0:00:20 > 0:00:23WHISTLE BLOWS
0:00:23 > 0:00:27Four weeks into their grand tour of Britain's industrial past,
0:00:27 > 0:00:32Fred and his steersman Alf Molyneux are making good progress.
0:00:32 > 0:00:37They've been running a full head of steam from the Scottish Borders to the northeast of England.
0:00:37 > 0:00:41I'm on my way to Sunderland to look at a great pumping station
0:00:41 > 0:00:45that was built to cater for the ever-increasing demand for more water.
0:00:47 > 0:00:51With the invention of steam engines, far more water was needed than ever
0:00:51 > 0:00:55to run the engines and equip Britain's new industries.
0:00:57 > 0:01:00This is Ryhope pumping station,
0:01:00 > 0:01:05built by the Sunderland and South Shields Water Company in 1868.
0:01:05 > 0:01:11The station ceased operating in 1967 after a century of pumping water.
0:01:11 > 0:01:14Hello, Fred! You found us! Well done! How are you?
0:01:14 > 0:01:19It contains two of the finest beam engines in all of Great Britain,
0:01:19 > 0:01:23which are maintained in running order by dedicated volunteers.
0:01:23 > 0:01:30These great rocking beams are like a huge version of a simple garden pump.
0:01:30 > 0:01:33The beams transmit steam power via long connecting rods
0:01:33 > 0:01:38to pumps located at the bottom of a 250-foot deep shaft.
0:01:38 > 0:01:43Three Lancashire boilers make steam to drive the engines.
0:01:43 > 0:01:45- What do you think of these?- Ooh, ah.
0:01:45 > 0:01:49Bloody hell. Heckish long connecting rods, aren't they?
0:01:49 > 0:01:53- They are.- Compared with a lot of water-pumping engines.
0:01:53 > 0:01:57Imagine the manpower and the time that went into making these,
0:01:57 > 0:02:00even digging the shaft... 250ft!
0:02:00 > 0:02:021860s, all done by hand.
0:02:02 > 0:02:05Yeah. That's a fair old crank shaft, innit?
0:02:05 > 0:02:08Let's look at this maker's plate? There we are.
0:02:08 > 0:02:14- Hawthorn's. 1868.- Brass plate's a work of art.- Lovely.- They made boat engines and all, didn't they?
0:02:14 > 0:02:18They did, they made trains, boat engines, ships as well.
0:02:18 > 0:02:20Would you like to try starting one?
0:02:20 > 0:02:24Well, aye, there's all those levers. I'll have a go.
0:02:24 > 0:02:26I know it's like a bit of a knack, innit?
0:02:26 > 0:02:29'Tis, here. You have to step up.
0:02:29 > 0:02:33We've got a step seeing as you're short. You'll need the top step too.
0:02:33 > 0:02:38We'll put quite a few turns on the steam valve so if you open that I'll say when to stop.
0:02:38 > 0:02:42That's about fine. Now we're gonna to lift these two fully and just...
0:02:42 > 0:02:45- Both at equal... - Both at the same time, I'm afraid.
0:02:45 > 0:02:47Bloody hell!
0:02:47 > 0:02:50- Now what happens?- Now put them down, drop them down.
0:02:50 > 0:02:52Go on to these two, lift those two.
0:02:52 > 0:02:55- These two?- Yep, quick as you can.
0:02:55 > 0:02:56All right.
0:02:56 > 0:03:00And put them down. Shut the steam right off.
0:03:02 > 0:03:04How many ton did that beam weigh?
0:03:04 > 0:03:0722 ton.
0:03:07 > 0:03:13Took a team of 44 horses to pull each beam all the way from the banks of the River Tyne where they were built.
0:03:13 > 0:03:17Imagine that. At the Sunderland Bridge the toll keeper looked
0:03:17 > 0:03:21and he went "There's no way you're bringing that over my bridge."
0:03:21 > 0:03:24But they got here somehow, so must have crossed in the night.
0:03:24 > 0:03:27We'll put just a bit more steam on, Fred.
0:03:27 > 0:03:30OK, that's fine.
0:03:30 > 0:03:35You can control the strokes and even the direction of the beam using these valves.
0:03:35 > 0:03:37Right, we'll close that off, then.
0:03:38 > 0:03:40Beautiful.
0:03:40 > 0:03:44The water supply has been restored!
