Author: Dave Bower

  • 31/08/26 – Long Services

    31/08/26 – Long Services

    Hello and welcome to an August Bank Holiday weekend update from Quorn as we make progress despite the showers. We’ve also had a couple of celebrations; Ernie and Ross received their GCR Long Service Awards from Malcolm Holmes during the very enjoyable Summer Party evening at Ruddington; Ernie achieving 50 years, and Ross 16 years.
    Oliver shared his belated 17th Birthday cake for earlier in the month.

    Nick had dug out an 18″ vac cylinder that had been stored for many years. It needed quite a bit of crowbar persuasion to extract the piston rod, split off the dome and get the piston out. Inside it was clear that it had seen some water ingress over the years.

    Charlie jet washed the cylinder dome whilst Ross, Nick and myself extracted the piston rod gland, which needed a little heat to un-seize the nuts and studs.

    Ernie made a start drawing up and machining some of the door furniture parts that are needed to repair / replace items for Palshoc van B855568.

    I finished off the signwriting on the last of the four Esso barrel plates for tanks 3854 and 3689.

    Ross varnished two of the Esso plates, making use of the space in the kitchen area on Test Car 2.

    Mark, Tom, Oliver, Dan and myself continued work on Shoc-High B724570, completing the needle gunning of the north body end, then starting on the underframe.

    In between the showers work continued on the underframe, the bare metal areas were dried off and some Red Oxide was applied.

    On Sunday Nick, Ross, Charlie and myself took the two Esso plates that had been varnished down to Swithland sidings and fitted them to tank 3854. A touch of blue was applied to the bolt heads.

    This now completes the restoration of tank 3854, here’s the before and after (August 2025 and August 2026).

    Back at Quorn we continued with stud removal, brass bush removal, hole tapping and cleaning up of the vac cylinder. Unusually the brass bush had a thin rubber gasket fitted to its underside which we’ve not encountered before on other cylinders.

    I applied a coat of varnish to the last two Esso plates in readiness for fitting to tank 3689 at some point.

    Ross and I took a look at the Lobo Scaffolding to assess what parts we have. We also swapped two of the feet units and assembled the structure which confirms now what additional parts we need to complete two towers.

    Ross sanded the north end of Shock-High B724570 and Nick applied some red oxide primer to the cleaned up metal areas.

    Bank Holiday Monday, and Ernie started cutting down the locking bars for the Palshoc door. Whilst Ross removed the door furniture from the door panels, and measured up for new bearings on the door runners and the wooden panels.

    We’d left the vac cylinder piston rod nut retaining plate in a penetrating oil soak overnight; despite this the plate took some removing with one of the bolts giving up, so this will need drilling out and re-tapping at some point. Nick then continued cleaning up the piston.

    Mark, Tom, Dan, Oliver and Charlie continued on the Shoc-High with needle gunning, priming the underframe.

    They then carried on undercoating the east side body and both ends.

    Nick and Oliver put some primer on the west side wood .

    All-in-all a very enjoyable and productive weekend. Join us again next week for the Diesel Gala, all the best, Dave

  • 09/08/2026 – More Sides

    09/08/2026 – More Sides

    Hello and welcome to this weeks news from Quorn as we continue with box van side panel replacements on B854782 and B777171.

    Firstly we should welcome Carl who came along on Saturday to see us with a view to volunteering in the future, hope you enjoyed your day.

    Saturday started with Nick and Carl clearing the stored boxes from inside the East side North end of B854782 to allow the rotten panel to be removed. Once the panel was out, the metalwork was cleaned up and a new ply sheet cut to size.

    The sheet was trial fitted and marked for the framework rivet cut-outs which were drilled. The panel was then primer painted by Carl.

    Ernie helped me with a couple of jobs on parts from my ever cantankerous old Triumph which needed fettling; the oil sum pan was straightened, and a new jacking support plate made & welded into place under the front crossmember.

    Ross is developing his own design of Tyre Profile Measurement device; which has progressed to the first stage of manufacturing and trial fitting of the magnetic frame for attaching to a wheelset.

    Ernie applied some undercoat to the west side van door that was made and fitted last week on B854782.

    Nick, Charlie, Carl myself fitted the side panel into B854782, and Charlie fitted the door hold-back catch. I then painted the panel with undercoat.

    In other news, we all admired a very smart 1961 Morris Minor visiting the yard at Quorn; Ross rode a rather old bicycle, and Charlie took a selfie.

    On Sunday we moved down the yard to B777171 which was stabled next to the buffer stops. Both panels on the west side south end were to be replaced; the first job for Ernie, Ross, Mark and myself being to remove the old bolts; half of which came undone, however the other half needed the help of a grinder, hammer and chisel.

