Innehållsförteckning för August 2020 från Old Glory

What happened on Sunday 30 July 1950 sowed the seeds of the steam rallying era that lead to the preservation of some 3,859 or so engines in the UK and Republic of Ireland according to the new TER. It also lead to the formation of the National Traction Engine Club that would later become a Trust. All this at Bridge Farm, Long Meadow, Appleford, Abingdon, Oxfordshire just over from the GWR line. Sadly the 25 July 70th anniversary Appleford Traction Engine Rally that Jeff Shackell has worked tirelessly to set up during the last two years cannot take place owing to Covid-19, but it’s now planned to take place in July next year, God willing. Nevertheless we cannot let this anniversary of the foundation of our road steam traction preservation…

It’s with great sadness that I report the passing of Bill Best (90) on Wednesday 8 April. Old Glory has been a great supporter of Bill and brother David’s endeavours with steam, particularly the Bredgar & Wormshill Light Railway 2ft narrow gauge system. The dream for this railway started to bear fruit in 1975 on the 30 acre site not far from Maidstone, Kent. In fact the 2019 October Gala saw the nine railway locomotives all out here and was an ultimate occasion, which Bill so enjoyed to see, knowing that he had leukaemia and not long to live. Last year he had sadly lost his wife Irene in the summer, they had five children, all boys whose spokesman for the family is Bill junior. At that October celebration the…

It is with great sadness and much regret that the Cheffins vintage team has taken the decision to cancel the Harrogate Vintage Sale on Saturday 22 August, but the sale is set to return in 2021. Cheffins chairman Bill King says: “The Harrogate Vintage Sale is a victim of the global pandemic. In any normal year, we would already be consigning entries and ramping up our marketing but it would be disingenuous of us to accept entries from our clients when we cannot wholeheartedly guarantee that the sale will go ahead in August. “This sale is a stalwart in the vintage northern auction calendar and has been taking place for some 25 years. It is a significant social fixture for 1,000s of vintage and classic machinery enthusiasts who come to…

Friday August 7 2020 will mark 60 years since the Bluebell Railway ran its first public train. At 2.30pm on August 7 1960, LBSCR ‘Terrier’ No. 55 Stepney headed a train consisting of two coaches - LSWR Third No. S320 and Maunsell Brake No. S6575 - with SECR P Class No. 323 at the rear, from Sheffield Park to a makeshift halt just outside Horsted Keynes, running in push-pull mode. For the rest of the 1960 season this train formed the railway’s entire rolling stock. The Bluebell thus became the first society to show to BR’s Southern Region management at Waterloo that volunteers could take over and operate a section of its former line – something that would be followed by several others around the UK before the end of…

Robert Ransome (1753-1830) created a successful brass and later iron foundry in Norwich – one of the very first in East Anglia; he also sold his goods in his ironmongers shop. He improved the cast iron ploughshare hardening through a new cooling (chilling) process, which revolutionised the industry. He patented the process in 1785 and, following a L200 loan from the banker Gurney he set up the business in Ipswich in 1789. What he established was carried on by a further five generations of the family, with various notable partners along the way. James Allen Ransome (1806-75), a grandson of the founder, is credited with the development of steam in agriculture. The company was not to be a steam leader, even though it was part of the main pioneer thrust…

SCHOOLBOY AMBITION It was always my schoolboy ambition to own a steam traction engine, plus an ERA racing car, preferably R4D, the ex-Raymond Mays works car, clearly the fastest of the breed before and after WW2. The former was a possibility, but the latter was just fantasy, but at least I did sit in R4D many years ago now. I also have a lovely 1995 Max Hamblen painting of it with Ken Wharton driving it up Shelsley Walsh setting a new hillclimb record in 1954, the dual rear wheels making it look even more feisty! Back to reality, and at one time I never thought I could even get enough money together to buy a steam roller let alone a traction engine. Motor mechanics were not paid very well and…