0:03:44 > 0:03:49Large pumping stations like Ryhope were built to provide clean drinking water
0:03:49 > 0:03:53after cholera outbreaks in the first half of the 19th century
0:03:53 > 0:03:58were found to be caused by contaminated drinking water.
0:03:58 > 0:04:00The two 100-horsepower beam engines
0:04:00 > 0:04:03straddle three storeys of the engine house.
0:04:03 > 0:04:06Clean water was pumped from aquifers
0:04:06 > 0:04:11running through limestone rocks 250 feet underground.
0:04:11 > 0:04:15..A bearing a long way away, you'd use a laser beam.
0:04:15 > 0:04:19- These guys had a piece of string and their eyes.- We're a bit like that!
0:04:19 > 0:04:21- Bows and arrows.- That's right.
0:04:22 > 0:04:25They only generate about 100 horsepower.
0:04:25 > 0:04:28They would pump 81.5 gallons every stroke.
0:04:28 > 0:04:31Ten strokes a minutes, all day.
0:04:31 > 0:04:35- What did you pump in a 24-hour period?- 24 hours.
0:04:35 > 0:04:37- About a million gallons. - A million gallons?
0:04:39 > 0:04:42Aye, that lovely smell of steam, eh?
0:04:44 > 0:04:47Beam engines. Where the engines got their names from...big beams.
0:04:47 > 0:04:51How did they actually get these beams into position?
0:04:51 > 0:04:55Because they couldn't get them in through the door.
0:04:55 > 0:05:00They came up with the walls and they jacked 'em up with great bulks of wood, didn't they, Keith?
0:05:00 > 0:05:02They built to this floor level.
0:05:02 > 0:05:06- Winched the beams in, then built this huge roof.- Over the top.
0:05:06 > 0:05:08The roof ties the building together.
0:05:08 > 0:05:12The size of the timbers, and the trusses in the roof.
0:05:12 > 0:05:15I wonder if they ever dropped one, if things went wrong!
0:05:15 > 0:05:19Yeah, they must have. See the eyelets?
0:05:19 > 0:05:23The idea was that roof would take the weight of that beam.
0:05:23 > 0:05:27It was never tried and I don't think I'd like to try.
0:05:27 > 0:05:30You get a lovely view of the cylinder tops.
0:05:30 > 0:05:32Watch your head, so you don't get a clatter.
0:05:32 > 0:05:36You can see the different size and diameter of the cylinders.
0:05:36 > 0:05:40Wonderful intricate pieces of metalwork, holding all this together.
0:05:47 > 0:05:50The governor controls the engine's speed
0:05:50 > 0:05:54and the flywheel ensures its smooth action.
0:05:54 > 0:05:57At the heart of any steam engine is the boiler.
0:05:57 > 0:06:04The three Lancashire boilers they've got here date back to 1908.
0:06:04 > 0:06:08My granddad did this for a lot of years.
0:06:08 > 0:06:12Then, boilermaking was a major industry.
0:06:13 > 0:06:19Now, there are few boilermakers left, but Fred has tracked one down.
0:06:19 > 0:06:23I'm on my way to a boilermaker's in Bradford.
0:06:25 > 0:06:29First, I'm stopping off to have a look at a famous Teesside landmark -
0:06:29 > 0:06:33the Middlesbrough Transporter Bridge.
0:06:34 > 0:06:39- I tell you what, stood up here, you don't need to stop for a smoke!- No.
0:06:39 > 0:06:44This bridge was opened in 1911 to carry pedestrians and materials
0:06:44 > 0:06:46across the River Tees.
0:06:46 > 0:06:50It was hailed as one of the great engineering feats of the time.
0:06:51 > 0:06:57It carries 250 foot passengers and 300 vehicles every day.
0:06:59 > 0:07:03I wonder if they'll let me go across with my traction engine.
0:07:03 > 0:07:09Fred opened the visitor centre here four years ago,
0:07:09 > 0:07:15so with a bit of luck, the bridge master will let the engine across.
0:07:15 > 0:07:18And there it is, Alf.
0:07:18 > 0:07:21That's Middlesbrough's pride and joy.
0:07:21 > 0:07:24The biggest transporter bridge in the world.
0:07:24 > 0:07:28It were built by William Arrol in Glasgow
0:07:28 > 0:07:30who built the Forth railway bridge.
0:07:30 > 0:07:35Supposedly be made in Scotland, transported here in big lumps, and then riveted together?
