Old Glory Magazine - October 2013 - Sample

Contents

EDITORIAL

Editor Colin Tyson Technical Advisor Derek Rayner C Eng, MI Mech E Design Anita Tams-Waters, Fran Lovely Reprographics Jonathan Schofield Publisher Julie Brown Archivist Jane Skayman Group Production Editor Tim Hartley By post: OLD GLORY, Mortons Media Group, Media Centre, Morton Way, Horncastle, Lincs LN9 6JR Tel: 01507 529306 Fax: 01507 529495 Email: ctyson@mortons.co.uk

58 No 284 | October 2013

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Colin Tyson

Derek Rayner

Steve Dean

Correspondent

Correspondent

Mike Dyson

Roger Hamlin

Early influences of preserved railways and commercial vehicles led to an all-round interest in preservation matters. Based in his home county of Sussex, this former newspaper man has worked on preservation titles since 1989.

Former railwayman Derek is owner of Aveling & Porter road roller No 8506 White Rose; President – Leeds & District Traction Engine Club and Vice Chairman – Road Roller Association. Frequent Eurotraveller and compiler of Vintageworld section.

Has owned Aveling & Porter roller No 7249, Burrell No 3368 and Garrett showman’s tractor No 32969 Countess. Now cruises the Oxford and Grand Union canals in his narrow boat Ol’ Smokey – powered by a ‘nut ‘n’ bolt’ restored Gardner 2LW engine.

Owner of Garrett 4CD tractor No 33296, and more recently a RS&J portable engine. Mike loves taking engines of all varieties out for a road test to write-up, so if you’d like your engine featured in Old Glory, then do contact Mike.

Our flip-flop-footed perma-tanned roving reporter spends UK summers in the West Country and then Australia and New Zealand for their summers. A broad interest in steam and vintage matters, you won’t miss Roger if he’s at a rally near you soon…

Editor

Technical Advisor

Also thanks to Alan Barnes, James Hamilton, Peter Hammond, Peter Love, Malcolm Ranieri

4 | OCTOBER 2013 OLD GLORY

Correspondent

Andrew Bruce

Advertising Executive

Andrew is the person to ring if you wish to reserve trade and display advertisements in Old Glory. With us outselling our rivals by nearly five copies to one, Old Glory is the best place to advertise for maximum response to make your advertising spend go further.

NEWS 6-25 26 30 81

News & Events On the Water: News Industrial Heritage: News OG in Mini: News

66

Cornish engine house at home We meet an enthusiast with two huge horizontal stationary engines… in his house!

70

A Gigantic restoration Our first progress report on the restoration of McLaren road locomotive No 1332 of 1912 Gigantic.

72

Steam in Masham Part 2 A look at steam contractors in and around the North Yorkshire town of Masham.

90

Classic Motorcycles: Triumph Tiger Cub.

FEATURES

34

38

Show photos: The Great Dorset Steam Fair.

42

News Focus: Two rare and early steam engines are found in Sweden.

46

Hairy Bikers do Hollycombe We follow TV’s ‘steam heritage’ duo on their latest road trip.

50

A new Newcomen engine A group of New Zealand railway volunteers commemorated 300 years of Newcomen by building a brand new Newcomen engine!

54

42 Front Cover: Fowler showman’s road locomotive No 15657 of 1920 The Iron Maiden strolls along the ‘prom’ at Llandudno, North Wales, at the town’s Victorian Extravaganza, held over the May bank holiday 2013. PAUL STRATFORD The November 2013 issue of Old Glory (No 285) will be on sale from Thursday, October 17.

Having trouble finding a copy of this magazine?

Why not Just Ask your local newsagent to reserve you a copy each month?

62

The Tasker in hand A look at the last surviving Tasker steam wagon… and a road test of a similar wagon in Kent in 1913.

Midnight restoration The just restored Ruston Proctor slide valve roller No 38591 Midnight comes under the spotlight.

News updates at oldglory.co.uk News updates at oldglory.co.uk and at www.facebook.com/ OldGloryMag

REGULARS 34 58 76 78 87 88 91

Vintageworld Steam Archive Enginelines Helpline Reviews Museum Guide Events Diary

READER SERVICES 32 97

Save money with a subscription to Old Glory Advintage – The biggest Steam & Vintage Marketplace

Save money when you subscribe

SEE PAGE 32

38

OLD GLORY OCTOBER 2013 | 5

NEWS & EVENTS

WORLD RECORD CRUSHED AT GREATEST

AT 10.30 on the morning of Saturday, August 31 at the Great Dorset Steam Fair showground, 103 participants completely flattened the world record for the greatest number of steam rollers to pass in succession over a new length of road.