W, C & S Hancock William, Charles and Sophie Hancock were brothers and sister. By the end of the nineteenth century they had built up a sizeable business with steam driven roundabouts, a menagerie and a bioscope show. Miss Sophie was a colourful character and clearly the boss as her word was regarded as law. It is alleged “her vocabulary of swear words was longer and better than any man’s……if crossed she could go on for half an hour without repeating herself.” Her brother, William was known as Peggy as he had only one leg which had been amputated in his living wagon! Initially the Hancocks used large numbers of horses to move the fair but quickly adopted traction engines. Eventually they were to own five Burrell engines, the first…

WHILST TRAVELLING, Alan de Witt and his wife Carol are always searching out the wildlife in the areas visited in order to photograph it and are also interested in finding out about the history and culture of the places they visit. Whilst in the small town of Palmar Sur in the Osa region of Puntarenas Province in Costa Rica, they unexpectedly came across a locomotive. This location was the line’s northern terminus, a good 80 kilometres (50 miles) or so away from the other end of the line at Golfito. Being also interested in railways, Alan had to photograph it and, on making enquiries, he discovered that it was a loco which had, at one time, worked on the Ferrocarril del Sur which was seemingly a banana transportation system located…

A reader has been in touch to tell us about five tractors that have been stored in a barn for over 50 years and are all available to buy right now! They have a lovely patina, they all turn over and look relatively easy restorations. They have been stored on Romney Marsh, Kent. If you are interested, please contact our correspondent, tel:01323 833125 - no time wasters please.…

The Severn Valley Railway has issued a new warning to would-be trespassers over the coming weeks. This follows recent sightings of people on the track in multiple locations. The SVR stopped its public services in mid-March because of the coronavirus pandemic but the track remains in use, as general manager Helen Smith explains: “We are running engineering and maintenance vehicles on a daily basis, and our activities are set to increase dramatically now that we are getting the line ready for our planned reopening in August. We want to send a strong message to anyone tempted to trespass on our line. Not only are they breaking the law and putting themselves at risk, but they are also potentially endangering others. “We ask anyone who sees people walking on the SVR…

Just as we were going to press the redoubtable and amazing Peter Stanier has put his rare 1917 Fowler AA6 No. 13877 282 HYR known as NO 5, up for sale. Now in his 80s Peter has decided it’s time to take a slightly slower pace and has decided to move some of his amazing collection on. This former East Anglian engine that Peter has owned for no less than 48 years has been part of the backbone of south east ploughing demonstrations and has even travelled abroad in his ownership as well.…

Work on the new railway extension at Threlkeld Quarry has re-started as a result of the easing of some of the COVID-19 restrictions. Making use of the good weather, the main focus of recent work has been on the horseshoe curve. This has taken some 1,800 tons of material to construct using some of the vintage machinery that the Museum is well known for. Estimates for the total amount of material moved for the ¼ mile extension are in the region of 3,000 tons. Machinery used for this job included a 1953 Euclid R15 and a Muir 101 with a 1952 10-RB excavator, along with two face shovels - a 1960 19-RB and a 1955 22-RB. Sir Tom, the W.G. Bagnall No.2135 was steamed on 3 June for footplate crew…

The Federation of British Historic Vehicle Clubs has been supporting its member organisations with guidance throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. With the publication of the results of last month’s survey into the effects of pandemic upon historic vehicle clubs, the FBHVC is able to factually assess the impact of COVID-19 on the club community. The results represent responses from nearly half of the 540 member organisations of the FBHVC. David Whale, FBHVC chairman said, “It was important for us to ensure that we understand the challenges that our historic vehicle clubs are facing in order to ensure that we are working in the right directions to support them. It has been impressive to discover just how creative and quick to adapt some clubs have been to keep their members engaged and…

The world’s oldest remaining Fowler traction engine, 1881 Fowler 8hp No. 4048 was certainly the star of Steam Fest, Sheffield, Tasmania, Australia on 7-9 March 2020 when it made its debut here. Fowler No 4048 was one of three (Nos 4048-4051) exported to New Zealand. These three were the first of a block of five engines of the same type - single-cylinder 8hp engines. The other two were sold to the home market in September 1881. By 1885 the engine was in Tasmania and was having its first inspection. It was then with Tindall & Greenslade at Beaconsfield and then to TW Mead who moved it on to Cosgrove Brickworks at Kingsmeadows, Launceston. Further owners are Blackett and French and the boiler was replaced in 1925 by Glasgow Foundry, Launceston.…

