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'SCRAPHEAP CHALLENGE'
Locomotive Engine
 This marine engine was recently rebuilt at Preston Services for the Channel 4 T.V. programme 'Scrapheap Challenge', in a special challenge edition shown just before Christmas 2004.
The challenge was to construct a steam powered locomotive to compete in a race against two other locomotives - one with a diesel engine and the other driven by electric motor. The race involved pulling a heavy passenger carriage down a short stretch of track as fast as possible. We supplied both the steam engine (the marine type engine shown left) and the boiler used in the locomotive. (The one thing we didn't provide was the water feed pump for the boiler - for this the team had to rely on an unusual improvisation - bicycle power!)
And who won?... Why, the steam team of course!
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RICARDO steam powered generating set
Supplied by Preston Services
In an art installation by Paul Gregg.
MORTIER 112 Key Dance Hall Organ "NEPTUNE"
This is a resident organ at Preston Services and was seen playing for the very first time after a full restoration, at our 2005 New Year Open Days. |
So far, a ground-up mechanical restoration has been carried out by specialist organ restorer David Burville. This is the first stage of the project - Stage 2 will be to restore and re-paint the magnificent Art Deco front..!
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About the organ and it's restoration:
"Neptune" was built in 1937 for an organ rentals firm in Belgium - Jos Verhersen & Geel - who hired out several such organs for fashionable dance events on the continent. This organ (No. 1076) was used in a mobile dance tent known as "Luxor". With 112 Keys, this was one of the largest dance hall organs ever constructed, originally incorporating a fully working accordion as a centre-piece instrument and fitted with tremulants for that 'Jazz era' sound.
She was named "Neptune" for her magnificent and imposing Art Deco front with it's unusual marine theme to the painting and carve-work. Within a few months however, Neptune was taken back to Mortier's workshops for one particular fashionable improvement - the fitment of a fully working saxophone just beneath the accordion. With this, the overall effect of the organ is strikingly 1930's in style, with it's grand facade. "Neptune" is the sister organ to that in the Thursford collection (No. 1077) and these two organs share many of their period dance music arrangements. However, this organ spent only a year or two as part of a travelling dance tent before the outbreak of war in 1939 curtailed such entertainments.
After the war Neptune was used commercially for a short time until the late 1950's, and in 1964 the organ was bought by a Mr Adriaansen of Tilburg (NL), whereupon it quickly passed onto the brothers Sjes and Louis Mutsters of Klein-Zundert. Eventually Neptune moved to England, when it was sold to a Mr J Miller of Bristol, and where it remained in a poor condition until its present owners acquired it in the late 1980's. Since the fitment of the saxophone by Mortier, almost no modifications have been made, and Neptune remains almost entirely as she was originally built.
In the winter of 2003 David Burville was asked to restore Neptune to full playing condition. On inspection, the organ was found to be in surprisingly good, near totally original condition - almost just as she had left Mortier's workshops some 65 years before. Because of this 'untouched' originality, it was decided that a sensitive, museum style restoration should be conducted to repair as much of the original pipework and mechanism as possible. In the event, very little was replaced and Neptune retains an amazing 95% of her original rubber, cardboard and lead tubing. The only exceptions were with one or two of the main air hoses - fragile pipes which are made of coiled wire covered in a calico sealed cloth, and which inevitably degrade with time.
A testament to David Burville's restoration skills, the basic organ is now in fantastic playing condition. The next challenge for David will be to restore the front, with its dramatic Art Deco style, and re-paint it as near to the original finish as possible. "Neptune" is, probably, the most original of all the surviving large dance hall organs and she retains all her books, with a large repertoire of period dance tunes from the 1930's through to the 1950's.
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W.E. HOLMES
Stationary Engine
This well proportioned single cylinder horizontal engine was made in Huddersfield in around 1900.
It has a bore and stroke of 5" x 10", with a 36" Dia flywheel, all mounted on a lovely cast iron base with the makers name cast accross the front.
We were commissioned to restore this engine in 2004 for exhibition display purposes, and completely stripped and rebuilt it to make it run as smoothly as possible (the engine was to be run on compressed air at the exhibition, so it needed to be absolutely quiet and smooth). The engine was not found to be heavily worn, so restoration mostly involved stripping the paint and re-grinding the motion and cylinder bore to remove the accumulated grease and grime of the last 100 years. The engine was then re-painted in a gloss blue colour and assembled with the motion ground and polished to a bright finish.
The engine now looks smart and runs very well, but it still retains some of the patina of old age.
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All prices on request.
~ PRESTON SERVICES ~
Preston Canterbury Kent CT3 1DH England
Tel: (GB) 01227 722502
Email: mlb@prestonservices.co.uk
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