Our theme for today was Breakdown and Permanent Way Trains. Roger started off proceedings with his Class 73 Brighton Evening Argus in its Pullman livery pulling a permanent way train of eight ballast wagons. The locomotive seemed a bit overdressed for pulling lowly mineral wagons but apparently the prototype did actually carry out such duties in that livery.
Steve then ran his terrier with a crane and some wagons and brake van. Derek also had a terrier running and later his Black Five made an appearance but declined to do anything but look pretty and so quickly went back in its box. Altogether various breakdown trains were seen on the circuit including contributions from the Cambrian Railway, the Southern Railway and a very nice Signal Department Tools Wagon from the Great Western Railway. There were also a number of breakdown cranes and wagons on the big table. Geoff had brought in three and at least one of which he had built some fifty odd years ago. Elsewhere on the big table John B was continuing building some low relief terraced cottages, John D was building some sleeper-built buffer stops for a garden railway and Steve was fitting couplings to some wagons.
Derek had brought in a very interesting lever frame with an interlocking mechanism which he demonstrated. This then led to a long conversation with Tim on the subject of “Signal Boxes what I have worked in”. Barry and David L continued recording the electrickery of Queen Charlotte Dock for posterity by taking photographs of the undersides of the lower-level baseboards. David Ho brought Badlesham out of the storeroom and set it up in the hall to work on and I added some magnets to it to facilitate the operation of Dingham couplings. David has now provided Badlesham with a combined cassette and sector plate to maximise operations in the off-scene fiddle yard. Over lunch Geoff raised the question given our ageing demographic of having ready access to a defibrillator and of having trained first aid responders in the club. Both Angela and Martin are currently certified for such a role and are happy to act in that capacity for us. Geoff will speak to the hall management to see what they are prepared to do with regard to making a defibrillator available within the hall as the nearest available one is in the telephone box next to the Red Lion. David Ho kept us all supplied with teas and coffees as usual until he got embroiled in Badlesham when Tim kindly took over the reins. Chris