    Two new sheets of ply were cut to size by Ross, Charlie and myself, and primer painted by Eireni & Ross.

    Nick and Mark cleaned up the exposed metal framework on B777171, then applied some red-oxide primer.

    Once dry the panels were lifted into the van and sealant applied to the frame. Working inside what was becoming a very warm van in the afternoon sun, Nick carefully located the panels into place, then Ross & I drilled the holes and bolted the panels in.

    Any excess sealant was scraped away and the door furniture was then fitted by Charlie & Nick.

    Thanks for reading, join us again next week, all the best, Dave

  • 26/07/26 – Almost there

    26/07/26 – Almost there

    Hello and welcome to this weeks news from the team at Quorn, as work continues on Tanks 3854 & 3689.

    Ernie & Nick also fettled, cleaned up and painted some more lamps.

    I finished off the signwriting on tank 3689, completing the barrel end & East side numbers.

    The commuted charge logos and the East side solebar letteing.

    Charlie went round both tanks with some black doing any touching-up required. He then did a spot of vehicle washing.

    Nick, Charlie, Mark, Tom and Oliver continued with assessment of the repairs required to the van train. Identifying the most urgent ones to attend to.

    With the yard full of some very presentable Ford RS cars on Sunday, access was limited; however Van B786181 that was in the goods dock was accessible, and subsequently some of its bulk load removed to allow us to get to the bodyside panel bolts.

    In preparation for the panel replacement planned for next week most of the panel bolts were removed.

    Oliver measured, and with some help from Mark, Charlie and Tom cut some play to affect a Tool Van access step repair.

    Nick replaced some of the vacuum hose clips on tank 3689.

    Using the space in Test Car 2, I made some progress with the Esso barrel plate signwriting; completing the blue on the plate I had previously applied the Esso letters. This plate was then put aside to dry ready for varnishing.

    I then added the Esso lettering to a second plate.

    And then a 3rd plate.

    Apart from the Esso barrel plates the two tanks are now finished.

    Thanks for the kind comments received a couple of weeks ago when my old Triumph Stag had a few problems; you’ll be pleased to know after some fettling and new ignition system parts, it’s back up and running.

    All the best, Dave

  • 12/07/26 – A Pipe & A Plate

    12/07/26 – A Pipe & A Plate

    Hello and welcome to a warm week’s update from Quorn; the Palshoc has its vac pipe fitted, we’ve had the Test Car open to visitors and progressed some more signwriting.

    During the week Nick and Oliver worked with the C&W team at Rothley to get the vacuum brake pipe made up and fitted to Palshoc van B855568. Once completed a vacuum brake and leakage test was satisfactorily carried out.

    As part of the ‘Mind the Gap’ open weekend at the GCR we had Test Car 2 open to visitors at Quorn.

    We had a visit from Mark Meyts, who was instrumental in originally saving tank 3689 for preservation many years ago; he also helped promote the transfer of the wagon from Shillingstone securing its future with us last year. Thanks you Mark!

    I got the Commuted Charge symbols painted on both sides of tank 3854.

    With the temperatures high over the weekend Ernie and Nick resorted to light duties repairing, fettling and painting some more lamps.

    On Sunday with the Test Car relatively quiet, I set up one of the Esso barrel plates in the test area of the coach ready for signwriting. The template was chalked and fitted, then traced; followed by application of the red Esso letters.

    Thanks for reading, join us again next week, all the best, Dave

  • 28/06/26 – Tanks and a BBQ

    28/06/26 – Tanks and a BBQ

    Hello and a very warm welcome from the team at Quorn as we make a little more progress with the tanks.

    Saturday we had good intentions, however after I failed to make it to site in the Stag (even with the help of Nick & Charlie), due to some rather warm electrical gremlins; and the oppressive heat at Quorn making things very uncomfortable for the rest of the team, for safety we took a break until Sunday when things had cooled down a bit.

    On Sunday, Ernie sorted out fitting new vacuum release chords on both tanks 3854 and 3689.

    Mark and Tom did some black touching up on the wheels and underframes of both tanks.

    I fitted the Esso company text template to the West side of tank 3689, then traced on the chalk.

    Nick and Ernie used some of the offcuts of wood from the Lowfit wagon floor we recently fitted to make a batch of wagon label clip blocks, three of which were required to complete tanks 3854 and 3689.

    We must give a shout of thanks to Mark for another excellent BBQ, helped by chefs Charlie, Oliver and Tom !

    Nick and Oliver fitted the new label clip blocks and recovered label clips, one on 3854 and two onto tank 3689.

