Lea Bailey Light Railway

New pipe for bywash channel

The bywash channel, dug by volunteers after an outflow of water in 2016, allows excess water to run out of the mine in a controlled manner during periods of increased flow which would otherwise be too much for the underground pipe. A bridge made of two sleepers was installed but one had been removed by persons unknown and the other had become dangerously slippery due to the persistent damp conditions in the Forest.

A length of suitable pipe was rescued from a scrap skip (with permission) and installed in the bywash channel. It was covered up with some MOT Type 1 aggregate which was compacted in layers to form a suitable walking surface at the point where the footpath crosses the running line.

Traverser extended

One section of the wagon traverser had already been installed, with the other sections roughly placed on the ground in line but not connected. There was also a short spur which could not be used because a set of “stops” were welded onto the traverser track. These were cut off when the spur was installed and then welded onto the far end of the short spur.

Using Richard’s laser level, the sections of traverser track were lifted or lowered and then packed with rocks to support them along the full length. Richard cut and drilled some made-to-measure fishplates at his own workshop and these were installed with new nuts and bolts.

The “other” end required some excavation as that part of the mine tip still contains a quantity of quarry waste mainly consisting of small pieces of stone and stone dust, which proved useful for packing and ballasting the traverser track panels. There were, however, a number of larger rocks which have been stacked to one side for future use.

There should be enough room at the other end to install one panel of track behind the hazel tree to allow one or two wagons to be parked here which will give us an interesting working display area for open days as well as somewhere to put less frequently used wagons which will need to be fixed in place using a padlock and chain to prevent movement by unauthorised “visitors”

New set of points installed

We were contacted by Alan Keef Ltd. about a set of points for sale and they were purchased for the Society by retired founder member Rob Needham. Transport was arranged by Richard Dixon and they have been installed next to the traverser. The last part of the stockpile of MOT Type 1 was loaded into the end tipper wagon and used to fill in around the points. This also clears an unsightly hump next to the running line which will allow the grass to grow and give that area a neater appearance.

It is planned to add a short spur to one side of the points to create a loading ramp where there is already a change of height in the ground level on the mine tip. This will allow visiting locomotives or newly arrived rolling stock to be unloaded easily from a trailer and then gain access to the running line via the traverser.

A longer-term plan for the other side of the points is to add a curve of around 90 degrees, connecting to a wagon turntable which we hope to purchase in due course. Another roughly straight line can then be laid onto an extended section of the mine tip which overlooks the entrance roadway.

Site structures paintwork

Work has started on applying paint to some of the structures on site. The tin shed has had the first section painted green using the same “farm oxide” previously used for the outside of the container and the tank-shed. Some extra rivets and other fixings have been used to tidy up the edges of the corrugated sheets and hopefully (weather permitting) at least one side of the shed can be completed during the warmer months.

The container has had several areas touched up with green on the outside, and during wet weather a start has been made on cleaning up rust patches and loose flaky paint on the inside. Once primed witha rust-inhibiting red oxide, the inside is being finished in goose wing grey. This is a lighter shade than the existing paint which will allow better reflection of the battery-operated LED lighting making it easier to see inside the container.