The Austerity Steam Loco, Part 3

[@mrsp3992]

Some fabulous stills photography amongst the movies. Thanks very much.

[@toucan221]

thanks for sharing, part of your life and experience, enjoyed everything you have shown and said

[@highdownmartin]

I had a foot plate trip on the Isle of Man railway. The fireman knobbed up the box in fair time before leaving Douglas. There’s a good climb out straight off the platform for a couple of miles till you’re over looking great sea views to the left. There was no firing on the move at all. Just using the injector to keep the water good and keep the engine quiet at the various stops. He put about another half dozen round at castle town while we were in the station waiting for the token. First time he’d looked at the fire for half an hour. That extra got us to port Erin where the fireman put another couple on and pulled the fire through and under the door. She sat quietly for an hour while they had their break in the both in the yard. The driver cut the fireman’s hair with the clippers he’d brought in, that had been arranged the previous day. The run back was less arduous as there was no big bank but a long gentle rise. Again no firing on the move. As a bluebell fireman I could easily see the difference between their way and ours. I do have to fire on the move, but there’s inevitably coal dust blowing about no matter what you do. They started clean and stayed clean. Real class enginemen.

[@JamesSimpsonn]

thoroughly enjoyed that, loving the whole series. You really have a knack for making a good video. It's brilliant to see your footage and what it looks like now. All the best

[@alvinapollo547]

I know it's quite randomly asking but does anybody know of a good website to watch newly released movies online?

[@coleharvey2678]

@Alvin Apollo Lately I have been using FlixZone. You can find it on google =)

[@angelsebastian7677]

@Cole Harvey definitely, I have been watching on Flixzone for since april myself :D

[@alvinapollo547]

@Cole Harvey Thanks, I signed up and it seems to work :D Appreciate it!

[@coleharvey2678]

@Alvin Apollo Happy to help :)

[@AdamHoch1289]

i do love british steam locos. they seem really compact yet simple

[@clearprop]

Lovely montage of sound and stills allows the imagination to produce its own personalised version of the trip. Like the way you kept the sound going through the map segment too. Another lovely vid of 'everyday steam' - it redresses a balance caused by perhaps too much spotless heritage steam around us these days.

[@TERRYBIGGENDEN]

This a magic series-I really love the BW photography. Keep making them!Best wishes from Australia.:-)

[@GandyDancerProductions]

Thanks Terry.

[@Steven_Rowe]

Great video aand love the google maps location shots. Also the black and white stills. When you described it as being in the bottom corner of South Wales my mind turned to a similar description about Ivor the engine. Aways loved saddle tanks and can still remember J94s in service at Hornsey. Back in the late 60s I clearly remember bring at Rickmansworth on top of the church tower. Dad worked for the Whitechapel bell foundry. In the distance I could hear a steam loco shunting wagons. It was of course an LT Pannier at Watford tip

[@jamesdavies102]

Hello Jonathan Nice footage of Craig- Merthyr Colliery . The one of the locomotive still survives at the gwili railway in Carmarthenshire. Locomotive is named Welsh Gardsman . I am a volunteer and fireman on the railway. Thanks james

[@GandyDancerProductions]

Hi James, thanks for the info and thanks for looking after one of these locos.

[@jordanbailey3289]

The bagnall that I look after did a similar thing but they would coast down to the exchange sidings but one day the brakes failed and the train was only just stopped at the catch points in the yard

[@garryferrington811]

They seem like pretty efficient little engines.

[@77thTrombone]

As a general rule for life, I have nothing to do with gentlemen named _Gandy Dancer._ In this case, however, I'll make an exception. Quite the gracious narrator.

[@philipm1009]

Great video these videos of the austerity running on the colliery made my dad interested in steam locomotives

[@eddywilliams6212]

Austerities are one of my fav locos, they are very rugged powerful machines, quite advanced the later ones too

[@GandyDancerProductions]

You are quite right Eddie, Hunslet and NCB Walkden did some leading edge modifications to the Austerities in their latter years inspired by Livio Dante Porta the Argentinean steam engineer.

[@saneledegraaf6955]

Most fascinating! Thank you. I sure hope I won't be telling tales of lines that once were in 30 years time...

[@GandyDancerProductions]

Hi Sanele, use railways and cherish them as much as you can. Here definitely seems to be a greater appreciation for them in Britain now.

[@mattseymour8637]

Very interesting video! surprising how they could do that 3 mile climb on one fire! and keep steam! they are powerful little things!

[@dyfansgwr8851]

I have reasonably good news for the locomotives on the pontarddulais railway. All three locomotives had their best parts from each to create a single locomotive, Welsh Guardsman which is in steam at the Gwili Railway in Carmarthen.

[@GandyDancerProductions]

Thanks for the info. Nice to hear there's one out of three containing the essence of all of them.

[@TrystyKat]

@@GandyDancerProductions Norma is still around. She's at the Cambrian Railway in Oswestry.

[@stephensmith799]

The Austerity and Avonside 0-6-0s at Snowdown would also steam on very thin fires (though I only rode them pulling empties).

[@GandyDancerProductions]

Hi Stephen, Snowdown Colliery was pretty flat and the locos didn't have far to go.

[@stephensmith799]

Yes that's right. I think it was about half a mile only. It was nice see the looks on the faces of the folks passing by on EMUs running parallel on the main line.

[@59n1tr0n72]

Brilliant as usual!

