Oxford Rail Cowans Sheldon Crane

[PorkyP]

I couldn't find anything else online showing any C&L crane, which is a pity as C&L is my particular interest, having family in the area, it's great that the loco has at least been rescued and safe at Cultra, shame the ex TD no 5 didn't end up there too!

[DiveController]

Nice comparison of the Inchicore crane on the left and the Athlone crane on the right working together. Interesting to see the differences including the jibs, The Inchicore 35T crane 295A would lift most bogie coaches alone except for maybe some of the full kitchen cars and GSVs. An E class however comes in at 38.5 - 42tons plus fuel

http://catalogue.nli.ie/Record/vtls000306336

From the O' Dea collection

The 10T CBSCR crane at Inchicore April 1960

http://catalogue.nli.ie/Record/vtls000304938

 

Broadstone Crane 2M laying waste to the Harcourt Street line 1959

http://catalogue.nli.ie/Record/vtls000304525

Edited February 7, 2020 by DiveController

[Mayner]

4 hours ago, DiveController said:

Nice comparison of the Inchicore crane on the left and the Athlone crane on the right working together. Interesting to see the differences including the jibs, The Inchicore 35T crane 295A would lift most bogie coaches alone except for maybe some of the full kitchen cars and GSVs. An E class however comes in at 38.5 - 42tons plus fuel

http://catalogue.nli.ie/Record/vtls000306336

From the O' Dea collection

The 10T CBSCR crane at Inchicore April 1960

http://catalogue.nli.ie/Record/vtls000304938

 

Broadstone Crane 2M laying waste to the Harcourt Street line 1959

http://catalogue.nli.ie/Record/vtls000304525

A single 35T capacity steam crane would struggle to safely lift a long object like a coach or bridge beam, usually two cranes are used in a "tandem lift" for such lifts  http://catalogue.nli.ie/Record/vtls000304303 

The maximum safe working load of a railway steam crane  is subject to the angle of the jib with a maximum lift capacity with a near vertical jib, with reduced capacity at shallower angles  . I found this out the hard way when I first hired a mobile crane on a construction site, fortunately the hire company rep insisted on visiting the site before supplying the crane. Fortunately the lift was a success and I got to play with all sorts of construction cranes 

 

 

[DiveController]

I assumed the max rated tonnage would be for a near horizontal jib so in addition to better control I can certainly see the need for working in tandem now! I didn't notice and  lateral jacks/stabilizers extending from the sides of the crane and they seem to work with the jib close to the center of the rails. 

[leslie10646]

Getting back to the original post (!).

Richard pointed me at a photo in the GNR history and at first glance, the proposed Oxford crane is the spitting image of the GNR's No.2 crane. There is a book, I believe on Cowan's, which should confirm that the GNR crane was the same, or similar to, the Oxford one.

I'm starting a "Book" on the exact date that Oxford have them on sales here - starting, say, two years from now? A Euro a bet?

Good news, though, for those with space in a siding on their GN layouts!

 

[Aldergrove]

Here is one in NR livery.  I think its at Adelaide but not sure.  Anyone know anything about this crane?

[Galteemore]

https://www.downrail.co.uk/rolling-stock/steam-crane-3084/

[jhb171achill]

That's the former NCC one, now preserved as a static exhibit at the Downpatrick & Co. Down Railway.

The livery is NIR maroon with quite a few black bits too. Chassis black. Crane and match trucks maroon bodies.

Nowadays, maintenance stuff is all yellow for high visibility. This was not the case in the past; most breakdown cranes were black or grey or both.

The UTA inherited this one above, plus a GNR one. The GNR one got a red repaint in UTA times, but the above NCC one remained black. The GNR one was withdrawn in the late 1960s and went to Whitehead, still with badly faded red paint and UTA crest. It remains there. In GNR times, I believe it was plain black and grey. GSWR / GSR / CIE steam cranes were always wagon grey. The NCC one above received a coat of NIR maroon, plus the NIR logo, around 1970 or thereabouts.

The yellow ones seen in the 1990s at Inchicore were second hand British Rail cranes, which actually ended up seeing very little use indeed.

On ‎14‎/‎02‎/‎2020 at 9:25 AM, leslie10646 said:

Getting back to the original post (!).

Richard pointed me at a photo in the GNR history and at first glance, the proposed Oxford crane is the spitting image of the GNR's No.2 crane. There is a book, I believe on Cowan's, which should confirm that the GNR crane was the same, or similar to, the Oxford one.

I'm starting a "Book" on the exact date that Oxford have them on sales here - starting, say, two years from now? A Euro a bet?

