Hello

Scruffyroller · Hello

Hi all,

I'm Kev from West Sussex, been around steam all my life both small and full size. I have a collection of Mamod & Wilesco road engines that I've had since I was a kid, they seem to have stayed around...!!

Cheers and enjoying the site so far.

MTA

welcome, whereabouts in West Sussex? I live in Yapton, six miles east of Chichester

Scruffyroller

Not far then! I'm just outside Worthing.

MTA

intriguing

If your interested, I volunteer at some railways in West Sussex, that is Amberley Museum, and one in pulborough...

Scruffyroller

I did my apprenticeship at Amberley on the road engines, was there for four or five years.

MTA

I was steersman on the Aveling and Barford "Gisela" at this years Mid Summer Steam Show. But the thing that throws me on full size traction engines is that you can't see the other side of the engine that the steering wheel is on. Many a near miss

Scruffyroller

Surely you can on Gisela, she's only little...

Many a happy hour spent on that roller and quite a few miles on the road too.

MTA

I know, but at the Mid Summer show, a 12 ton Aveling churned up the road on the sharp turn around the island

So Gisela was used to roll it flat, almost went over the hill into the bric a brac

But railways have always been my thing, so I'll stick to them for now

SPOKESMAN

Hi ther Kev.

James

traction engines are easy to drive. all you need to do is be really strong and start turning about 20 mins before you want to go in that direction

i steered for 2 days, going to bicker soon

MTA

Scruffyroller

Well yeah, but then my little sister has been steering since she was ten...

Thanks for the welcome folks.

MTA

Scruffyroller

They must have been dragging on the ground.

MTA

then again, the steering wheel was quite small, necessatating a few turns