ECHORAIL 88, may 2000

0.6.0 T #36 to Baie de Somme

0.6.0 T #36 returns to Versailles

Reflexions on the conservation in 2000

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0.6.0T to "Baie de Somme"

One already spoke about it for a long time, and it became a reality. On March 28th, after agreement with the C.F.B.S, 030T CdN was loaded on the usual truck, and left to find back the maritime air, situation it had known during its youth.

The rendez-vous was taken for the next Saturday for the first attempt ; on April 1st!! After a morning departure, the machine went out of the storehouse of Saint Valery to make its first on-line attempt. It had to drag a train composed of 3 coaches o"Somme" and the coach of the "R_seau Breton", reserved for the presenter of television Michel Chevalet (faithful friend of people of the C.F.B.S) from Saint-Valery to Noyelles-sur-Mer, and if everything went well, then to the Cayeux's banister.

As it itched us, we went to do a small tour up to the lock, to take some photos. After lunch, at about 3:00 PM, it was time for the departure. It was not without a certain emotion and tension that we left with Arnaud Girode for pilot. Even if we knew well the machine, at Butry we had never tested it on so long distances and at a steady speed. We were afraid of a warm box, one never knows. Once the last needle of the storehouse crossed we accelerated. Later we will learn than we drove at a good 35 kph. For us in the cabin: no problems. Arrived at quay, the checking tour of the machine is made without detecting any abnormal thing, the verified keys, no warm boxes, nothing, the dream! The signal for the return is given and after few hundreds of meters, we heard a strange noise. Then Arnaud leant over and said to me " Olivier, you are losing a connecting rod! " I did not believe him at first but Arnaud added and we stopped immediately. We had lost an axis of a connecting rod of the small movement and this last one hanged pitifully in the roadbed. After a long search, the axis was found, put back and maintained with a slice (we had taken it just in case). We went back to our departure point without problem. People of the C.F.B.S proposed us to make the modification of all the axes for us.

Covered distance: 16 kilometres..

On Wednesday, April 12 following, again, the cap is put on the Channel. The team was constituted by our cameraman, by Philippe Mougenot who had manufactured numerous parts for the machine, Patrice Berten, Bruno Hyron and myself. The modifications at the level of the connecting rod had been made, we had still some tests to do. It was necessary to be ready for 2:30PM for the regular train of Wednesday. Once on the port, at the head of the same train, the departure is given for Noyelles with for pilot our eternal associate of the C.F.B.S.: Marc Beaufils. Bruno is at the iron sleeve and your servant at the wooden sleeve. The route happened carefree, the machine racing marvelously. After the changes at Noyelles the train was composed of 5 Swiss coaches and 1 "Somme" and we returned without incident to Saint-Valery-Port. Next we had to drive the train back to Crotoy and to the storehouse. With a coming confidence, we allowed us to push the machine a little, and whatever is the train or the speed, it answered perfectly.

Covered distance: 44 kilometres

Finally arrived the festival on April 15th and 16th.

On Saturday 15th, the team composed Jean-Pierre Carrouget, Bruno Hyron, Marc Beaufils and Daniel Schulmann officiated. I would not tell you any more detail being off service this day, but no problem was reported except that during the morning, the coupon of rail was taken off by dissatisfied hunters to block) the traffic a little for a while.

Covered distance: 52 kilometres.

On Sunday the 16th, the team composed by Henri Dupuis,the famous Lulu's rescuer, Marc Beaufils as pilot and myself as driverassures the service. After a wake up at 5:30 AM, direction the storehouse to prepare the loco. After the usual duties, we left for Noyelles with a train composed of the coach lounge and the good's train . Henri, never having driven his baby for a so long distance, was a little nervous. After a warm up in confidence, he will enjoy it and will always drive in a steady rhythm. The machine is powerful (more than 400 CV), stable, and vaporizes very well. An anecdote to prove you these capacities:

At around midday Sunday, a rumour runs that the coal makes clinker with the other machines. Turning to good account the time of the lunch, I made the decision to clean the firebox. I kept just a shovel of live charcoals and threwaway all the rest to restart with a new fire. During this time, friend Marc fetched our lunch. When, suddenly, the responsible for the exploitation, Jean-Michel Candillon, asks us to put ourselves at the head of the train and to leave for Crotoy to help at the train station at the time of the arrival of a special. (Gloup!) It did not remain more than 4 bars of pressure, a half-tube of water and my shovel of live charcoals. A fervent search for kindling is improvised and with prompter opened the fire is, little by little, lighted again. Ten minutes later, we were at the head of our train with 8 bars of pressure but still with a half-tube of water. We accept the departure and on the way! Henri starts quietly to save the vapor. The pressure went back up quickly and to the first road crossing (about 1.5 kilometers) the machine was full of water with the raised air valves!

The day ended at about 8:30 PM after having returned the coach lounge and I believe that was when Henri beat the speed record of these four days. The fair had ended, the machine had just gone through 70 kilometers and had consumed about 1.6 tons of charcoal.