0:07:35 > 0:07:39The steps at that end... There used to be some down this side.
0:07:39 > 0:07:43You could walk across for nothing in the morning on your way to work.
0:07:43 > 0:07:49I heard one time a bloke on the other side had cycled to the bridge,
0:07:49 > 0:07:54carried the bike up and across, and that way he didn't have to pay.
0:07:54 > 0:07:58I once went up there and it's bad enough on your own, never mind carrying a bike!
0:07:58 > 0:08:03But there's another good story. On the great day with the booze-up
0:08:03 > 0:08:07when they opened it, the Lord Mayor fell in the river.
0:08:07 > 0:08:09You could see his hat bobbing down.
0:08:09 > 0:08:13This tall hat, you know. Anyway, let's have a closer look at it.
0:08:13 > 0:08:15I'm looking forward to it.
0:08:15 > 0:08:18- Yeah?- Are you ready? Brake off.
0:08:21 > 0:08:26I've actually seen a list of tariffs from about 1911.
0:08:26 > 0:08:30It says a traction engine is the equivalent of ten shillings.
0:08:30 > 0:08:34I'll have a word with the bridge master and see if it still stands.
0:08:37 > 0:08:41Men of Middlesbrough are famous for building bridges.
0:08:41 > 0:08:45They've built a few up and down the world, haven't they?
0:08:45 > 0:08:49Didn't they do Sydney Harbour bridge from here?
0:08:50 > 0:08:54There's one or two rivets in this bridge, isn't there?!
0:08:58 > 0:09:02The bridge has a travelling car deck, or gondola,
0:09:02 > 0:09:04which traverses the River Tees.
0:09:04 > 0:09:08The gondola is suspended by 30 steel cables from a trolley
0:09:08 > 0:09:14- that runs on rails 160 feet up in the air.- Over the water!
0:09:16 > 0:09:21An electric winder located on the south bank
0:09:21 > 0:09:23pulls the trolley back and forth.
0:09:24 > 0:09:29- It's steady, isn't it? No wobbling. - No, no.
0:09:29 > 0:09:35The bridge's unusual design lets sailing ships with tall masts freely navigate the channel.
0:09:35 > 0:09:38They didn't need to paint it up for us, did they?
0:09:43 > 0:09:45Nice and smooth.
0:09:45 > 0:09:52- It's going at a fair rate of knots now too, isn't it?- Mmm.
0:09:52 > 0:09:56I hope it stops when we get to the other side!
0:09:57 > 0:10:02- Don't drive off till the gap's closed.- No...!
0:10:08 > 0:10:11How much is it?
0:10:13 > 0:10:15Brake off?
0:10:27 > 0:10:29- Brake on?- Yep.
0:10:31 > 0:10:35- Hi.- Thank you for letting us cross your bridge.
0:10:35 > 0:10:37No problem, no problem at all.
0:10:37 > 0:10:39Want to come and see the workings?
0:10:39 > 0:10:42Eh? Yeah.
0:10:42 > 0:10:44Right,
0:10:44 > 0:10:46this is the winder, is it?
0:10:46 > 0:10:48This is it. All original.
0:10:48 > 0:10:551911, hasn't changed. 500 vaults, DC, 30 horsepower motors.
0:10:55 > 0:10:58Aye how long does it take it to get across?
0:10:58 > 0:11:01It takes on average two minutes.
0:11:01 > 0:11:05- Hang on! - You can time it if you like.
0:11:05 > 0:11:08But uh, when I'm not here
0:11:08 > 0:11:12you never know what they're up to, they drive a lot faster.
0:11:25 > 0:11:2830 seconds so far.
0:11:28 > 0:11:30It's going round at a fair whack.
0:11:38 > 0:11:41- Gone halfway across now. - A minute, minute.
0:11:45 > 0:11:50- Can you hear them brakes kick in? - Mmm.
0:11:50 > 0:11:52It was two minutes up to there,
0:11:52 > 0:11:55so it's just under two minutes.
0:11:55 > 0:11:57Mind you, we're not done yet!
0:12:00 > 0:12:02He's driving as per instruction.
0:12:02 > 0:12:04Mmm.
0:12:09 > 0:12:14The next port of call is Israel Newton's boilerworks, in Idle, near Bradford.
0:12:17 > 0:12:19It's 80 miles to Bradford...
0:12:19 > 0:12:21and the weather's fine.
