And other Hand Powered Rail Vehicles Hajtany (HU) Railbike (US,GB) Dresinsykling (NO) Handcar (US) Handhebeldraisine (DE) Drezina (RU) Resiina (FI) Drezyny (PL) Skinne cykel (DK) Cykeldressin (SE) Draisines (BE) Bicilinha (BR) Dresin (NO) Biciclette Ferroviarie (IT) Spoorvegfiets (BE) Dressin (SE,NO) Dresina (SP) Schienenvelo (CH) Dreziny (CZ) Spoorfiets (NL) Pump Car (US,GB) Velorail (FR,GB) Cyclo Draisine (FR) Hand Jigger (NZ) No. 35 For this free email newsletter, contact:
[email protected] Or download from:www.velocipedes.co.uk Yorkshire Rally Thurs 6th, Fri 7th Nov 2014 (to be confirmed)
National Railway Museum Event 5th & 6th July 2014 Organised by Zoe Clark and Matt Ellis for the NRM and Roger Fuller for the Velocipede Group
The 8 demonstration machines in the yard at the back of the depot.
See page 9 for our next big event, recruiting, help welcome
Roger and Martin gave 100 rides over the 2 days, some passengers came to the museum especially to ride.
Through the gates
Escaping out onto the Network
Roger and Martin “spinning” machines effortlessly at the Stop block.
Zoe Clark our wonderful organiser at the NRM
Zoe trying out a Velocipede.
“Hi Roger, I just wanted to say a big thank you to everyone who attended our rail bike event this weekend. It was lovely to meet you all and we were really happy with how the event went. Nearly 3,300 visitors came to the museum over the two days and, although we were perhaps a little quieter than usual because of the Tour, many people had heard about the event and visited specially to take part. The rides in particular were a big hit – you did exactly 100; 49 on Saturday and 51 on Sunday! Thanks to you in particular for all your help in organising the event – the whole process was extremely easy and smooth running from start to finish. I wish the velocipede group the very best for the future. Rose has your details for any future events at the NRM, and Matt for Beamish! Thanks again Zoe”
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________ The NRM Staff who looked after us so well were all young and enthusiastic and joined in, they were a pleasure to work with, and gave us lovely lunches.
Matt Ellis Head of Rail Operations Who has moved on to Beamish www.beamish.org.uk which is vast.
Chris
Chris White
Many thanks to Zoe, Matt, Rose, Chris & Chris.
The oldest machine at the NRM was the ex GWR Gwilli Line Buda Velocipede not Kevin
“Le Tour de France visit to Yorkshire prompted some rail bike action at the National Rail Museum. Rushing through York sidings brought fun, joy, and smiles to the miles of track.” From Roger,
Must see Mike Askin
has done a super video which was
online Sunday night, all edited. This is the link which I'm sure you will enjoy! This is showing its age and is due a replacement lower frame member. Sounds like Jacqui.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=4JHvN3oIm8g “Cannot better this, so let's get building machines for the public, and get them on board!!” Roger.
Thumbing a lift. when the Gwilli needed a rest and Kevin needed a cup of tea.
Pump car with seats and Row Boat with floor and arms only power.
Two suggestions from Jacqui (with deadmans pedals).
New at the NRM from Chris Hunt A Norwegian Track Bike with a hand rather than foot brake And Bungee rubber cord hooked on an eye at the front as spring, below.
View of brake from above.
The bungee can be switched to hook on the back wheel as a parking brake, shown below
The device labelled “Masters” is an umbrella holder for a golf buggy. From as little as £6 via Google , essential for the annual monsoon.
The Beauty Parade on Sunday evening at end of play. Not present in the picture are Sean Bowler and Mike McPeake
Photo Chris White
We had a flypast from a Spitfire and a Lancaster Bomber.
The city was getting very excited about the Tour de France but we carried on in our usual laid back manner, some more laid back than others.
NRM Photos from John Midcalf
Howard Smith, director of “Velocipede the Movie”, and its star, Mike McPeake
Through the gates into the South Yard.
Karen Hunt demonstrating the footbrake on the Draisine.
Howard and the Trackbike he describes on the YouTube film.
Jacqui Thomas
New Blood for
We are stand „A‟ at the
THE
GROUP Research Restoration Rebuilding
Where do we find NEW restorers and builders of historic or modern machines?
The first stand visitors see after the cashdesk.
We have 8‟ x12‟ of space with our display stand and trestle table for a screen to play DVDs of Rallies and show pages from the website..
My best guess is the Model Engineers, they have the equipment and many have railway interests and if we approach them correctly we may spark it.
We are provisionally taking: the new WW1 Pump Car, an historic Buda Velocipede a Modern Track Bike and a miniature gauge 7 ¼”- 12 ¼“ gauge machine (if I can borrow one).
We have to be: uncomplicated, a doddle compared to miniature live steamers cheap, a Norwegian trackbike at £200, a Pump Car at £600 easy, we give away drawings and laser cutting code fun option where you get a big popular toy for your money.
