A rather overcast and breezy morning in Tywyn, but it was not the team working outside. It was our colleague from Pendre, Neal Chapman, who was installing the seat fixings to prevent our attendants seat being tipped up into the new glazed panel at the end of the platform.
Andy Sheffield, Max Birchenough, Charles Benedetto and John Olsen had just the morning to sort out the plinth with the semi-detached top that we discovered last week. Step one was to remove the newly fitted feet and castors to gain full access to the interior in order to fit load spreading plates of thick plywood for the fixing bolts and battens to firmly hold the top to the sides. Max wielded the screwdriver to remove the display notice posts and the job moved on to clamping the top down with sash clamps so that Andy could follow Charles pencil marks, with the drill. John busied himself delivering the necessary tools from the Gunpowder Store and then preparing to paint the much scuffed front of the Car Gwyllt display stand. With the two load plates being glued into position, held by temporary bolts, coffee time was called.
Going into the cafe we found Ann McCanna, and Tom, senior and junior, Place tucking into the standard gauge breakfast, so they weren’t up for the three fold bounty of Jammie Dodgers, milk and dark chocolate Hob Nobs; Andy was well pleased until Keith arrived and had a Hob Nob with his coffee.
Refreshed we returned to the museum, Andy Max and Charles securing the battens and John painting the Car Gwyllt front panel as well as the fixing plates of the feet and castors in LTE grey.
By mornings end the paint was still drying so the plinth was set on floor, sans feet and castors. The sawdust was hoovered up and the tools all returned to the Gunpowder Store.
The yellow covers we had already removed from the heritage fleet went up into the loft-space and were joined by the covers off the slate waste tipper wagon and the basket and frame of the ex GWR 2′ slate wagon from Blaenau Ffestiniog, which we removed in preparation for the Easter trains starting. Wagon no. 101 remained under wraps as it is being kept dry for sanding and repainting after our Easter break.
Pasg Hapus, Happy Easter to all our readers; there will be more tales from Wharf in three weeks time.