THE RAILWAYS in Angola have been totally rebuilt by the Chinese since the relatively recent war there and, as a result, there are new diesel locos and rolling stock. However, a few of the old coaches have survived and are available for specials, as required. Memories of visits to the country some time ago have prompted David Mitchell to send some of his photos, taken in the steam days there in May 1973, which were of one line in the country. The Benguela Railway (Portuguese: Caminho de Ferro de Benguela (CFB)), is a Cape Gauge (3ft 6in) line that runs through Angola from west to east from the port at Lobito on the Atlantic Ocean inland to the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Its construction was started in early 1903…

ON A RECENT VISIT from his home in Queensland to see family further south, Andy Plunkett called in to see the cranes at Cockatoo Island Dockyard, Sydney. This is located in the harbour there, within sight of the world famous bridge. Activities at Cockatoo Island commenced in the 1840s with its final closure being in 1991. Fortunately most of what was in existence at closure, including surviving buildings and a portion of the Fitzroy Dry Dock from way back, have been preserved. There are two restored steam cranes to be seen. The stationary example was constructed locally in 1891 by Morts Dock & Engineering Ltd, Balmain, Sydney; its jib being 9.5 metres long. It operated beside Fitzroy Dock for just over a century. Restoration of it by Cockatoo Island Heritage…

The name of Sydney Harrison & Sons Transport of Tinsley has been an iconic part of the haulage industry in Sheffield for many years. An interesting aspect of the company was the vehicles they used, as almost all of them were Scammells, with many seeing numerous years of service, says David Reed. At one time Harrisons had a fleet of 22 Scammell Rigid 8s which were still routinely on the road right through to the late 1960s and early 1970s. When articulated vehicles proved to be the way forward, a fleet of Scammell Highwayman artics were introduced into the fleet, leading to the retirement of the R8s. Their working days over, they were stored in the yard where many of them remain to this day. Although some Foden S83s and…

Her August 1905 Wallis & Steevens 3 ton single-cylinder tractor No. 2811, AD7460, Lena, is all ready to rally again, now that she has refitted the lagging following its major boiler assembly rebuild. The engine’s not painted as yet. Carolina, thank you for giving up your time to talk to Old Glory magazine. Please can you please tell us about your early background in The Netherlands, and, exactly what part of the country do you come from? What did your parents do for a living? I live in the north of Holland in a small village called Andijk, about 70km north of Amsterdam. But my parents and I lived in Haarlem. My dad was a lathe engineer but had to stop working due to health issues. I was a small…

Rally organiser Bill Giles says: “Over the last couple of months I have been watching the situation unfold with shows being cancelled and writing off the 2020 season. “I have thought long and hard about alternative ways to make something happen both for our exhibitors and public alike, so this is the focus of my attention at this time and something which can be modified and built on depending on where we are at as things unfold over the coming weeks. “On the 2nd August I plan to hold a road run around the Ashford area and encompassing a number of villages close by, thereby taking elements of the rally to the public either to view from their gardens or from suitable vantage points where they can feel comfortable and…

The latest from NTET chairman Bob Siddall, who says, “2020 is obviously a disastrous year for the steam movement as it is for other organisations and everyone throughout the world. “With the cancellation of nearly all rallies at present and the Great Dorset Steam Fair in particular, we are mindful that many of you renew your subscriptions when visiting events, and of course this opportunity won’t arise this year. This is a cause for serious concern to the Trust. We are currently tackling major issues which require your support, such as the introduction of clean air zones, the serious knock-on effects of the proposed ban on the domestic burning of bituminous coal, changes to laws relating to the age-related ban on pneumatic tyres and also some lesser issues which may…