[@dyfansgwr8851]

If you're interested I'll be exploring the old graig Merthyr network this weekend. If you want I would be able to send you some pictures of some of the places in this video?

[@GandyDancerProductions]

Hi, sorry I missed your email when you first posted it. I'd love to see you photos of the system now. You can find my email in the about link for this channel, thanks.

[@jamiebont]

Hi, would you be willing to send me a digital copy of some of your stills? In particular the white house on the left of the rail crossing, as that is my home! Thanks 😁

[@ryanoneill9710]

That’s my father driving the train no joke

[@GandyDancerProductions]

Hi Ryan, that's interesting. Is he the one with the helmet or the cap with his hand on the regulator? What his name and has he seen the video?

[@ryanoneill9710]

One with the cap and his name is Phillip

[@ryanoneill9710]

Sorry he hasn’t seen the video but I have the pictures you took of that day and he was the one that put the L plate on the front

[@eliotreader8220]

did these Austerity saddle tank engines usually use up all of the coal in their coal bunkers during a normal working day during their working life? was it pretty normal for their coal bunkers to be empty or near empty at the end of the day?

[@GandyDancerProductions]

Hi Eliot, it depended very much on the amount of work the engine had to do. At Bickershaw I remember them sometime filling up again halfway through the shift.

[@eliotreader8220]

@@GandyDancerProductions thank you for answering my question about the J94 saddle tank engines. years ago back in 2011 I spent a day or a afternoon cleaning one on the Watercress line in Hamshire. when Me and the other Rangers started cleaning the engine it looked pretty grimey because she had been used during a day out with Thomas event the day before. but by end of the day she looked very smart for her trip to the South Devon railway. after we came back from Lunch we made a start on cleaning the inside of the cab and while I was cleaning the windows while doing that I had a look inside the coal Bunker and saw that there was a little heap of coal left in it left over from the day before . it looked to me that there was enough left to perhaps to light the next fire in the firebox when the engine was used again but perhaps not enough to get it steamed up. I think that some of us was a bit worried that we would be ordered to shovel what was left of the coal out of the coal bunker before the engine was towed up the line to be loaded on to a lowloader, so one of the other lads asked the engineer who was keeping a eye on us if the railway was going to send the engine out with what little coal that was left on broad and he went and asked some else and came back and said that they was going to send it to the south Devon railway with the coal left where it was, My boiler suit was covered in steam oil and ash from the engine by the end of the day and I had to take it off and put it in a bin bag and I had to wash my hands a lot in order to get the dirt off them that had come through my gloves before I got on the Bus with My Mum and we both had a long story to tell my Brother and My Dad when they arrived back at our Hotel room that evening. My Mum managed to save my Orange vest because it was not too dirty but my overhalls had to be thrown away when we got back to France because they could not be saved and i still use the steel toe cap boots when I help people out moving their fire wood.

[@GandyDancerProductions]

@@eliotreader8220 Great story. Just shows you how dirty coal fired steam engines were. This is what you'd have to put up with if you worked with them everyday. I don't mind getting covered in coal dust occasionally but not everyday.

[@eliotreader8220]

@@GandyDancerProductions Yes apart from that I learned a few things from spending a day or afternoon cleaning the J94 tank engine based at the Mid Hants railway. the smell of Brasso Metal polish for example because I think the other Watercress line rangers mite have also polished the metal work and copper steam pipes while i was in the cab. while I was cleaning the driving wheels the fitter told me that cleaning the driving wheels of one of these engines are a lot easier than cleaning the larger driving wheels on the Bullied light Passific who driving wheels i was told was quite rough on the inside than on the outside. I was very thankfull that I cleaned the driving wheels of a engine who I was familiar with and had smaller driving wheels than a BR standard five because i have a bad back.

[@jodywales6760]

Groovy

[@AdamHoch1289]

hey i know this is unrelated but would it be possible for you to make a seat car to put behind russel or some of your other small engine's

[@GandyDancerProductions]

Hi Adam, the seated trolley would have to be on 5" gauge track and I'd probably need at least three of my little engines to pull a person on the level track. It would be a bit like herding cat with three small engines on three radio controllers.

[@AdamHoch1289]

It would be neat to see your engines try but I wouldn't risk breaking something.

[@emdB67]

It would certainly be interesting. I've heard of an adult being hauled by a large O gauge engine (probably a Big Boy or similar) and I've seen a photo of a child being hauled by an LGB loco. But those were both electrically powered models. I don't know if anyone's tried it with small scale steam. Somebody must have at least attempted it, surely. :)

[@GandyDancerProductions]

I remember several articles in Model Engineer magazine showing adults being hauled on temporary tracks by 0 gauge and gauge 1 steamers but this was many years ago. You're right one of the locos was an Allegheny articulate similar to a Big Boy and it worked. This was before the idea of large scale narrow gauge tank engine on 0 gauge track became popular. So it could be done again. Anyone for the challenge?

[@emdB67]

I have a feeling that the articulated loco capable of hauling a person was in reference to an Australian backyard layout. Possibly a commercial demonstration layout in the owner's yard in the 50s. Nevertheless, I'd have been surprised if nobody had done it before or since. I'm currently working on a 5" gauge line in my own backyard. No live steamers in any gauge though (yet). Once it's ready, I could possibly set up a length of O gauge between the 5" rails eventually and give it a try. ;-)

[@raymondleggs5508]

dreary locomotives