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Leverage

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No, not in the blackmail sense... To operate the heavy signals and points, the levers in the box are pretty long, and travel a greater distance in order to move the point rodding or wires only a little way. A nice bit of physics / mechanics in action... As you may recall from previous posts, we have been stripping and painting (in primer) the 22 levers for the box, ready for their installation. These have had the lower sections painted in grey enamel to match everything else under the box and aid maintenance / inspection. We have also been cleaning up and preparing the pivots for installation, along with the plates that link the levers, lever tails and pivots. These had previously been painted in red oxide, but the oil holes for the bearings themselves were pretty solidly caked! Fortunately, removing one split pin and applying a bit of force resulted in separation. It was then a straightforward job to drill out the excess paint from the oil holes, remove any loose primer and polish up ...
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Jumpstart the Junction!

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Kirkby Stephen East is a unique and atmospheric heritage railway station, steeped in the rich history of northern England’s railways. Once a vital junction on the South Durham & Lancashire Union Railway, the station is now being lovingly restored by a dedicated team of volunteers and enthusiasts. Central to this restoration is the revival of its historic signalling infrastructure - an ambitious project that brings the past to life and ensures the station can once again function as an operational hub for heritage trains.  This multi-phase endeavour begins with the faithful reconstruction of an extraordinary survivor from the early days of railway signalling... Phase 1 – Rebuilding the S&DR Signal Box Kirkby Stephen East had no fewer than three signal boxes throughout its working life! Since taking over the site and redeveloping the trackwork, the need for signalling has become a priority - even going so far as to reinstate the two tall timbers needed for the iconic signal g...
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The Detectionists

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Work to install a double dolly and mechanical detection through a set of points as opposed to metal detecting... The various components were greased up as part of the assembly: new grease nipples fitted having had their threads cleaned out first. There will need to be a load of finishing off jobs carried out: touching up paint, fitting split pins and setting up the detection. Which will form the subject of a future post!   Previously we had made a suitable bench for the double dolly to sit on, stripped, cleaned and painted said signal and done the same with a pair of mechanical detectors. Various photos appear through previous blog entries. This time, everything came together smoothly, with the bench location determined (governed by the detectors' position and distance from the rail), marked out and dug out. The bench itself was then dropped in the hole, aligned, levelled and then packed solid. There are fixed rods between the detectors and the signal, so we positioned the detector...
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Location: Stainmore Railway Company, South Rd, Kirkby Stephen CA17 4LA, UK
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Making NER Central Division signal fittings ...actually fit!

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The remaining front bearing plate castings were drilled by Alex, Dave and I, following on from the marking out Will did previously. This part of the job was very straightforward, and we soon had them all done. Drilling interrupted for a photo Concentration! It then got rather more complicated, as we came to offer the front bearing up to the post itself. We knew the casting fitted the routed posts, as we trial-fitted these before planting the posts. The central hole through the post, for the spindle itself, was drilled oversized to cater for any discrepancies. Or so I thought! ...unfortunately, it appears that this drilling of the post (hopefully in the singular) was out by more than expected. Looking through the post to the casting beyond, showing the margin of the error. After much shuffling to see if we could make it work, I took the more brutal option, and set to with a hammer and chisel, opening out the post hole to suit. At this stage I can confirm the castings are correct, the ho...
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Location: Stainmore Railway Company, South Rd, Kirkby Stephen CA17 4LA, UK
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Burials

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The Moles have been hard at work again; this time burying the benches that have previously been built up, as well as the new concrete bench legs for the rest of the crank and compensator benches we require. Since all the materials are all to hand for this job, we can fit it in as the weather cooperates. 
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Location: Stainmore Railway Company, South Rd, Kirkby Stephen CA17 4LA, UK
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More Boring Jobs

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A new progress update from Tim:  Readers of my ramblings may well remember the posts alluding to all the new castings of NER Central Division signal components. They may also recollect the preparations carried out to the wooden signal posts in order to accommodate the said castings... Routing out the signal posts Well, after much avoidance of setting to and drilling out the castings, ready for f tting up, things got serious! In the machine shop, the radial arm drill has been commissioned, and appropriate training carried out. The raw castings, as collected from the foundry, but left to weather, slightly. The castings were cleaned up and marked for the hole centres whilst suitable clamping arrangements were devised for the work. The first front bearing casting, clamped down onto a couple of spacers to raise up from the bed and prevent damage drilling through. The four mounting holes were drilled in one go, once the centres were marked and double (triple!) checked, but the centre piv...
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Location: Stainmore Railway Company, South Rd, Kirkby Stephen CA17 4LA, UK
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