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Kidderminster Turntable

470 bytes added, 15:43, 24 November 2015
Add installation date and details of opening ceremony
[[File:Kidderminster turntable.jpg|right|300px|thumb|Kidderminster turntable]]
The 70ft vacuum turntable ex-Fort William, which had resided for several years at Horsted Keynes on the Bluebell Railway, arrived on the SVR in June 1980<ref name="SVRNews56">SVR News 56</ref>. The Railway originally planned to install it at Bewdley South in the [[Stourport Triangle]]<ref name = "SVRNews56" />, the fork between the [[Kidderminster]] and [[Stourport]] branches, but the development of Kidderminster led to its installation there instead.  Fund raising to install the turntable began in the summer of [[Severn Valley Railway Timeline 1990-1999#1991 | 1991]], and installation was completed in time for the autumn steam gala in [[Severn Valley Railway Timeline 1990-1999#1994 | 1994]]. Visiting locomotive 60103 Flying Scotsman was turned as a prelude to the gala in a christening ceremony carried out by Lady Lucinda Lambton, although 600 Gordon had already managed a turn during an earlier 'Thomas' event. During the run up to installation a number of the large and small cast iron pads that support the ring rail were found to be missing. Patterns were made at the SVR's pattern-shop from original drawings and replacements were cast. With the [[Severn Valley Railway Charitable Trust Ltd | SVR Charitable Trust]] more recently wishing to add some additional connections to the turntable the pattern set for the larger ring rail pads was refurbished at the Pattern Shop at Bridgnorth to allow further pads to be cast.
The turntable is driven by a vacuum motor, powered by the locomotive being turned. Two large vacuum reservoir cylinders can be evacuated in advance by a vacuum fitted locomotive to allow carriages or non vacuum fitted locomotives to be turned. In the event of no vacuum source being available, a cranking handle is provided.
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