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Deneside - BR North Eastern Region


Brian D
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Final update before the Festivities.  In the last few days I have replaced the temporary paper photo backscene with A4 card sheets, also printed with the back scene panorama.  These are glued to the hardboard sheeting surrounding the fiddle yard.  I've also extended the brick wall to fully enclose the colliery as below shown without the screens and conveyor...

 

IMG_20191224_165635.jpg.eddb80c8fac2602f8920062bc6a221f6.jpg

 

IMG_20191224_165646.jpg.3508fdd408593c422e7ea0448a5d98f9.jpg

 

...and with the screens and conveyor replaced.

 

IMG_20191224_165845.jpg.b8b71e1c2204c8dcea20d519f25849f5.jpg

 

IMG_20191224_165859.jpg.3ad22bc2961ab2400c37db8d5d6049d8.jpg

 

Still more ground cover to be added.

 

Regards,

Brian.

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  • 2 weeks later...

 

I've added some more ground cover to the colliery area and made this video this afternoon which reflects all the changes to Deneside Colliery made in the last couple of months or so.  So for your enjoyment or otherwise click here...

 

 

Regards,

Brian.

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Hi Brian, happy New Year to you and yours.

 

Another freight stream you can introduce and complicate matters is something all collieries were in need of....Pit Props.  Old minerals loaded with the same and stacked props waiting to go down would provide added realism??? watcha think?

 

Pete

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22 hours ago, Toftwood said:

Hi Brian, happy New Year to you and yours.

 

Another freight stream you can introduce and complicate matters is something all collieries were in need of....Pit Props.  Old minerals loaded with the same and stacked props waiting to go down would provide added realism??? watcha think?

 

Pete

 

 Thanks Pete, and all the very best for 2020 to you too.  That is a great suggestion about the pit prop loads.  I'll give it some thought but siding space at the colliery is a bit tight - here's a reminder of my track plan.

 

119016848_DenesideextendedUnewterminusslantdoubletrackLwipcolliery.jpg.90f677e2c1ad38d36181514db91043b3.jpg

 

I do remember, I think (or did I see pictures), that when we returned to the North East by train from KX that, arriving in Hartlepool in the late 1950s, there were sidings full of wagons loaded with timber props in the harbour (now marina) area south of the station.

 

Regards,

Brian.

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1 hour ago, Brian D said:

 

 Thanks Pete, and all the very best for 2020 to you too.  That is a great suggestion about the pit prop loads.  I'll give it some thought but siding space at the colliery is a bit tight - here's a reminder of my track plan.

 

119016848_DenesideextendedUnewterminusslantdoubletrackLwipcolliery.jpg.90f677e2c1ad38d36181514db91043b3.jpg

 

I do remember, I think (or did I see pictures), that when we returned to the North East by train from KX that, arriving in Hartlepool in the late 1950s, there were sidings full of wagons loaded with timber props in the harbour (now marina) area south of the station.

 

Regards,

Brian.

I did say 'complicate ' things lol. You could offload in your goods hard and then (swear words warning ) truck them by road????

 

Pete

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Yes, I remember the mountains of pit props at West Hartlepool Docks, i never recall seeing any wagonloads going into Horden though. (Could these have travelled at night away from the main coal moving times?) 

 

You could just have a pile of props somewhere at the colliery. I used black current canes for the ones on Cwmafon. They smell nice too!

 

Baz

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4 hours ago, Barry O said:

Yes, I remember the mountains of pit props at West Hartlepool Docks, i never recall seeing any wagonloads going into Horden though. (Could these have travelled at night away from the main coal moving times?) 

 

You could just have a pile of props somewhere at the colliery. I used black current canes for the ones on Cwmafon. They smell nice too!

 

Baz

 

I agree, I seem to remember a timber importer on the docks. .  also can't remember seeing wagonloads into Easington . .  .

 

But everybody in the Colliery seemed to have plenty of bundles of sticks to light their home fires . . off-cuts from the pit-props.

 

 

John

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On 08/01/2020 at 07:01, Barry O said:

Yes, I remember the mountains of pit props at West Hartlepool Docks, i never recall seeing any wagonloads going into Horden though. (Could these have travelled at night away from the main coal moving times?) 

 

You could just have a pile of props somewhere at the colliery. I used black current canes for the ones on Cwmafon. They smell nice too!