Good news, though, for those with space in a siding on their GN layouts!

 

The GNR one is now at Whitehead; available to measure and photograph by arrangement once the Covid-Pox has passed, I am sure.

Edited January 14, 2021 by jhb171achill

[Aldergrove]

excellent stuff,  thanks for the info on the NCC history and the link to downrail's site with the crane's information.

hopefully, when normality returns, i'll be able to get there to photograph and measure up.

many thanks for your responses

 

[jhb171achill]

29 minutes ago, Aldergrove said:

excellent stuff,  thanks for the info on the NCC history and the link to downrail's site with the crane's information.

hopefully, when normality returns, i'll be able to get there to photograph and measure up.

many thanks for your responses

 

Nearer the time, Aldergrove, contact the DCDR's Chairman, Robert Gardiner, who is always very helpful to serious enquiries. Naturally, at the moment the place is out of bounds due to covid.

[Parkmore]

Around 25 or 30 years ago, D&S Models in England brought out a brass and white metal kit for the Cowans and Sheldon 15T crane. Actually 2 different kits, with different shaped jibs. They were widely used in England on the NER, GWR and many other railways in between all with locally sourced runner wagons.

While digitising drawings in the IRRS Archives 5 or 6 years ago, I came across a nice drawing for a 'GNRI 15T Breakdown Crane'. It was pure Cowans and Sheldon. Identical other than the gauge. When I showed the drawing to the proprietor of D&S, he was very impressed because when he was doing the kit he consulted Peter Tatlow who wrote the definitive 2 volume book on Cowans and Sheldon cranes, but Peter did not have very good drawings, and some of the 'works' in the kit was a bit sketchy. (Guess how it goes yourself - style)

Looking at photographs of such cranes, the shape of the pipe-work around the boiler seems to differ on each crane - maybe it was replaced over the years.

I don't share Leslie's optimism in seeing a ready to run model as soon as 3 years hence, and I doubt that it will be anywhere near the initial advertised price.

[Westcorkrailway]

I have a big peice off of something made by cowans and sheldon. Big heavy cast circle thing about 3/4 of a meter in diameter....again no clue what it came from, despite the fact its within 50 meters of what used to be a railway station. makes for a fine heavy animal feeder! 

[Garfield]

23 minutes ago, Westcorkrailway said:

I have a big peice off of something made by cowans and sheldon. Big heavy cast circle thing about 3/4 of a meter in diameter....again no clue what it came from, despite the fact its within 50 meters of what used to be a railway station. makes for a fine heavy animal feeder! 

 

Looks like you might have yourself the cover of a turntable's central pivot point...

[Westcorkrailway]

8 hours ago, Garfield said:

 

Looks like you might have yourself the cover of a turntable's central pivot point...

Wow t does look like it dosent it. Ill have to ask my father where the hell it came from. I suppose it must be local. My grandfather did purchase a few sleepers of CIE from ballinhassig in 1964. 

[Noel]

On 22/1/2020 at 12:46 AM, WRENNEIRE said:

Taken in Fairview

 

Wow must have been precarious getting a solid footing for the stabilisers on elevated track sections

[Blaine]

On 14/1/2021 at 8:38 PM, jhb171achill said:

The yellow ones seen in the 1990s at Inchicore were second hand British Rail cranes, which actually ended up seeing very little use indeed.

They were both cut up around a decade ago, but they would have served little to no use being preserved. There were intentions to preserve one statically in Inchicore Works, but this was around the time the works was becoming a maintenance facility rather than the Museum/Scrapyard it once was, along with the 'Interconnector' intentions so little came of it. As said previously 1996 was the last time one was in steam

Also road cranes have a lot more capacity and availability now than even 30 years ago, never mind 70. The ingenuity of the breakdown crews was far more impressive than the machinery they had available

[Mayner]

On 9/3/2021 at 10:58 PM, Noel said:

Wow must have been precarious getting a solid footing for the stabilisers on elevated track sections

With a light load and a near vertical jib there was no need to use outriggers and packing. 

The crane is actually being used as a "pick up and carry" crane to transport track panels between the train in the background and the worksite.

Some of the smaller cranes like the Oxford model were sometimes 'self propelled" and could literally move at slow speed under their own steam, in this case a B141 is being used to travel the crane.

BR tended to use small self propelled diesel cranes roof this type of work as they were less cumbersome than the large breakdown cranes.

[Lennert]

I stumbled upon this forum because I am doing research to build a model of a Norwegian. So I thought of sharing that one: Link to digital museum

There are more pictures if you search the digital museum for Rk 1271