After the Claude Jessett Trust, based at Hadlow Down in East Sussex, had completed the programme of erecting new buildings and workshops to house the vast collection of steam, railway and agricultural artefacts accumulated over many years by the late Claude Jessett and his wife Joyce, priority has been given to restoring the steam engines, some of which had been left stored in the older buildings for some time, says Dave Vaughan. In the last ten years much progress has been made on bringing engines back to life and, as regular OG readers will know, two ploughing engines (JF Nos. 15364/5) and Sentinel TDG timber tractor NO. 9097 Jupiter have been added to the collection. Two of the engines in the collection were assessed to see what work was needed…

In 1896 new legislation removed many of the restrictions on traction engines. On 14 November 1896 The Light Locomotives on the Highway Act came into force and raised the speed limit for ‘light locomotives’ not exceeding 3 tons, from 4mph to 14mph. The changes to the law are still celebrated to this day with the famous London to Brighton Veteran Car Run. The Act also allowed these tiny traction engines to be driven by one man. The only traction builder to come up with a credible design was Wallis & Steevens of Basingstoke. Frank and Alfred Wallis, the two brothers whose father was still head of the business, visited the Motor Exhibition at Crystal Palace in May 1896, some months before the new legislation became law. They went to spy…

Chris and Kevin Balls of J C Balls & Sons have built up an exceptional collection of plant equipment, much of which comes from the JCB stable, that might not be very surprising given the firm’s initials. “We are always looking for something unusual,” Kevin said, and they have succeeded in doing just that with a superb line-up of machines, some of which are extremely rare indeed. But it is not just the JCB name that is represented, Caterpillar, Bray and Hymac machines are also an important part of the collection, with again some rarities to be seen. However, with quite a collection of machines available for inspection at the recent open day, it was the JCB name that dominated. The story of JCB products has been well-documented over the…

We’re introducing a new feature each month called ‘Model of The Month’ and you can very much be part of this by sending in pictures along with details of your models and we will gladly feature the engine within this column each month. Please send to: peterlove@madasafish.com – 01323 833125. Long Live Driffield! Although under new management and organisation the 31st Driffield Steam Fair, as it’s now called, was set to be staged on 8-9 August 2020 on the Driffield Agricultural Society’s site, where for the previous 30 years the East Riding Engine Club had staged the event so successfully. It had become part of Driffield’s town heritage and through thick and thin it had become an event always to look forward to, there was the Pickering Rally a week…

THE FIRM OF DIEMA in Germany are well known for their small diesel locomotives but not particularly known well from a road making point of view, advises Martin Frey. During its time, the firm constructed only about ten motor rollers and most of these were delivered to Switzerland. These machines weighed about 41 tons and were powered by a ‘hot bulb’ engine manufactured by the firm at Diepholz in Lower Saxony, approximately 45km northeast of Osnabrück. ‘Diema’ is a contraction of the firm’s full name: Diepholzer Maschinefabrik. Some time ago, the Swiss firm of Valli at Aarau sold their example of a Diema motor roller to a small railway preservation group near Hamburg involved with the Feldbahn style of railway. This organisation operates two locomotives from the Diema company which…

Purchased just before the clampdown by Lisa and Richard Pelham from near Ticehurst, East Sussex, is 1910 Tasker 5ton steam tractor No. 1424 Will O’ The Wisp. The Tasker brothers Robert and Henry established their Waterloo Iron Works in the Anna Valley, Andover, Hampshire in 1815 and named the premises aft er the famous Battle of Waterloo, which took place on 18 June 1815. The company were to be based here for 170 years and were general engineers of all kinds, and made their first steam engine in 1865. They had a contract with Clayton & Shuttleworth of Lincoln, the largest steam portable and steam plant manufacturers at the time, to service all their stationary plant in various locations in the south-west of England. This led them on to make…

Luckily this was spotted by TFH reader Paul Badger who contacted various collectors to tell them that at the Euro Auctions late May sale there was a fine Caterpillar DW21 in the sale. This was delivered to the M1 site on April 26 1958 and soon joined Blackwell’s existing three motor scrapers in the fleet. By the late 60s they had become outdated and some were successfully converted to deadweight rollers. This example has featured on the cover of Classic Plant & Machinery and has been to many shows over the years. It was to sell for L15,000 and has gone to Andy Davis at Astwood Bank and their extensive collection of gems - Andy has certainly saved it from a fate in Africa.…