​Amber Lights for the website!
The train above is approaching a double amber signal at St Annes tunnel between Bath and Bristol.  Like the train I feel that the website is also approaching a need to slow down somewhat –we’ve been going for  some seven  years now and grown from what was intended to be simply  an Advertisement for the Cornwall Railway Society into something much bigger.
The first pictures to appear on our website were a few which I took during the dismantling of the Chacewater to Newquay branch. Pictures were added to this section and it was very soon realised that we needed to split our collection into the Cornish Branches and the Main line with the main line being split into several sections or pages. Originally there was never any intention to go beyond Plymouth – however we did and the collection is now limited to the boundaries created by the ‘Freedom of the South West’ Railrover.
Each section covered is termed a ‘Page’. i.e. there are separate pages for all the branch lines and it soon became apparent of the need to split the Cornish Main line into sections or pages as well.
There is a limit to the number of pictures which can be placed on each page – that is around about 100 images.  We find that loading more than this number can become very tedious – the process slows down to 4 to 5 minutes per picture. The Southern section from Exeter to Salisbury was split into several sections and even  this takes a lot of time. Similarly the Taunton to Westbury section was split in two – this took twenty actual hours.
Whilst we can create additional pages to cater for more images there is  a practical limit in the number of pages we can create.
We have a fresh page ready for the Quadrupling of the Filton Bank and the line onwards to Cardiff we can thus start adding to this in due course.
With the problems of loading pictures onto already full pages you will appreciate that we are approaching the limit for the size of this site.
It looks like we can still continue with the News Section but material may have to be otherwise limited – I hope you will understand.
KJ

​Photo1 : 45033 pulls out of the 'proper' down platform at  Exeter St Davids on 15th May 1982 with the 1V67 06.37 Leeds to Paignton. Carrying a large contingent of peak enthusiasts, this was the last day of full loco-hauled cross-country services before the gradual introduction of HSTs the following day. The loco carries its old pre-TOPS number 39 and flimsy unofficial home made headboards which somehow made it all the way to Paignton intact.

Photo 2 : Passing Exeter West signal box, 45033 continues on its way to Paignton with the peak enthusiasts ignoring BR's  advice not to lean out of windows. Photographer Simon McComb who hails from Falmouth can be seen capturing the scene. Simon has gone on to have a hugely impressive career in photography. His high quality railway photography, including stunning shots in Devon and Cornwall , can be seen on the following link browse.

Regards,  Clive Smith    Many thanks Clive - those were the days!!

Todays contribution from Colin.  My contributions box is one of the tool boxes which used to sit on the side tanks of "Metro" 2-4-0T No. 3587, turned out of Wolverhampton in 1898.

This was shedded at Newton Abbot from about 1938 and was withdrawn in 1944. I found the box years ago by the sand-drying oven in the old running shed. The number could just be made out on the lid.

It's just about to go for blasting and spraying after repairs to the riveted seams, which were bursting in places. The fellow who made it would have been fascinated to see an electric welder at work.

Under the lid when I found it were quite large areas of green paint, possibly from when it was new. These have mostly flaked off and will soon be lost altogether. There can't be many examples of original paintwork left!

In recent post I asked for a date for this work at Liskeard.
Many thanks to Chris Bellett for the following :-  Today (24/07/2018) you published a photograph on your website showing the start of the refurbishment work on the station building at Liskeard Branch Station (the Looe Branch platform).  You asked if anybody could date that.
 
At the time of this work I was Network Rail Signal Maintenance Engineer based at Plymouth and I had responsibility for the electrical team that looked after the buffer stop lighting at all stations in Cornwall and Devon.  As part of the refurbishment work the Looe Branch platform was temporarily shortened and a temporary buffer stop, and buffer stop lighting was installed that you can just make out in front of the train in the platform.  I have several photographs of this work and they the installation ones, taken on the day of the platform shortening work, are dated 27 April 2004.  It is worth noting that we did this ‘in-between service trains’.
 
Hope that helps with your query. Kind Regards, Christopher J Bellett
                             Many thanks to you  Chris