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The driver of the train: Bluebell Railway Week: Day 4 (Part 1)
The driver of the train: Bluebell Railway Week: Day 4 (Part 1)

Thursday started at oh dark thirty. Today I was going early with Dad to observe how he started everyday.

To get the behemoth that is a steam engine to pull a train takes hours of preparation. Most critically, there needs to be a big fire in the firebox, this has to heat a lot of water to make steam and you need a good head of steam to move. This takes time.

Despite the boiler still being at 70psi from the day before's action, when we arrived at 7am the first thing to do was to light the fire - 200psi was a long way off. The first job is to dump all the ash from the previous day's fire and then set a new fire. Intriguingly there are many methods used, but we had a layer of coal, a layer of paraffin soaked rags and a layer of wood. Light it and wait. Then more coal. A lot more coal.

With any mechanical device there is a huge amount of routine, ongoing maintenance that needs doing, engines have more than most. There are a huge number of things that need checking, clearing, oiling, tightening, loosening and all manor of little jobs that clearly elucidate why these amazing machines needed a full time crew of three.

Then of course there is a lot of cleaning to do. Coal, steam and the odd bit of oil plus smoke, smuts, ash and just using the thing generates the most amazing amount of grime. Of course, the engine is lavished with brass, steel and the most amazing paintwork. It needs a lot of cleaning. And clean it they do.

I stayed well out of the way. And took pictures, over 500 during the course of the day. After all the preparation, I also was extremely fortunate to be able to run up and down the entire length of the line on the footplate. The main shot is from a point during that run. SOOC. There was just something I loved about it, despite the dodgy colours, focus and ISO 1600. Captured the nostalgic feel for me. It's Ian Wright, the driver of the train. He's Dad's very good friend. Tells horrifically cheesy, corny, non-PC and some downright pathetic jokes. You'll also notice he's in his 'dress' overalls rather than the mucky ones he uses to prep.

Here's some of the better ones from early on - all clickable, if you'd like to look larger. Part 2 will have more from later in the day.

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Taken on: October 28, 2010
Tags: Everybody's photos tagged with Bluebell Bluebell Everybody's photos tagged with Ian Wright Ian Wright Everybody's photos tagged with Sir Archibald Sinclair Sir Archibald Sinclair more » Everybody's photos tagged with footplate footplate Everybody's photos tagged with railway railway Everybody's photos tagged with SOOC SOOC Everybody's photos tagged with but don't look too close but don't look too close Everybody's photos tagged with Lee Lee Everybody's photos tagged with Stephens Stephens « less
Sets appears in:   • Bluebell Railway 2010   
Groups appears in:   • British Preservation Railways    • Bluebell Railway   
Camera: Nikon D80, f/1.8, 1/60 sec, 50mm (=75mm), ISO 1600 (more info) (hide info)
Camera: Nikon D80
Lens: 50.0 mm f/1.8
Aperture: f/1.8
Exposure Time: 0.017 sec (1/60)
Focal Length: 50mm (35mm equivalent: 75mm)
ISO: 1600
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: No Flash
Exposure Program: Program AE
Exposure Mode: Auto
Metering Mode: Multi-segment
White Balance: Auto
Gain Control: High gain up
Saturation: High
Color Space: Uncalibrated
Software: Ver.1.00
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