Wednesday 4th November a cooler Autumn day with a cold wind on this away day to Pewsey Wiltshire.

                                          

After loading the car with shovels, blocks of wood, scythe, hedge trimmer, secateurs and a long lever bar it was off to Pewsey to get the corrugated tin GWR shed out of the ground. The team was Greg, Lyndon a man with interest in railway buildings and myself.

After clearing and flattening the nettles and brambles we had to move the remains of the chicken pen from in front of it.

It was then time to try and find the bottom edge as this was about 6" below ground level.

The tin had lost the lower few inches but 3 sides had an angle iron frame buried in the ground so it required digging out to release the metal frame work.

The front end was then levered up and blocked clear of the soil.

The shed rear end was harder to lift  and required more excavation to release it from the soil and roots.

With use of the 8ft lever bar and some blocks it finally came free and was blocked clear of the soil. Then with the muscle of the 3 of us applied we got it onto it's side this revealed the left side bottom angle iron frame had rotted away completely.

It was then levered around so it was aligned with the space we cleared to pull it out.

This is now set up ready for removal from the site but we need to source and fit an new bottom rail to the left side to make it rigid and the assistance of the GWSR teams pickup to load it onto, we estimate 6 able bodied folks should get it on as is but we can remove the door and the roof to lighten it.

A tour and search of the scrap in Winchcombe yard proved futile as the was no angle iron to be found so it looks like a trip to Jeebra at Ashdown  Farm in Evesham to buy 4X 2M lengths of 1.5" angle iron ready for the next visit to Pewsey.

 Wednesday 28th October a clear but cooler start and luckily the rain held off so outside it is.

                                                               

The fence needs finishing now new post have been brought they are too long and the tops need cutting to suit so they have the same angles as the original GWR post we have. After shortening the bottom were painted with old engine oil to preserve them under ground.

            

Then it was time for hole number 1 18" deep to get the correct height at the top wire only to find an old fence wire about 8" down so bolt cutters in solved a problem

The fist two posts in their holes and secured by the top two wires so we have movement available when they are all in to get it looking correct as the end post leans to the left and the straining post leans to the right and neither will move without some serious work. 

                                                

post 3 went in easily as the wire strand pulled out however the hole for the 4th had 2 fencing wires crossing it about 14" down so awkward to get the cutters in but now done.

The approach from platform 2 steps now looks more inviting rather than a wilderness.

The windows on the south facing end of the workshop are well weathered and starting to rot so scrape the loose paint off and brush on a lanolin and white spirit mix to soak in and feed the timber.

The first aluminium cast GWR sunken wires warning sign has had the final coat of black ready for the white lettering and border to be done.

It has been a busy day with a good amount of visitors for  the half term break before the railway closes apart from special events.

                                                

                Not long after completing the few jobs it started raining so great timing.

 Wednesday 21st October a wet Autumnal day at 12 degrees C but feeling colder with the damp.

                                                

A quick look in the shop shows we are steadily shifting stock and adding to the Trusts funds.

                                                

                                         

                               It is raining but we need to get the fencing done and tidy up a bit.

The wire anchors on the end post are rusty and nuts seized so getting them red hot with the gas torch then wire brushing the threads got them free luckily we got all 8 easier than thought it was going to be.

The last couple of old posts got the ivy freed from them so they would lift out and after a raking the last bit of wire was removed it was then possible to run the mower over the rough stuff.

The 5 Kg roll of wire gives us plenty of spare as the fence is about 50ft long with 8 strands originally but if we leave the lower one off the mower will have access any foliage growing.

So the first 2 are on and stretched.

The wires wind on to a pin with a hole through for wire location and there is a ratchet and pawl one end to retain the tension after it is set using the winding handle some pawls were sized and needed heat to free them. However a few pawls were broken or missing so new ones had to be made.

As we had no thick metal plate a trip to the skips was required so time to load the car with rubbish as we continue to tidy the area up.

On our way to Winchcombe we stopped off at the Honeybourne signal box as it had flooding around the path and thus required some action with the drain rods to remove a blockage or two.

A success at Winchcombe waste metal skip some 6 mm thick stuff which looked ideal so back to the workshops and out with the angle grinder using a 1mm cutting disc to shape 2 new ones.

After cutting and drilling that went very easily one needed a slight bend on, so in the vice for a quick tap with  a hammer and it snapped off luckily in the right place ( what we had was a smooth finished piece of cast iron)

So time for digging a post hole as we have one original GWR post but need another 6 setting the 6' 2" post centers using tape on the top wire.

There was time to add another 5 wires to the job and then using staples fix them to the post.

Walking up the steps off platform 2 it now looks more like a railway boundary rather than a jungle.

It was then time to get dried out and admire the tidy looking area all we need now is 6 more GWR wooden fence posts, hopefully the GWSR may supply these as it is their boundary fence.

 

 

 

 

 Wednesday 14th October a lovely warmer than usual Autumn day and the sun is rising later.

                                            

                                 Nature  has been busy again dropping leaves so a quick tidy up.

Then it was time to get on with ivy removal so the final fence posts and wire anchor points could be accessed.

Once the staples were cut the stock wire fencing was removed, folded the best it can be and put in the skip we also decided to remove the original wires as they were rusty and any bending caused it to break.

Most of the old half round post are now out ivy stumps removed or cut off at ground level so now we need some original GWR wooden posts if we can source them along with a new role of wire so we can install a fence as GWR would have done in the day.

Mike has been busy in the new shed gluing down carpet tiles so it is ready for filling with books and photos that are in the archive office and house.

As the weather is warm and dry some more time on the museum mail coach body work is needed before the weather changes, the hot dry summer has caused shrinkage in some parts and expansion with other materials thus paint is peeling and screws are popping out. So a complete rubbing down with orbital sander and knock out any filler that has moved or cracked.

The West facing side has been sanded and painted so looking good above the waist line.

Greg is busy with the sign writers paint and brushes doing the yellow line, the brown needs some paint coloured to match so it can be patch painted rather than a full repaint.

                                                            And plenty left to do for another day.