    I completed the signwriting of the Esso Petroleum Company Limited barrel text on 3689.

    Thanks for reading, join us again next week; all the best, Dave

    p.s. yes I did manage to limp the Stag back home by mid Saturday afternoon, thanks to a very patient and helpful RAC man. It’s now sulking in the garage……

  • 14/06/26 – Tanks Identified

    14/06/26 – Tanks Identified

    Hello and welcome to the news from Quorn; this week we have given the two tanks their identities back; with Test Car 2’s generator and Danny receiving some TLC.

    Saturday started with Ross and Ernie drilling out the mounting holes in the two newly manufactured replacement spark guards for tank 3689. One guard also needed a small cut-out which Ernie applied.

    The spark guards that were painted up previously were fitted by Nick and Ross, and the bolts painted.

    Whilst the spark guards were being fitted Ross noticed one of the brake hanger brackets on tank 3689 had a bolt missing, so this was duly fitted. Ross also fitted new vacuum pipes on tank 3854.

    I made a start on the signwriting on tank 3854, with Ross’s help to position the template in place (which was a bit challenging in the gusty wind), I then completed the Esso company lettering on the west side of the tank barrel.

    Ross took a look at Test Car 2’s generator, replacing the top cover gasket on the fuel pump which was leaking quite badly. He then did some investigation of a small coolant leak which was found to be emanating from the middle of the radiator. For now we plan to try some K-Seal to minimise the leak although eventually the radiator may need to be replaced. Whilst we had the generator room doors open we were able to see that two of the six engine mounts have failed, so these will need to be replaced.

    On Sunday Ross and Charlie concentrated on servicing Danny; the engine was warmed up, the oil was then drained from the engine, gearbox and differential. The fuel filter and fuel pump were also removed.

    The front wheels were removed to check, clean and adjust the brakes. Whilst the brakes work the pads are low, and it’s clear that the brake system will need a complete overhaul at some point. Ross also attended to the fuel pump, fitting new bellows. Oils were re-filled and Danny was road tested (in the yard).

    Nick gave the new spark guards a coat of red-oxide primer, which dried quickly allowing him to apply some black gloss. Nick then fitted the 3d printed previously painted owners plates to both 3854 and 3689, & the builders plates to 3689.

    I applied the running number to the west side of tank 3854.

    Then the running number of tank 3689.

    Followed by the Commuted Charge logo box and star, undercoat then the first coat of yellow on both sides of both tanks. The lettering of the registration plate that remains on one side of tank 3854 was picked out.

    That concludes our work this week, I’ll leave you with a couple of pics of the tanks; join us again soon as we progress nearer to releasing these two to traffic. All the best, Dave

  • 25/05/26 – Two Grey Tanks

    25/05/26 – Two Grey Tanks

    Hello and welcome to a glorious bank holiday weekend update from Quorn. Two wagon restorations are finished and two tanks go grey.

    Saturday started with Dan finishing off signwriting the two builders plates on the Lowfit B452718, whilst Mark, Oliver, Tom and Nick applied a coat of varnish to the body of the Lowfit and also the Conflat B507489.

    Ernie and myself got the Esso Plate jig out and fitted the brackets for the east side of 3689 to the jig, which was then offered up to the tank barrel, checking the bracket positions before grinding each of them up as required.

    With the jig in place again each bracket was tack welded; the jig was then un-bolted and each bracket fully welded in place; Charlie and myself also having a go at the welding. Once cooled Oliver applied some red-oxide to the new brackets.

    Charlie did a bit of work on Edward’s frame and bodywork, however some further work is required to get him operational again to reliably provide a source of compressed air.

    The Test Car’s generator was run-up to warm it through, the throttle linkage was adjusted to get the generator running speed correct to give 50Hz output; then in accordance with the workshop manual the cylinder head nuts were re-torqued up whilst the engine was warm. This involved removing the rocker cover, rocker-shaft, injectors and various fuel pipes from the top of what was quite a hot engine.

    We decided to leave the re-assembly of the generator until it had cooled, so Sunday morning Ross and myself re-fitted the injectors, rocker shaft and fuel pipework, then re-checked the tappets, with only one needing very slight adjustment. The rocker cover was then re-fitted with a new gasket, new rubber top-nut seals and a smear of sealant.

    The fuel system was bled and it started up first time, and the Test Car’s compressor run up to check operation, and the air used to blow-down the two tank wagons 3854 and 3689.

    Having now got a reliable source of compressed air, the main focus for Sunday (on one of the hottest days of the year so far) was for Ross and myself to get ourselves wrapped up in protective overalls, masks, gloves etc and break out the paint spraying equipment. Some grey primer/undercoat was thinned, mixed and checked for consistency.

