More motoring history at the museum.

An unusual Sunday as I was at the Rocks By Rail Museum. A local car club had booked a private opening so I was in just to help out. As with such events it was a great opportunity for me to see some interesting cars and catch up on motoring history whilst the car club members went round the museum catching up on railway history!

A wonderful Riley Kestrel still undergoing restoration but on the road.

Something I knew nothing about, this Raymond Mays handbuilt 1930s car. One of only 5 built in Bourne Lincolnshire by Raymond May who was a famous 1920s/30s racing driver. He then went on to manufacture tuning parts. Even the local Weatherspoons pub in the town is named after him. Apparently of the 5 cars built, the only other survivor is in a museum in the USA.

Talking of the USA this was pure 1850s V8 muscle and great for it!

Back to teh UK for some 1960's classic with an MGB, Jaguar and Triumph Vitesse.

 

I found this took me back when a valid vehicle road fund license had to be displayed in the car windscreen. In 1969 it cost £9 and 15 shillings (£9.75) for four months! 

I did like this Vitesse.

There was also a contingent of European cars with this BMW and the Mercedes being part of that.

Not a bad way to spend a Sunday!

Cut and stick!

My day at the Rocks By Rail Museum began by adapting last years banners for the May Bank Holiday events to reflect this years date. Scissors (good job I was not at home as Mrs. Woody doesn't allow me to use sharp objects!), Double sided tape and a recent find of cut out parts of previous years banners saw the new dates cut to shape and to stick them down the double sided tape was perfect.

Just another 10 banners to hang around the nearby countryside!

After a bit of grass cutting it was time to catch up with what was going on at the Sundew cab. Obviously outside had some primer applied.

However it is inside where the biggest transformation has taken place. The walls and control panel areas have now been painted and Rob was adding the finishing touches to  the floor with a coat of green floor paint. Just hope it doesn't need cutting!

Mind you this seasonally early ladybird likes it!

It was then time for a bit of fun as under Robs eye I had a go in the drag line excavator.

I do enjoy my time doing this and especially when the play pen is still muddy! You can really cut that up and stick the bucket in!

Are their tigers in there?

A second day this week at the Rocks By Rail Museum and I can confirm there are no tigers in the Sundew drag line excavator cab but there are these tiger orange electrical components now adorning the wall making the cab look a lot more interesting thanks to Rob

Rob is continuing his wizardry with the exterior of the cab preparing it for a repaint in preparation for its celebration this year. It is the 50th anniversary of Sundews Greta Walk when it walked from Exton quarry in Rutland to Corby. The story is on the Museum Facebook page and you can see it by clicking here.

Are their tigers in there? That is what someone asked me today at the Rocks By Rail Museum as I battled to get the mower through the somewhat thick and over long grass. There may not have been tigers but there was an assortment of largish tree branches lurking, hidden in the grass.

Back in the comfort of WMD HQ where I could rest my mower battered body, things move on slowly with the 00gauge layout. The last of the track underlay on this section of baseboard has been glued down. One of the issues with glue is that you have to wait for it to dry and unlike instantons superglue, PVA takes some time to dry! At least it gives my body some time to recover from the mowing unless Mrs. woody finds a job for me to do!

Soldering on!

Time to solder some sleepers on my 00 gauge Last Great Project Layout. The track and wires were put in place after PVA glue was spread where the track was to go.  . 

The rails were then soldered to the copper clad sleepers.

Then it was al weighed down to make sure it was flat whilst the glue dried. 

I still have over 50 copper clad sleepers to do so this is going to take a while but at least it is a start! I just need to solder on!

Back at the Rocks by Rail Museum I am soldering, sorry soldiering, on with the grass cutting. The wet warmish weather has accelerated the grass growth so it is hard going. As Rob said, looks like you created a grass path to the dump truck!

Meanwhile, back in the restoration shed, John is adding the final bits to the 3 plank wagon with these supports for the drop sides. They are sprung which means the sides should lower without slamming down and hurting anyone, but equally important help in raising the sides back into position.

