Trial fitting

Tonight's job was to see if the steel beam which was lifted up the tower last week was in the right place. The best way to do this was to put the treble headstock and wheel in place.

It all fitted very well indeed.

The next thing to do is to concrete the beam in place, and then bolt it all together properly.

Steelwork

We've not been doing any work in the tower for a few weeks. It's been far too hot for anything too strenuous!

Some of the steelwork was delivered last week, including the beam on which the new treble will hang. Tonight's job was to haul it up the tower and put it in place in the NE corner of the tower.

The beam was pretty heavy and getting it up there did make us sweat a bit! This beam will be concreted in place in due course, but this might need to wait until the weather is cooler.

The beginning of the end

The last phase has started! Tonight we put the 1911 frameside back in place.

It took quite a bit of wiggling, but it eventually went in. This frame will now have 2 bells sitting in it instead of 1, so it will have a "gallows end" at the ends to hold it in place.

An 8 bell tower - again

Our Rudhall bells are back!

 A hard evening's work on the chain blocks saw the 4th, 5th and 6th back in the tower, and sitting on the bell frame.

Here they are, ready for their headstocks.

If phase 1 was to take things apart, and phase 2 was to clean everything up, then we are now at phase 3 which is to start putting it all back together!

Wheels finished

Another milestone - we have now finished treating and strengthening the 1911 wheels. Each one has had a coat of preservative and stainless steel screws have been distributed around the rims.

After the timber, we have now started on the wheel irons. These are being rubbed down, and a coat of primer applied. They will be finished with a top coat of dark blue.

 Up in the belfry, things are pretty much ready for the return of the Rudhall bells and the headstocks.

 

Here are the 3rd and 2nd (with a headstock) tucked away in the SE corner.

Back to work

We have not been able to do any work in the tower at Strensham for quite a while. This has been due to a number of factors, including illness.

Anyway, a good session tonight saw most of the 1911 wheels treated with a high quality wood preserver. They have also been strengthened with the addition of a large number of stainless steel screws around the wheel rims which were previously only held in place with somewhat rusty nails. This will ensure that they will be fit for purpose for a good many years yet.

I didn't take any photos of the work in the tower, however the churchyard is putting on a really good display of snowdrops.

Here is a night time photo taken using my phone and a portable work light.

Much cleaner

It's been a dirty job at times, but the cleaning is pretty much done. Centuries of dust/grit had accumulated and needed removing. Several refuse sacks were filled, as were many Henry bags.

 

This is the room between the ringing room and the belfry.

We also tidied up the ringing room where the wheels have been stored while the work took place upstairs.Now we are ready to treat the wood so that the wheels are ready for the next 100 years!

The three retuned bells ought to be making their way back fairly soon. It will be a big step forward when we start putting things together instead of taking them apart!