    After Nick had removed a few spiders webs and bird droppings, we then set about spraying the two Esso tanks 3854 and 3689, starting with the north ends and east side of both wagons.

    More paint was mixed as required and we moved round to the west side.

    Nick and Ernie followed behind us with brushed to attend to parts that we couldn’t easily reach with the spray-gun.

    By the end of a very warm day we had both the tanks looking very grey. The spray equipment was given a good clean out so it will be ready for when we need it to apply the black gloss top-coats.

    On Monday, Nick, Charlie and Ross brake tested the Conflat and Lowfit together using the little test rig before the mercury started to climb. Both passed with minor issues, one needing a brake adjust and the other requires a bit of lubrication.

    With the brake test complete, Nick got the undercoat back out and touched in more areas that myself and Ross couldn’t get to or missed.

    With the weather being so hot, not a lot else could be achieved with most of the team retiring to the shade for most of the afternoon. Next week, we shall hopefully be getting the gloss out and getting the two tanks into their black top coat. Join us then and see how we get on!

  • 12/05/26 – Planks, Brackets and Gaskets

    12/05/26 – Planks, Brackets and Gaskets

    Hello and welcome to another bumper weekend update from the team at Quorn, a day later this week as we’ve worked 3 days. Progress has been made with the Lowfit, Tank 3689 and the Test Car’s generator.

    Dan has completed most of the bodyside lettering on the Lowfit B452718.

    The Robins that had been nesting in the Lowfit had left the nest so Ernie, Nick and Charlie were able to loose-lay the floor; then mark and remove each plank in-turn for drilling the mounting holes. Some of the holes in the underframe also had to be opened up a little with the drill. The floor planks were then bolted in place.

    Mark, Oliver and Tom cleaned out and applied undercoat to some of the end pockets and inner underframe areas of Tank 3689.

    Ross, Ernie and myself marked out the positions for the Esso plate brackets on the West side of 3689, removed the paint and dressed the plate brackets that we’d previously made.

    We then mounted the brackets to our special Esso Plate ‘jig’, and positioned the ‘jig’ onto the wagon. After checking the position of the brackets these were tack welded into place. The ‘jig’ was then removed and the brackets fully welded.

    The brackets were left to cool, wire brushed and then given a coat of re-oxide primer.

    On Monday, Ross and myself turned our attention to the Test Car’s generator. The studs that were removed last week from the old cylinder head were cleaned and fitted to the new one. The cam followers/tappets were then cleaned, oiled and fitted to the head. The rocker shaft oil feed adaptor from the old cylinder head was however not correct for the 1/8” BSP threaded hole in the new head, therefore one will have to be ordered.

    The cylinder block was carefully cleaned and lightly scraped whilst hoovering any debris. The cylinder head mounting studs were cleaned and replaced into the block.

    The camshaft was oiled then the new head gasket fitted into place. The cylinder head was then lowered carefully onto the block. The nuts were fitted and the head was torqued down in stages, strictly following the correct tightening sequence from the workshop manual.

    The tappets were all set to a low position and the rocker shaft fitted into position. Rotating the crank to the correct positions as directed by the workshop manual, each tappet was then raised to the correct height in-turn and checked with feeler gauges. The crank was then rotated slowly by hand to confirm the correct operation of the valves.

    The thermostat housing, thermostat, radiator hoses and inlet manifold were cleaned up and fitted using new gaskets and sealant.

    The three fuel injectors which we’d previously had checked professionally were installed followed by the associated fuel pipework. The rocker cover was cleaned and loose fitted, this will be finally fitted with a new gasket once we get the new oil feed adaptor. The oil-filled air filter was also fitted.

    The exhaust manifold was given a good clean out to remove as much coke as possible; the silencer flanges were then cleaned up. Exhaust assembly paste was applied and the exhaust manifold was then fitted with new gaskets along with the silencer unit which was attached to the exhaust upright flexi-pipe.

    The next stage once we get the new oil feed adaptor, will be to bleed the fuel system and hopefully get the generator running again.

    I’ll leave you with a sunny-side view of the Lowfit; join us again next week, all the best, Dave

  • 26/04/26 – Lowfit Lettering at the Gala

    26/04/26 – Lowfit Lettering at the Gala

    Hello and welcome to a Diesel Gala weekend update; we’ve had the Test Car open to visitors, Dan has progressed with his Lowfit lettering challenge and work on tank 3854 continues.

    Whilst myself and Ross looked after the Test Car, Ernie entertained visitors to our stand, all helping to raise much needed funds towards the restoration work; thank you to those who have supported us this weekend.