We would like some help with transporting machines and stewarding the stand, free entry passes will be available. Volunteers please contact Jacqui by the end of August.
What we have to offer is access to several well organised runs on Heritage Railways each year with friendly people who have similar interests.
Over his desk, Edison displayed a placard with Sir Joshua Reynolds' famous quotation: "There is no expedient to which a man will not resort to avoid the real labor of thinking."
Mark Egerton thinks light and simple
Laser cut and mig welded, possibly the shape of the future.
For Sale
interested in its restoration. Nobody else was in the least bit bothered about it so I did join & made a damn good job of its restoration. (I still own this pump trolley).
Historic velocipede in working order Offers in excess of £800 to Neil Brooks at
[email protected] Location to View Cheltenham Glos
The story of my velocipede as I know it I was employed by Dowty Mining at Ashchurch from 1974 to 1984 in the design D.O. At lunchtimes we used to go for recreational walks around the playing field and the area then occupied by “Dowty Railway Preservation Society” (DRPS). It was during these walks that I noticed & fell in love with a 4 wheel pump trolley that was sadly neglected and sitting rotting away on one of the sidings. On inquiry I was invited to join the group if I was
The Pump Car On completion I was shown the 3 wheel velocipede that had a few minor defects but one of the 4 main struts was irreparably fractured that rendered it inoperable, and I was asked if I would be interested in making it whole again. It had apparently been in an ex-GWR freight wagon that was bought at auction by the society with a load of other railwayana rammed inside. Of course I was interested and promptly took it to my place for restoration. Before I could do anything useful for this undertaking the Dowty group wanted back the land that the DRPS occupied to sell this asset. We managed to secure some sort of tenure with the newly formed “Gloucestershire Warwickshire Steam Railway” (GWSR) that had just set up to restore the old GWR Honeybourne line. I helped with the transfer of all assets to Toddington along with all the rest of the volunteers. Shortly after these movements had taken place the land was duly sold at Ashchurch. Within one year the mining industry went down the tubes including Dowty Mining and redundancy soon followed. At that point all bets were off regarding railway restoration. The two trucks were stored at the back of my garage gathering dust with little interest from me or others. We were all battling to survive in a low job environment with children. In the meantime life just happened. It wasn‟t until the late nineties that I managed to lift my head above the parapet again, the kids had left home, gone to Uni etc. and I realised that there was life still to be had out there. When I renewed my interest with railway preservation again in the GWSR I was very surprised to find no
presence at all of the DRPS. Now that left me with 2 railway trucks in a very dirty & dusty condition, & the 3 wheel velocipede which still had a main spar to replace. This I did, but had nowhere to realistically try it out with the advent of health and safety (Grrrrr) etc. Apparently the DRPS reinvented itself as the North Gloucestershire Railway & latterly as the Toddington Narrow gauge railway with no interests in standard gauge. In 1999 we decided to come in from the sticks (Didbrook) and move to a smaller house in Winchcombe. This presented me with a logistics problem. There was nowhere to store my rolling stock in this smaller property immediately so I took up an offer to loan it to the “East Anglian Railway Museum”. Big mistake. I still have all the paperwork relating to the gross mishandling of my property, including all the removal of the paintwork including coach lining. Anyway in disgust I hired a trailer and went over there and retrieved what was left of them. I hurriedly built a temporary shelter for them until I had built a garage. I was at the same time helping with the restoration of Cheltenham Racecourse Station on the GWSR when someone mentioned to me about a 3 wheeled velocipede rally at Hampton Loade, SVR. Of course I was immediately interested, the rest as they say is history.
Neil Brooks
Neil Brooks‟ BUDA Velocipede has unique in the UK foot rest stirrups, above.
Spotted by Trevor Catterson in
Wales
The machine and its label
WW1 Group 2‟ Pump Car for Tracks to the Trenches in September Progress to date
New Word to Google Handhebeldraisine Search for „images‟
_____________________________________________________
On YouTube: Mike Askin The Casting Patterns are here from Lary Shaffer in Maine, castings to be done
has done a super video of York
www.youtube.com/watch?v=4JHvN3oIm8g _____________________________________________________ Machining steam Speeder Wheels early hand power had similar wheels
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8pcpKYk51x0 _____________________________________________________ Wheels are being slimmed down to fit 2‟ back to back dimensions. Axles are in stock. Gears are laser cut and in the workshop, cost down to £132.52. (Steel prices have dropped). Crankshaft material in stock but big generator welder needs to be started up and tested (to give 140 amp welds needed). Walking Beam, tracings of real fire welded one taken, AutoCAD and laser cutting to do Wooden patterns for Brass Castings of bearings to be made and castings done. Timber calculated by Mark Hambly to be ordered.
North Yorkshire Moors Railway Velocipede Rally 2012 www.youtube.com/watch?v=sm3anjYoQuw www.youtube.com/watch?v=xH1RHUmyYig
www.youtube.com/watch?v=jCdmeEODWnA ___________________________________________________
There is a report of the York event on the "mad cycle lanes of Manchester" blog, which I discovered by accident. Mark Hambly