 

Baz

 

On 08/01/2020 at 11:25, Two_sugars said:

 

I agree, I seem to remember a timber importer on the docks. .  also can't remember seeing wagonloads into Easington . .  .

 

But everybody in the Colliery seemed to have plenty of bundles of sticks to light their home fires . . off-cuts from the pit-props.

 

 

John

 

Harking back to my own train spotting years at Easington, all I ever saw going in and out of the colliery sidings were coal hoppers, empty in, full out.  I never saw any open wagons containing pit props.  However, I'm beginning to think that timber pit props had become obsolete by that time (the end of the 1950s/early 60s) in favour of engineered steel hydraulic props. As I understand it, in the East Durham coal fields the coal seems were relatively thin and once the coal had been won, the props were removed and the roof or ceiling was allowed to collapse.  The thin "empty" seems collapsing being anything up to 1200 feet or more below ground level caused I believe only isolated settlement/subsidence issues at ground level - I remember the odd road sign warning of subsidence.  But at that time I believe the active coal face was far out under the sea.

 

Regards,

Brian.

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Brian

Yes they started to use Dowty props. Some (in the 18" seam followed the cutter(so the roof could move). But they still osed the odd wooden prop when I visited the faces in Easington in July 1973. 

 

And there was still a big pile of props at Horden not dar from the coke mountain...

 

Baz

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The Deltic video is complete and you can view it here...

 

 

 

I used the cam truck for both the on track and line side clips so as to get a little closer to the action.  Enjoy or othjerwise.

 

Regards,

Brian.

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Loving it-

 

You'll need to find a way of keeping brake vans out from under the screens.  They and steam locos were nasty fiery things and at most pits they were worried about them setting fire to coal dust.

 

Les

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Recent activity has centred on signal head construction for the gantry.

 

IMG_20200117_172607.jpg.370712afba0da6c4fd388728735d0968.jpg

 

However, the more that I looked at the gantry, the more dissatisfied I got with its appearance - it is just too chunky looking.  Things have moved on a bit since this Airfix kit (bashed in this case) had its tools made so I have decided to replace it with one of these...

 

IMG_20200117_172637.jpg.608faea33cfc6ed6b4d951bdb7ac68d1.jpg

 

...again slightly kit bashed.  I have replaced the kit supports with hollow fabricated plastic sections as below...

 

IMG_20200120_171005.jpg.4357eb24169d16f8d3a8f7afafea2ad4.jpg

 

...to hide the signal head wires.

 

IMG_20200120_171942.jpg.8d31ac84fd05dcb04ce30a32b6f3b62a.jpg

 

The visible sections of wire within the Pratt truss will be sprayed matt black and the main structure sprayed matt grey to hopefully make the wires within invisible.

 

The truss will be placed here and will carry four signal heads.

 

IMG_20200120_172925.jpg.a15f43fc3c06107af563af0b1013c657.jpg

 

Regards,

Brian.

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A bit more structure was added today to support the decking and the whole thing has been sprayed with grey car primer from a rattle can.

 

IMG_20200121_173653.jpg.ebf63257f6f609e6acb19e297ca1519c.jpg

 

Obviously the "feet" need painting a different "concrete" colour.  The final Train-Tech signal head arrived today so I need to assemble that, paint all the signal heads and fashion a "timber" deck from plastic strip before final assembly of the gantry and wiring up to an as yet unbuilt signal control panel.

 

Getting there (slowly)!

 

Regards,

Brian.

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Further slow progress on the signal gantry has taken place.  Using plastic strip and rod, the top "timber" deck has been assembled and painted.

 

IMG_20200123_120730crop.jpg.5e841447f53af82925497b81733cd6bb.jpg

 

IMG_20200123_120742crop.jpg.51479025d389e0c1717efb587aca2a8b.jpg

 

IMG_20200123_120818crop.jpg.e23464adcf25e17accc2b1b8316cd0be.jpg

 

The square holes in the deck are for threading through the signal head wires.  Speaking of which...

 

IMG_20200123_123812crop.jpg.81636fbbdd329bb37c1a6cd65ea875ac.jpg

 

...the final Train-Tech signal head has had its wires soldered on and...

 

IMG_20200123_185234crop.jpg.538fbd3aa6330f60640665d36b9a1936.jpg

 

...the front and back plastic casing glued together around the LED head.  All was tested after assembly to make sure no wires had come adrift.

 

Final assembly now beckons.

 

Regards,

Brian.

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