These days will befor all of us all a big souvenir, personally as one says, I set myself one foot in the style " clown's shoe ", and showed us the necessity of the transfer of our museum on a site where our material can be highlighted and express itself in good conditions.

I would also like to take advantage to thank all the responsibles of the C.F.B.S and their employees, who showed themselves very nice in our respect, who helped us technically during the attempts, and who supported us when responsibles of the conseil général of the Val d'Oise went to meet them for our project of transfer.

 I believe to be able to add that the rendez-vous is already taken for in 2 years to make even better, but we shall talk again you of it.

0.6.0 T #36 returns to Versailles

Our dear Lulu, 0.6.0T CdN, appreciates to go to visit the former royal capital. After a first passage in September, it returned to Versailles with the coach B328 of the CBR. Arrived at about 9 AM in the morning on the UTA truck, it is at immediatlely unloaded on the way temporarily put at the center of the Avenue of Paris in front of "Louis XIV" castle. This way long of 150m allowed the short convoy to realize numerous round trips. The coach was literally taken by assault during 4 hours in spite of showers as violent as short. It is at about 7 PM whenit resumed the road of the Museum where it arrived the next day.

Reflexions on the conservation in 2000

By H. Dupuis (Vice-president)

Recent discussions, with some other responsibles of associations of conservation, bring us to ask some essential questions on the future of our small world.

30 years ago, one could still create, or more exactly save, line and material in narrow gauge. Nowadays, this type of conservation is not possible only in standard gauge, and still it is necessary to forget the vapor, unless having the money to buy at a good price, a loco in the Eastern countries. It is necessary that the created railway corresponds to a need, on a site having tourist trumps. How many of these lines, which go of nowhere to somewhere else, vegetate supported by the faith of some inflexible and are often condemned... It is clear that only two trumps can attract the guests: the first of all is that the site should be touristy, and the train has to be the main access; secondlythethe material put in traffic has to be of quality, a steam loco will compensate partially for the charm of an average landscape (still on condition to be on an axis of passage). Whatto think when one announces us the creation, by a strong association of 3 active members (it is the average), of a line with metric way on the platform of a former more or less famous secondary network, disappeared for fifty years in a very pleasant part of France but little known for its tourists' influx. This creation is made on a platform which crosses private properties, and moreover with the material of which one asserts to know the existence. For a good reason, that is the friend's who saved it thirty or forty years ago against other people's wishes, in a time when people considered as crazy other people with such a passion made you spend for sweet one crazy. Where were you at this moment when we would have liked just to have your encouragements even without concrete help?

All this to say that, in France, today in 2000, it seems to me no more every realistic to try to create a tourist railway in narrow gauge and more particularly in metric gauge: THERE IS NO MORE AVAILABLE HISTORIC MATERIAL. For a long time, some existing and protected lines have been divided between them or tear away from each other the rare surviving fragments. What is always not without problems, recent examples prove it So today, to encourage the creation of new wide-gauge exploitations seems to me completely unconscious. This can result in the future only in jealousies and recoveries of material in the only place where there is still, that is in the Railways Museums implanted for a long-time, and idem for the active members. It would be necessary now that some sweet dreamers put back their feet in the roadbed and stop encouraging the dispersal of thehuman being effort and material. Our force is in the union. When one measures the met difficulties and the necessary time by the MTVS to obtain the transfer of a practically unique collection. We have difficulty in understanding how some people can hope to create something in some worse conditions than the one that obliges us to leave Butry's site. How much wasted energies? How much lost time?

Don't misinterprete these comments At the MTVS when we can we try to help some recent creations. But they become our competitors for the recovery of a piece of collection which is often a wreck which we eyed up for a long time before them to highlight our museum. In this context, the fight will be inevitable sooner or later.

At the MTVS, we have chosenour crenel, that of the brunchline and steam trams. We are additional of "Vivarais", "Baie de Somme", "La Mure", Provence etc., which are big metric gauge network. By miracle, we managed to save during the last 25 years a material which for the greater part comes from networks disappeared for fifty years. Can we dobetter? Personally I do not think so, essentially for a lack of free historic pieces.

At the MTVS we tried to develop something in Paris region where the natural places of interest are not legion. Only the collection of the " MUSEE VIVANT DES CF SECONDAIRES ET DES TRAMWAYS A VAPEUR FRANCAIS " can make our charm, allied to the historic quality of our restorations. Then, please, understand that it is extremely unpleasant to hear this reflection: " you do not need this material, you already have a lot ".

In this beginning of century if we manage to leave on MAGNY's site it is thanks to our collection. I do not think that with a diesel and some tinkered coaches to travelers , we would have presented the same interest for the elected members of the department.

These reflections, the development of which is personal, are only the outcome of a situation, which we cannot hide infinitely. Nevertheless I hold that they do not engage the MTVS.