    Dan completed the west body side Lowfit lettering and made a start on the underframe with the vacuum release stars.

    Nick, Mark, Tom, Oliver, Daniel and James did some more paint removal from 3854s tank barrel; following up at each stage with red-oxide primer.

    Join us again next week for a bank-holiday update, in the meantime here’s a few views of diesels passing the Test Car over the weekend.

  • 12/04/26 – Springs & Noggins

    12/04/26 – Springs & Noggins

    Hello and welcome to a bumper update from the team at Quorn. Over the last four weeks we’ve been busy re-springing two wagons, making floor hold-down noggins for the Lowfit, giving the Lowmac some TLC, and continuing with Esso tank wagon restoration work.

    Six new wagon springs were delivered to Rothley; four destined for the Palshoc van B855568; the remaining two were taken to Quorn for fitting to Esso Tank 3621.

    Ernie, Charlie and Nick fitted 3621s springs, and with this wagon’s restoration now complete, it was tripped to Swithland for marshalling into the tank train ready for the Goods Friday event.

    At Rothley Nick, Charlie and Oliver dealt with the four springs in-turn on Palshoc B855568. The wagon was then moved to settle the new springs and the buffer heights were checked.

    Nick, Mark, Ernie, Dan and Oliver applied some paint to the underframe, swan necks, lamp irons and handbrake levers on the Lowfit.

    Then continued with some needle gun work and red-oxide application on the underframe of tank 3689.

    Nick and Charlie turned their attention to the Lowmac wagon DE269001 that is needed for use by the P-Way team. The axleboxes and bearings were checked, oil levels topped up, oiled the brake rigging, a lamp iron replaced and an incorrectly fitted 3-link coupling replaced with a screw coupling which Ernie and Nick had spent some time freeing off and repairing.

    Ernie had previously measured up and done a drawing ready to help us manufacture some new floor hold-down noggins for Conflat B507489. Along with Oliver I set about selecting some well seasoned timber, extracting a few unwanted nails and marking out for cutting.

    Four pieces were cut to length then sliced to the correct width for the noggins. The rivet cut-outs were made then the mounting holes drilled.

    Each noggin was then checked for fit onto the wagon. These will be installed to hold the new floor down once we get the flooring wood.

    Further needle gunning was carried out on tank 3689, including some sanding, uncovering some of the east side solebar lettering; followed by some red oxide.

    And then some more red-oxide.

    The four Conflat noggins were given five coats of creosote / engine oil mix which was allowed to soak-in between each coat.

    Over the Easter weekend there was much tiding-up carried out over our whole work area, including the GUV. The interior of Test Car 2 was also tidied and the slip-end pipework re-assembled in readiness for our Diesel Gala opening at the end of the month. The guards area storage heater was sanded and given a first coat of white, and three new display boards were prepared and painted.

    Edward was treated to some new tyres that allowed him to be removed from the BEV stillage and put back onto his wheels, thus making him mobile .

    The BEV stillage was cleaned and de-greased then the bed repaired. This will make a very useful bench for welding projects.

    The spark guards from tank 3689 were cleaned up and checked, three of them will be suitable for re-use following some welding repairs, however the fourth will need to be replaced. Ernie and Nick made a start straightening, cutting out the rust and weld repairing.

    Another lamp repair was completed by Ernie including a coat of black gloss. And I made & fitted a brace bracket to the garage door chain-box in an attempt to stop the chain sprockets going out of line.

    A good start was made by Mark, Tom, Oliver, Dan and Charlie on the tank barrel paint removal from 3689. Approximately 1/4 of the tank barrel and one ladder being taken back to bare metal.

    Hector got a little embarrassed after suffering a puncture whilst on an errand down the yard; having to rely on a rather ignominious rescue by the Volvo. Following Ross’s inspection he found the inner tube of the front wheel had failed due to rubber rot!

    The Volvo came in useful again moving the bunded barrel pallet spill tank that we have been donated, to a safe place.

    We’ll leave you with a reminder that Test Car 2 will be open to visitors for the upcoming GCR Spring Diesel Gala 24 – 26 April.

    We still have the fantastic Great British Locomotives Models & Magazines Complete Collection for sale; forty one (41) OO Gauge Models with Magazines all in their unopened original packaging which is available as a rare complete collection.

    Please get in touch if you are interested, all proceeds will be used by the Quorn Wagon & Wagon group to directly assist with the continued restoration and maintenance of Test Car 2.

    Example Model & Magazine, GCR 506 Butler Henderson.

    Join us again soon for more Quorn Wagon & Wagon news, all the best, Dave