downside stock rail to the runround loop switch rail(right hand) was done in the same way,the points are now done from the switch toes to the crossing nose.All in all,this was a very productive weekend it just goes to  show good organisation and team work can reap rewards.With mainline railways getting less labour intensive and more mechanically led heritage railways may be the only hands on labour intensive way of getting your hands dirty!Working on the track may be over until Alastair Connel comes next February(?) other work needs to be done,fencing takes priority over the winter months so the next two working weekends are 15th & 16th ,29th and the 30th November the main job will be digging holes and erecting fenceposts,depending on funds wiring up might be done.As mentioned before money is needed to push the railway along please donate however small is needed to make this railway a running reality.

PHOTOS FROM NOVEMBER CAN BE FOUND IN THE MEMBERS' GALLERY - CLICK HERE

TRACK WEEKEND - 27/28 SEPTEMBER 2008

Another sunny weekend and another record turnout: a sure fire recipe for further excellent progress on the re- born Waverley Route. On Saturday, we clipped- up the four lengths of concrete sleepers laid in August, this section now only requiring ballasting and packing. I think it’s safe to say that our volunteers have been impressed with the concrete sleepers thus far (although it might be different if they’d been asked to lay them without mechanical assistance), and the finished product certainly looks the business.

On Sunday, we ballasted, lifted and packed the switches on the points to level them up and take out the rather big dip at the heels. The problem here is that the track-bed has a significant cross-fall (or cant) towards the inside of the curve, while the points must be level throughout. The first part of the solution is to jack- up the inside rail through the points until our track gauge tells us the cross- level has reached zero, then stand back aghast at the sight of the huge, gaping expanse of fresh air under the sleeper ends. Part two of the solution is to replace the fresh air with copious quantities of ballast, transported up from the stockpile area by a combination of dumper and track trolley, both loaded by the mini- digger.

Part three (yes, it keeps going), is to “run- out” the lift into the adjoining plain line using sighting boards. To prevent the reader suffering terminal boredom at this point, I’ll go into the use of these another day.

With all the Phase 1 rail, sleepers, baseplates etc. now laid, our big requirement is track ballast, and lots of it. We have taken the decision to lay granite from a Network Rail supplier which, while it’s not the cheapest, will last us forever and is supplied to a very tight specification which simply isn’t available locally. Further progress towards completion of our first phase is therefore dependant on raising funds to buy more stone. PLEASE, PLEASE consider making a donation to our track fund as the sooner we’re finished, the sooner we can run trains and generate regular income.

MORE PHOTOS FROM SEPTEMBER CAN BE FOUND IN THE MEMBERS' GALLERY - CLICK HERE

SEE INSIDE WHITROPE TUNNEL ON YOUTUBE - CLICK HERE

TRACK WEEKEND - 30/31 AUGUST 2008

The first phase of track laying is nearly complete after this changeable weekend. It was good weather on Saturday but raining on Sunday. I guess it would take very extreme weather for us volunteers to abandon work!

This track laying took special significance as concrete sleepers were laid for the very first time since the route closed on the 6th January 1969. At the southern end of the coaches the trackbed was scraped using the mini digger then the  concrete sleepers were lifted onto a trailer and taken up from the cutting to the coaches and laid.

This was on the Saturday when with only 3 volunteers and the mini digger operator we managed to lay 2 panels worth of sleepers. On Sunday there were 8 of us - it proves we have a healthy volunteer work force capable of steadfast work to a high standard. After the concrete sleepers were finally laid the rails were lifted onto the rail bed of the sleepers using the mini digger.

A pan lifter was used to lift the sleeper and a pan setter to measure the distance for the insulator to be inserted between the rail and the pan clip housing ready for the pandrol e-clip to be levered home to fasten the rail down.

All the rails on this section are in place but will still need clipping down on the next track weekend. Future track work includes slewing the track panels and resleepering after the coaches have been moved into the platform; the points require finishing work; the run round loop needs completing and the track panels north of the crossing need resleepering  down to the tunnel.

A special thank you from the rest of the committee to Ian Crooks who has done us proud with the work he has done to the inside of the exhibition coach. The display boards look fantastic and he has worked wonders. Thanks must also go to his wife Joyce who manned the shop (whilst knitting a hat for their grandchild!) and for letting Ian out of his ball and chain! Of course thanks must go to the volunteers for all their hard in making this first phase of track laying possible - you know who you all are!

MORE IMAGES IN THE MEMBERS ONLY GALLERY - CLICK HERE

TRACK WEEKEND - 26/27 JULY 2008

Note to self #1: next time we are planning ballast shovelling and kango- packing, try and avoid the hottest weekend of the year.