As part of the 2013 ‘Roller Special’ year, the new road was created in the road making section and the date was chosen for the Saturday as the previous world record was also set by the Great Dorset Steam Fair when 32 steam rollers passed over a length of new road on August 31, 2003, exactly 10 years ago to the date.

The world record attempt has been officially acknowledged by Guinness World Records Ltd and independent witnesses included Richard and Stephen Cockeroft and Old Glory magazine’s Colin Tyson.

Masterminded for the show by section leader Rob Rymer, Robert Coles and helpers including ‘road surveyors’ John Marshall and Paul Wood, the procession of rollers ensured that the roller to actually break the record (the 33rd roller) was show founder the late Michael Oliver’s Fowler 8-ton roller No 18874 of 1929 Lord Jellicoe.

In glorious sunshine and amid some heavy public support, the procession

Dr Busker and the road mending crew kick off proceedings. COLIN TYSON

Two ex-Leicestershire County Council owned rollers, an Aveling and a Marshall, paraded in succession. COLIN TYSON

6 | OCTOBER 2013 OLD GLORY

Got a story? Tell Old Glory

01507 529306 | ctyson@mortons.co.uk

The record-participating rollers and their crews assemble in the heavy haulage arena for photographs. TRISTAN LEVERETT

EVER ROAD ROLLER ExTRAVAGAnzA started with Steve Baldock (Dr Busker) walking the length with a rendition of ‘McAlpine’s Fusiliers’ on his accordian followed by the first roller, Aveling & Porter No 10893 of 1924.

A total of 99 steam rollers followed (one towing a dead roller) and three miniature rollers gave an adjudicated total of 103, and once passed over the road they continued to the main haulage arena where they reformed for a group photograph. At the same time, an adjacent piece of newly-laid road was being operated by diesel rollers, but not part of the count. Our congratulations go to all on a record that should stand for quite some time!

With the late Michael Oliver’s roller, the 33rd roller and the one to break the record, are (from left) John Marshall, Rob Rymer, Martin Oliver, Robert Coles and roller section layout supremo John Wakeham. COLIN TYSON

First roller to start the record procession is Aveling & Porter No 10893 of 1924.

COLIN TYSON

OLD GLORY OCTOBER 2013 | 7

Hairy Bikers Si King and Dave Myers with the Tulk & Ley beam engine at Hollycombe.

Hairy Bikers do Hollycombe Old Glory sent its most hirsuite correspondent, Peter Hammond, to Hollycombe, Steam in the Country, to meet the famed Hairy Bikers as they filmed an instalment for their recently-aired BBC2 documentary series – The Hairy Bikers Restoration Road Trip

“T

hat’s a wrap” shouted the director, but did Hairy Bikers Dave Myers and Si King stop what they were doing and walk away. ‘No’ was the emphatic answer.

Atop the replica boiler adjacent to the c1840 Tulk & Ley beam engine, Si carried on binding sand inbetween the loose brick lagging. A little earlier as the two filmed at Hollycombe, Dave had happily taken on the

job of chiselling though some particularly tough bricks, merrily singing away to himself.

They both commented at the surprise that they should be continuing: “If a job’s worth doing it’s worth doing to the end”, their hands now engrained with sand. This ethos had been evident and from the start of the shoot a natural camaraderie between the two had ensued, no scripts here and all the

Rob Gambrill explains the history of Hollycombe to the Hairy Bikers.

46 | OCTOBER 2013 OLD GLORY

questions genuine from the hip, absorbing information as it was provided by Hollycombe volunteers.

Of the three, one hour-long prime time programmes; Hairy Bikers, Restoration Road Trip that aired on BBC2 from Sunday, August 11, Si said: “The British Isles was, and is the home of engineering pioneers who have designed and built some amazing machines that have changed

Initial filming was around the John Allen ploughing engine.

The bikers discover the steam fair at Hollycombe.

Filming down by the farm.

It’s lights camera and action as Dave Dawtrey explains the working of the Hollycombe beam engine to the bikers.

