Todays Visit to Ellen Road Steam Museum

[raynerd]

I had a trip out today along with my wife`s grandad to Ellen Road Steam Museum in Milnrow, Oldham, Manchester.
I pass this engine house EVERY day on the way to work and never realised it was a running steam home! The big twin-tandem compound engine "Alexandra and Victoria" are massive, I mean massive!! The flywheel is 28 feet in diameter and is some 80 tons in weight with a 44 groved rope race!

Along with the main compound engine there is also a lovely beam engine but what impressed me most was the Marsden horizontal single cylinder steam engine. It was lovely and only stopped running in 1988 and restored by the Ellen Rd group in 2009. I`m far from an expert when it comes to engines but I was really impressed with this valve mechanism and would love to build a model of this engine one day. It is the blue engine on the video.

I did this video to show my wifes grandad as a memory of the day but I thought I`d share it here as well as it may be of interest to some of you. It is well well worth a visit and although it is on my door step it is certainly worth a long drive for the experience!

[andyf]

Great vid, Chris! The girl who appears at around 4.14 needs to put a hairnet over that ponytail, though.

I'd never heard of the place,despite being only 40 mins away. I assume they only fire up at weekends; do you know if it's both Sat. and Sun?

Andy

[John Rudd]

Chris,
A great place, one of 'the things to do before......' I'd love to go pretty soon( to visit the museum of course... )

Have you been here?...not far from you..

http://www.nmes.org/

I went last October when visiting Manchester ( to see Cliff and the Shads.. ) and was a great place to see many a machine...

[John Rudd]

Andy,

Here's a link...http://www.ellenroad.org.uk/

They are not far from RDG...a good day out maybe? 

[raynerd]

AndyF - sadly only steam on the first Sunday of each month although I think they are open for viewing on Tuesday and weekends. Although I was amazed when I got there at 11am pre-steaming, you don`t get the full experience until it starts running. Regarding RDG - would have been a good day out to hit the two If they did steam on a Saturday but sadly RDG don`t open weekends anymore   I now have to pop out each day occasionally on my lunch hour.

John - regarding Bolton Steam Museum, the answer is yes but in actual fact it was years and years ago. Bolton is nearer to me than Milnrow and so my grandparents would occasionally take us as kids (this is years ago!!) when they were looking after us during school holidays. I believe the site has changed since and they have aquired many more engines so I`d love to go. The answer of course really is no!

There is also this one in Burnley which I believe is very good. I understand it is quite small but also has some of the original weaving machines in there running.

http://www.lancashire.gov.uk/acs/sites/museums/venues/qsm/?siteid=3771&pageid=12932&e=e   

[raynerd]

Although we are going slightly off the topic here, there is actually another steam engine that is being restored literally on my door step. A few years ago I use to live less than 100 yards away from it and never new it was there! I`ve since moved about 2 miles away and it was only when I was speaking to local model engineer who told me it was there that I decided to knock on the door when I noticed the gates were unlocked, only a few months ago. I was shown around the engine and I also would like to offer some time working there (cleaning and such!) when the intial few months of my day job calms down nearer Christmas. It is a lovely engine and I believe they are very near to getting the grant of £60,000 needed to restore the boiler. That would be absoutely amazing having such a local steaming engine near me. Of course I live 200 yards away from the East Lancs Railway if locos float your boat, so to speak. With the locos there seems to be millions of people willing to help out, infact I think there are waiting lists for certain jobs. I think these little mill engine restoration projects find it a bit harder to find vaulenteers. The engine is at the Grane Rd site in Haslingden
http://www.lancashiretelegraph.co.uk/news/1673846.grane_mill_restoration_project_open_days/
Photos of Grane
http://www.theviewfromthenorth.org/portfolio23078.html

[kwackers]

Wigan Pier reputedly has the biggest working steam engine in the world. The "Trencherfield Mill Steam Engine", don't know how it compares but last time I went it was BIG.
Science Museum in Manchester has some interesting engines too.

Actually now I come to think about it, everyone and their dog has a working steam engine. Even I've got one! (Entry fee 50p - includes free tea and biscuit).

[andyf]

Chris, John et al: thanks for the great info. Here in NW England, we aren't exactly short of steam museums, are we? And only slightly further afield, there's the water-powered Abbeydale Industrial Hamlet, Ironbridge, the National Railway Museum in York, etc etc. Enough to keep a 63 year old small boy like me entranced for weeks! Maybe I should go on tour.

Andy

[raynerd]

Kwacks, yes believe the one at Wigan Pier is a big one but I heard it wasn`t running... don`t know how true that is.

[Bluechip]

Chris, John et al: thanks for the great info. Here in NW England, we aren't exactly short of steam museums, are we? And only slightly further afield, there's the water-powered Abbeydale Industrial Hamlet, Ironbridge, the National Railway Museum in York, etc etc. Enough to keep a 63 year old small boy like me entranced for weeks! Maybe I should go on tour.

Andy

If you go to Abbeydale, it's not far from this. Like most others, better to find out beforehand when they steam it.

Kelham Island.

Dave BC

[Dean W]

Chris and Dave, fabulous videos, fellows!  Thanks for those.
These have such an attraction for me.  I could happily spend my retirement sleeping on a cot
in one of these places, making small parts or just sweeping the floor! 
What beautiful engines. 

Dean

[andyf]

Wow, Dave. This may be a little indelicate, but it sounds like it's having an orgasm 

Kelham Island - there's a good small brewery there too, if I'm not mistaken. Another one for the visit list 

Andy

[Bluechip]

Wow, Dave. This may be a little indelicate, but it sounds like it's having an orgasm 

Kelham Island - there's a good small brewery there too, if I'm not mistaken. Another one for the visit list 

Andy

Dunno, can't remember what one sounds like   

Never knew there was a brewery there. 
Ah well, another one of life's cruel tricks ....

Dave BC

[Stilldrillin]

Great vid Chris, thanks for showing! 

Dave, Andy,

Here yer go.......  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kelham_Island_Brewery

The 12,000hp River Don Engine was originally built to roll the armour plate for battleships... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kelham_Island_Museum

David D

[raynerd]

Could anyone please give me any more details on the blue Marsden Engine at Ellen Rd. I`m curious to know how the valve mechanism works and don`t know what type it is to google. Any info would be appreciated.

Chris