Keeping His Hand In……

You have one new e-mail: ‘Lockdown activity at Ratho’.  With a title like that, it could only be from from James!  The editor was delighted to read that James was still continuing with track work, albeit with a more intimate working party:

‘Attached are a few photos of progress at Ratho during the lockdown.  The turntable needed some attention & was quite a technical challenge to lift for access.

It has now had a second gloss coat and is ready to be turned back over and lowered onto the pivot.

 

 

The newly painted and installed siding buffer stop which was purchased years ago.

 

Here we see some of the point levers and signs, all of which have been repainted by Elspeth (as they were long ago).
The removal and replacement of some eighty feet of track which had been badly knocked out of alignment by tree roots.
The side timbers (full size sleepers) were largely rotten too requiring replacement.  This time point rodding was used as the ‘pegs’.
One of the two track sections which have been heavily re-sleepered.

The siding point which is now fully ‘re-timbered’ in plastic.  The lever is repainted ready to fit and the stone pile is old ballast which has been riddled ready for re-use.

Still to do are devising, making and installing (and connecting) a water column and finally getting round to fixing the garage point in the middle of the concrete hard standing so that it safely stays whichever way it is set.’  Regards, James.