Note to self #2: next time you go to Whitrope, don’t forget the sun tan lotion.

Our thanks must go to the association member whose generous donation funded the delivery of the ballast and the hire of a JCB for the weekend. With such support, coupled with the record number of volunteers who turned out over the weekend, WRHA continues to deliver a fantastic rate of progress on the ground: why not come and see for yourself on our open weekend from 23rd- 25th August?

I think the next two photos illustrate my point pretty well. Taken, just under two years apart, they show “before” and “after” views of our station site:

The next big jobs are to move- in the buffet and exhibition coaches, provide a temporary platform surface and complete the link path to the car park. Before this, however, painting must be completed on the west side of the coaches: please contact Ian Crooks if you can help out: filler, sand paper, brushes etc. all provided!

Thanks are due to the following before and during the weekend: Iain, Alastair and the staff at Cloburn Quarry for getting our account set up and the ballast delivered at what felt like 5 minute’s notice, Joe for weed-killing the track- bed and keeping the JCB fully occupied when it wasn’t spreading stone, Byrne Plant for procuring said JCB and supplying its very patient and understanding operator, Kerry for making dinner on Sunday night, Fastline Plant for the kangos and last but not least, the veritable army of volunteers who braved the sweltering heat and sun burn to complete the job. Well done to all!

TRACK WEEKEND - 28/29 JUNE 2008

While the estimated cost of the Edinburgh to Tweedbank reinstatement spirals ever upwards, our intrepid volunteer band continues to work miracles on a microscopic budget, using only the most basic of tools and second- hand materials. Perhaps the Scottish Parliament would like to invite WRHA to submit a tender in due course……

Saturday saw us complete the fixing down of all the sleepers through the platform site, the last of the 176 we’ve laid since February. This work has also used up some 240 PAN11 baseplates, 480 “Pandrol” clips and 720 chair screws, all sourced from our suppliers down south and transported to site by our volunteers. Next time you pass a car on the M6 dragging its tail- end along the tarmac, you know where it’s headed.
 
Thanks are extended to member and good friend Jan Littwin up in Fife for lending us a very professional looking platform gauge. In best nursery school “how does this work then?” fashion, the assembled throng eventually assembled the beast correctly and used it to calculate how far the track will need lifting through the platform. It must be said that the mental arithmetic employed by certain individuals was also of nursery school standard!

As a special treat for having finished their proper “track” work on Saturday, Alastair kindly let the gang build their first ever drainage catch-pit on Sunday. After hand- digging a very deep hole through broken rock, we sunk a glass reinforced  plastic sump topped with four concrete ring units at the uphill end of the new “six foot drain”. We also laid and buried a section of pipe to form a cross- drain from the existing cess drainage system. Strong rumours are already circulating that our Chairman, Iain MacIntosh, has adopted the catch- pit as his new bath at Signalbox Cottage…..

Work planned for July/ August includes ballasting, lifting and kango- packing the track through the platform, followed by moving the coaches into “Whitrope Siding Halt” itself.

Thanks again to all the volunteers who turned out. You know who you are.

MORE PHOTOS IN THE MEMBERS ONLY IMAGE GALLERY http://wrha.fotopic.net

TRACK WEEKEND - 24/25 MAY 2008

The weather, considering it was a bank holiday weekend, was dry but very windy; you could almost expect tumbleweed rolling by like in the old wild west!

Work started with fixing down the rails, utilising the usual pan11s, clips and AS screws, br mk1s and maintenance spikes onto the sleepers like we have done so many times over the last few months, we could almost do it blindfolded!

It also made a change that rotabroaching was carried out over the last two days, our track engineer/manager Alastair Connell undertook some training on the said machine beforehand.

Fishplates were removed at each rail joint which needed drilling prior to using this machine which drills holes into the flat bottom rail by using a guide that has two spaced slots on the top. This then clamps onto the rail end. After completion, the fishplates were rebolted onto the rail joints; a total of 27 holes were bored throughout the weekend which exceeded expectations.

At the crossing we removed a pair of rails on the up side of the run round loop along using man power/rail grabs and the dumper, driven deftly by Claude! Once removed the redundant baseplates and spikes were taken to the scrap pile and the crossing road surface reinstated. When the crossing order has been granted the rail will be put back this time using pan 11s bolted onto hardwood sleepers.

Forthcoming work includes resleepering the line where the platform contractors formed a crossing for old ballast to be dumped into the space between the platform walls, spiking the remaining sleepers up to the points, taking sleepers to the tunnel compound using the trolley and bringing back bricks to be stacked at the bay platform ready for laying.