John and Andy deep in discussion about a latching mechanism to hold the drop sides in place when upright. I think I may have disturbed the train of though when I took the picture! However I am sure they have it worked out!

Modern antique art?

Back at the Rocks By Rail Museum today and having completed the Easter holiday events it was time to change the banners for the next event.

The old banners that I altered with stick on new dates have weathered but they did the job proving the concept works and saves cash.

Then it was back to grass cutting! However a new feature has emerged! The old wagon that fell apart when moved that I posted about some weeks ago has had its surviving parts mounted on display in the car park offering a unique, in my view, take on modern antique art!

I like this! Maybe Mrs. Woody would like something similar in the WMD garden - or maybe not!

Reunited - The sequal!

 It has been a while but today I was reunited with this point lever at the Rocks By Rail Museum. Being a quarry day we were shunting and much as I feared that the weather would be a washout it was actually dry apart from ten minutes of drizzle.

The point lever however got heavier and heavier to operate as the day went on and what with coupling, uncoupling, putting on brakes and taking off brakes on the wagons being shunted I am shattered! However a good day and reasonable numbers of visitors on both days making it even better.

I had a chance to examine the face excavator a bit more closely and see the controls which are a lot different to the drag line excavator.

I must admit I prefer the drag line! It may look a lot more complex to operate but most of those levers are air assisited unlike the face excavator where everything operates through brute strength!

I did have to smile to myself as I went for lunch and looked in on the steam loco crew.

Their lunch had been cooking whilst they worked with these foil wrapped baked potatoes cooking on top of the firebox! Given how tempting they looked they were almost un-united from their owners!

Reunited!

I was reminded of that old hit track from 1978 by Peaches and Herbs, Reunited (on YouTube by clicking here ) when I arrived at the Rocks by Rail Museum and I was reunited with the lawn mower!

Nearly six months since I last saw and used it and it has left me shattered and aching! The grass was wet and long and it was raining which made for a battle to get anything cut. I use the work 'cut' loosely as it was more like vegetational butchery - which is something I am quite good at! 

So why didn't I leave it for a dry, warm and more grass cutting friendly day? Well this Easter weekend the Museum opens its doors to paying visitors and the place needs to at least look as though it is cared for. Despite the weather the quarry area is looking very tidy with a great deal of cutting of hedges and grass which Pam and Pete have been involved in between painting the inside of the Sundew cab. The path leading up to it is still like a stream though! However we can hope for that elusive warm and dry weather!

Even if it rains visitors can at least view the indoor exhibits and the ever resourceful John has been out with the floor paint again making the place look really smart. I just hope that I can remember that just because it is green it doesn't need cutting with the mower!

Oil is well or maybe not!

One of my play on words titles but it refers to a day at the Rocks By Rail Museum where I volunteer. I get involved in anything and everything which is great as you learn so much about things you would never normally come across. Take my latest visit. Rob had decided that the oil store really needed a tidy out and I agreed with him!

Not a pretty sight! Rob had already cast out a load of empty containers before I arrived.

This is what greeted me when I looked in.

After an hour or so looking a bit more organised and at least we know what oil we have. I never knew just how many types of lubricants are produced which was something I learnt! Anyway oil is well!

Whilst that was going on Dan, on light duties as he is recovering from an operation, was washing down the point switch mechanisms which will require lubrication afterwards - now where do we keep the oil?

Meanwhile the ever talented John was demonstrating that you can indeed paint a floor with a sweeping brush!

It works too! Something else I learnt!

So after the oil store what else did I get up to? Well I was giving Rob a hand to do some welding but we had run out of gas! I therefore ended up giving Andy a hand to deal with the mysteries of the septic tank and why it was failing! I won't go into the details but I learnt a lot about the workings of septic tanks, aerators and pumps and unfortunately oil is not well as the pump appears to have failed! That is a job for the septic tank company though - thank goodness!