The director has called a ‘wrap’ but the lads kept on working.

Work over, the lads headed for the Razzle Dazzle where they met Jez who operates the vintage white knuckle ride.

Down to Swindon and in front of Keeling Si and Dave join engine owners Julie and Dave Smith.

people’s lives.” Fellow biker, Dave added; “Uncovering their stories will be an unforgettable adventure which means a lot to us, as both our families have strong ties to industry.”

Dave continued: “Si’s grandfather worked in the pits as a winch man while my family were ship workers in Barrow-in-Furness. My mum kept links to the shipyards working as a crane driver, and rediscovering more about my family’s past will be an emotional journey as I’ll get a glimpse of what their lives were really like.”

That Tulk & Ley beam engine tied in both sides of these popular presenters pasts as the engine was manufactured near Whitehaven, working locally until

discovered in a Tannery in 1958 when it was moved to Newcastle University, later life seeing it in the erstwhile Hunday Farm & Tractor Museum in Northumberland.

It was to facts and coincidences like this that the bikers offered a natural response, just as Dave Myers seeing the steam driven fairground that is all part of Hollycombe, was off like a shot. Reined in by Si, Dave’s comments were to the effect; “But I love fairground rides”, to which Si indicated that they were there to work.

They had ridden up the long driveway into Hollycombe aboard a 1962 BSA Rocket Gold Star and a 1959 Triumph T120 Bonneville, both machines supplied by the National Motorcycle Museum. Greeted by

Rob Gambrill, the bikers were learning as they went, and were obviously fascinated by what lay before them.

A diversion to the steam farm found the lads fascinated by the belt driven machinery, a Robinson horizontal engine powering the line shafting, but it was the Bamford Root Cutter that was the centre of attention, a bag of potatoes being quickly despatched by Si and Dave, as one of the site’s resident Peacocks made its presence known.

Better known for cooking up some onscreen delight, but without even a baking tray in sight, during a short break in filming we took the opportunity to ask the lads their thoughts on the programme. ❯ OLD GLORY OCTOBER 2013 | 47

STEAM TRACTION

Tasker 5-ton steam wagon No 1915 of 1924 at an Old Warden rally. ALAN BARNES

The Tasker in hand

Alan Barnes looks at the sole-surviving Tasker 5-ton steam wagon No 1915 of 1924, now part of the collection at Milestones Museum, and recalls a similar wagon road tested by Commercial Motor in 1913

No 1915 derelict at WJ King’s yard in 1956. HCCMS

54 | OCTOBER 2013 OLD GLORY

‘S

ix hogsheads, 13 barrels, six firkins, two pins, 118 dozen pint bottles and 79 crates each containing four one quart bottles’ – a not inconsiderable load for a Tasker 5ton steam wagon and its trailer. As one observer, clearly a master of the understatement, remarked at the time, the wagon carried “quite a lot of beer”.

There can be no better use for a steam wagon than the delivery of fine ale and this particular load was being delivered by Messrs Ash & Co – a well respected firm of brewers in Canterbury, Kent. This routine day’s work for the wagon and its crew afforded the opportunity for correspondents from Commercial Motor to road test the 5ton Tasker wagon under true working conditions and an account of that working day was published in Commercial Motor in May 1913. The wagon selected was one of those run by Mr E Brett under contract to the Canterbury brewery and which had previously been exhibited by Tasker at the Manchester show.

The sole-surviving example of a Tasker 5ton steam wagon, No 1915 of 1924, is part of the collection at Milestones Museum in Basingstoke. Following some extensive

View inside the boiler barrel. HCCMS

No 1915 on display at the former Tasker Museum. HCCMS

A new ‘wear ring’, which fits between the perch and the front axle carrier. HCCMS

Work being undertaken on the steering gear. HCCMS

Up on blocks while the front axle receives attention.

HCCMS

refurbishment work by Hampshire County Council Museum Service, the wagon was returned to steam in the summer of 2012. In the care of Nigel Spender, the curator of the HCCMS industrial collection, and colleague Alan Down, the Tasker made several rally appearances and also ventured on to the Hampshire roads for some decent runs.

Although running the wagon with a full load of beer and towing a trailer could not be arranged (more’s the pity) Nigel was able to give his assessment of the wagon’s performance.