Next track weekend (albeit a mini one) will be on June 6/7th where Joe Taylor will be leading proceedings so the more volunteers can turn up the better. Stout gloves and toe capped boots please.

Check rail drilled & bolted - Photo Alastair Connell

MARCH 2008 TRACK NEWS

Following on from our successful track weekend in early March, contractors have been on site splitting- down the remaining track panels recovered in 2003 from the Settle and Carlisle line. All the component materials have been sorted, with all the poorer quality sleepers as well as all the dreaded BR1 baseplates and spikes sold as scrap.

The good news is that we have generated, in a fraction of the time it would have taken with our own volunteers, enough serviceable timber sleepers to complete our first phase of tracklaying ie. the Golden Bridge to just short of the tunnel.

All future tracklaying southwards towards Riccarton will utilise serviceable concrete sleepers and loose sixty foot flat bottom rails, all site- assembled into panels in their final position. The use of concrete sleepers on a heritage railway avoids future maintenance liability: basically they should last forever! Our first batch of concretes should be on site in the next few days.

Only a twenty foot long closure panel is needed to complete the basic track installation in the platform area and this should be in place by the end of the April track weekend. Work will then turn to completing the points, the drainage installation and getting ready for ballasting.

Our thanks must go to all the staff from K &J Bownes of Worksop who have been working on site through some fairly foul weather.

TRACK WEEKEND - 16/17 MARCH 2008

We continue to make steady tracklaying progress towards the track to the north of the progressing platform with dismantled track panels from Ninestanerig cutting,using our trustworthy tractor panels were dragged off onto the ground where they were pulled apart using bars, a sledgehammer and a spike puller to release the rails from the BR MK1 baseplates.

The rails in turn were dragged up to the worksite using a D-link coupler,chain and youve guessed it our Knock-Kneed, knackered old tractor.

At the work site the rails were dragged into position ready to be rolled with the rail turning bar or by using bars and rail grabs to put onto sleepers and their corresponding PAN 11baseplates with pads.The rails were clipped on the baseplates using pandrol clips then the plates were bolted down in position using the AS screws after holes were drilled into the sleepers with the trusty old Bance; the track being set using the rail gauge at 1435mm. A minimum of 8 sleepers were used per track panel to be increased to 28 later on when time allows.

Over the entire weekend around 3 whole panels were assembled leaving about 20ft still to go before joining both south and north track together. Future work includes cut and shutting the track to make the track ends parallel on both south and north ends, cutting 2x20ft lengths of rail, sleepering and baseplating/clipping up and bolting down of in between both set of rails.

If anyone could sponsor a track panel to contribute towards the purchase of new sleepers please contact the WRHA by emailing or writing at the usual address.

FEBRUARY 2008 TRACK WEEKEND

As with 2007, we kicked- off our 2008 track- laying season on a weekend blessed with beautiful clear weather (will this mean June will be a washout again?). In contrast with the “Solway side”, the “Tweed side” of the watershed just to our north saw impenetrable freezing fog all day, so for once the weather was well and truly on our side!

Joe Taylor led proceedings on Saturday, moving the privately owned static caravan off the old Down line formation, splitting- down panels and dragging rails up from the depths of the cutting using our faithful tractor.

On Sunday, we started laying track north from the isolated section on which the coaches are currently stood, re- crossing bridge 199 in the process. In all, three sixty foot lengths were laid, albeit with only every third sleeper installed to begin with. We had hoped to lay concrete sleepers on this section, but the planned source is not yet “on stream”. Another three and a bit track lengths will see us through the new platform and temporarily connected up to the track coming south from the summit. This will allow the brakevan to be dragged north towards the summit, clearing the way for the coaches to be moved into the platform.

Work on the platform walls continues, albeit slowly through the winter months, with the concrete strip foundations and two courses of blockwork built to date.

A meeting took place on site with Scottish Borders Council and the Office of the Rail Regulator (ORR) in early December to discuss our application for a level crossing order. No significant issues came up and, after copious paperwork production over the festive season, our “Preliminary Draft Order” went out to consultation. The next, substantially bigger task is to prepare our application for a Light Railway Order, which we must have before we can run any trains on our new line.

As you can see, progress continues at a satisfying pace, but things can always be speeded- up with more volunteer support on our track weekends. Please, please come along and help out: we guarantee copious fresh air, good company and personal satisfaction in having helped re- build this much missed railway.

Alternatively, we desperately need to buy new softwood sleepers to replace the many rotten ones from the track panels we acquired in 2003. £20 buys and transports a new sleeper to Whitrope: anyone fancy “sponsoring a sleeper”?