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The Bread Bin Goes Visiting
July 2014

In early 2014 the Museum received an email from the Moseley Railway Trust at Apedale requesting the loan of our "Protected" Simplex locomotive, MR1381. Their plan was to operate it at the War & Peace Revival Show at Folkestone in July and then for it to go up to Apedale, the Moseley Trust's base near Stoke-on-Trent, for their own Tracks to the Trenches event in September. However, at the time of their request, 1381 was only maintained as a static exhibit having been sidelined when efforts to get it to run were finally abandoned.

By now, though, we had an expert in our midst whose speciality was (still is!) ancient petrol engines with magnetos and carburetors. Our other problem was that we had previously been unable to get the timing right causing the engine to run very roughly and unreliably.

Having identified that one of the main problems was the worn out (to put it mildly) magneto, Ebay was consulted and we had soon bid successfully on a replacement which duly arrived at Amberley. Meanwhile the timing had been sorted out. Long story short, the loco was soon up and running. A short video of it running can be found here:


(Video by Peter Trinder)

With the commemoration this year of the centenary of the commencement of World War I, we felt that now was the time to sort the beast out. As can be seen from the video, it looked rather scruffy having languished in the exhibition hall for some years. It was decided that we really couldn't send it to another railway looking like that.

(Photo by Peter Trinder)
See what I mean?

So a suitable pot of paint was located in the cupboard and applied. A couple of sessions later and it all looks a good deal better. OK, so it doesn't stand up to close scrutiny but it'll do. If you stand a few miles away it looks fine!

Two views of the loco soon after the repaint had been completed.

(Photo by Peter Trinder)
Test runs were made around the system to make sure it would fit everywhere - which it didn't - but 1381 was successfully operated during Gala Weekend, avoiding the tight bits.

A low-loader arrived after Gala Weekend to take 1381 off to operate at the The War and Peace Revival Show at Folkestone, which took place the following weekend.

It was slowly winched on board the trailer on a ramp of rails on blocks and sleepers.

Once on the trailer it was securely chained down ready for its journey to Kent.

Already on the trailer were Apedale's D-class bogie wagon and a bow-framed Simplex.

Finally, our fork-lift was used to place the P-class ration wagon inside the D-class.

A couple of short films of the Revival event at Folkestone are here:-
(You Tube video by Colin Jeffreys)



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© Gerry Cork & Amberley Museum & Heritage Centre - August 2014