“Following the completion of the work, it was certainly our intention to get the Tasker out and about whenever possible and fortunately we were able to road the wagon to events in Hampshire. This gave us not only the opportunity to iron out one or two ‘wrinkles’ but also to have the thoroughly enjoyable experience of being out on the open road driving and firing a steam

wagon. During that summer we covered something in the region of 300 miles on the road – not a bad effort for a museum exhibit which had not really moved more than a few feet over the past few years and had gone nowhere under its own steam.”

Whether the crews of similar wagons in the 1920s would agree with Nigel about the ‘enjoyable experience’ of driving a wagon on the open road is open to some debate. For the delivery drivers and their crews, the days were certainly long ones and as well as performing their allotted tasks the wagon would also have to be maintained.

The account of a typical working day for a wagon during the early 1900s is of particular interest and Commercial Motor has kindly agreed to the use of extracts from its correspondent’s comments; and from the report of the day’s activities it

would seem that an early start was the order of the day.

“It is customary with these ‘One day’s work trips’ to get up before the streets are properly aired and 5.30am saw us on the road with a big mixed cargo and a total load of about eight tons. Our waybills were for a number of deliveries in Folkestone.

This involved deliveries... at 11 or 12 licensed premises in that seaside and fishing town and the return journey to the brewery in Canterbury.

“It takes as a rule three quarters of an hour to raise steam on one of these big Taskers and that, it will be admitted by those who are inured to a two hour operation on some other wagons, is a good performance.” While individual wagon operators would no doubt establish their own routines, this particular wagon was driven by the owner’s son who is referred to in the report as Mr Brett Junior. ❯ OLD GLORY OCTOBER 2013 | 55

Northampton born and bred

An Allchin miniature engine was an easy choice for Vince Sharpe, who was born and raised in Northampton, as it provides a strong link with his past, explains Alan Barnes

I

f Vince and Jane Sharpe had any thoughts of enjoying a relaxing morning enjoying the summer sunshine at the Sewards Steam and Vintage Gathering in Liss these were interrupted by my arrival. Their scale Allchin traction engine gently simmering in the shade of their canopy had caught my eye and as far as I was concerned needed a wider audience.

Being taken to a steam rally at the Delapre Park in Northampton by his father probably accounts for Vince Sharpe’s

82 | OCTOBER 2013 OLD GLORY

lifelong interest in steam. As he explained: “I was born and raised in Northampton, the home of William Allchin and the Globe Works but the days of steam engine production were long passed by the time I ‘arrived’ on the scene.

“I remember, when I was growing up, the site of the old Globe Works on South Bridge Road was just an area of empty land. The works had closed in the 1930s and all the old factory buildings had been demolished, leaving few traces of the famous old company. That first rally which my father

took me to when I was a young lad was held at the park which was only about a quarter of a mile from the site of the old Globe Works.

“Perhaps it was those days out at rallies with my father that sowed the seeds for my interest in engineering – as later I completed an apprenticeship with another famous Northampton company – The Express Lift Company – and became a qualified lift engineer. Although my fascination for steam engineering and steam engines remained with me any thoughts of owning a full size traction engine were really only pipedreams. However, building my own scale model engine was something which I certainly could consider as a much more realistic proposition. This would not only allow me to use my engineering skills during the building stage but at the end of the project I would also have an engine of my own to take to rallies.

“Having studied the various advertisements to see what parts were available from model manufacturers I embarked on a project to build a 4in scale Burrell. However, with work and family commitments taking an increasing amount of my time the building of the engine made very slow progress and this became very frustrating. It was during this ‘stop-start’ project that I saw an advertisement in Old Glory offering for sale a 4½in scale Allchin traction engine. My wife Jane and I really did like the look of this – as buying the engine would give us a completed miniature ready to rally and being an Allchin there was also the connection with my home town. Another advantage would also be that we would only need to find space for a complete engine rather than having to keep parts of half built Burrell all over the house.

“So we made the decision, we bought the Allchin and the collection of Burrell parts were sold and I hope the new owner had more success than I did with that particular engine. We bought the Allchin in September 2009 from Anthony Deacon from Earl Shilton, Leicestershire, and at that time it carried the ‘Royal Chester’ nameplate. I believe that Anthony had owned the miniature for around three years but I don’t think he had taken it to any shows or rallies during that time. ❯ OLD GLORY OCTOBER 2013 | 83

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102 | OCTOBER 2013 OLD GLORY

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