0:12:26 > 0:12:30The backbone of my engine, of course, is the boiler,
0:12:30 > 0:12:34which is needed to raise the steam to make the thing go.
0:12:34 > 0:12:36A steam boiler is virtually a bomb.
0:12:36 > 0:12:38If one of these things blew up...
0:12:38 > 0:12:45In fact, one did in America a few months ago and killed five people and injured 40, I believe.
0:12:45 > 0:12:49You know, you can be lighting a fire in something that's very dangerous
0:12:49 > 0:12:53and end up, like the man in America, killing five people...
0:12:53 > 0:12:55himself and his own son.
0:12:55 > 0:12:57Fred's getting concerned.
0:12:57 > 0:13:01It's still ten miles to Bradford.
0:13:01 > 0:13:08Not only is there no coal in the bunker, but the water level is dangerously low.
0:13:09 > 0:13:11I think we can reach.
0:13:11 > 0:13:15- We're all right, there. - We'll reach that.
0:13:17 > 0:13:20They don't check these very often I don't think.
0:13:20 > 0:13:22It seems a bit tight.
0:13:27 > 0:13:29Plenty of pipe. We're all right.
0:13:29 > 0:13:32You can't believe this, can you?
0:13:32 > 0:13:34You should always... What's doing?
0:13:34 > 0:13:38The door'll not open now. It's not our day.
0:13:38 > 0:13:42It's because the weight is hanging, it's hanging, the van's leaning.
0:13:42 > 0:13:45Why do we want to worry about that?
0:13:45 > 0:13:48- I want to get the screwdriver to open the grid.- Oh.
0:13:48 > 0:13:50There used to be a bar in the back.
0:13:50 > 0:13:54I've got a bar, but it's... it's not been off for a while, that.
0:13:54 > 0:13:56Just pull down on the door.
0:13:57 > 0:13:59Definitely at the top.
0:13:59 > 0:14:02- Is this another of your burglar-proof ideas?- No, no.
0:14:02 > 0:14:05It moves about, made of wood, innit?
0:14:08 > 0:14:10That, gentlemen...
0:14:10 > 0:14:13is not a fire hydrant.
0:14:13 > 0:14:15It's a stop valve.
0:14:15 > 0:14:18- It isn't a fire hydrant.- Eh?
0:14:18 > 0:14:22- Not a fire hydrant. - Not a fire hydrant?!
0:14:22 > 0:14:26It's a stop valve. You'd better abort this bit of this bloody film.
0:14:28 > 0:14:30It's not our day, is it?
0:14:30 > 0:14:33Not our day.
0:14:36 > 0:14:38It isn't, it's uh...
0:14:38 > 0:14:40Do you want to look and try it?
0:14:40 > 0:14:43Yeah, but it isn't.
0:14:43 > 0:14:45It's for turning people's water off.
0:14:45 > 0:14:48Oh, best leave it, then.
0:14:48 > 0:14:51It's never been opened for bloody years, that.
0:14:53 > 0:14:57- Don't know if there's any fire hydrants?- Do you know if there's any fire hydrants?
0:14:57 > 0:15:04Fire hydrants, as a rule, have a bloody great big letter H... painted yellow.
0:15:05 > 0:15:08- There's one here, Fred.- Eh?
0:15:08 > 0:15:11There's one here, 20 yards further up.
0:15:11 > 0:15:13- Has it got a letter H?- Yes.
0:15:18 > 0:15:22- You can go down a bit.- All right. - We don't what any knots in the pipe.
0:15:22 > 0:15:26- We won't get any knots.- Eh? - We won't get any knots.
0:15:26 > 0:15:29Right, it's all yours.
0:15:31 > 0:15:37- Though you'll usually find water eventually...- Success!
0:15:37 > 0:15:41..coal can be a little more difficult to get hold of.
0:15:41 > 0:15:43If you're going on a big journey...
0:15:43 > 0:15:45I've had friends who,
0:15:45 > 0:15:49before they set off, they know roughly how far they can get,
0:15:49 > 0:15:53so they arranged with the coal merchant to leave some at the pub
0:15:53 > 0:15:56or summat like that, you know.
0:15:57 > 0:15:59But wherever they go,
0:15:59 > 0:16:03- somebody always seems willing to help them out.- Hello. How do you do?
0:16:03 > 0:16:06- How are you doing?- We're in trouble, we need some coal.
0:16:06 > 0:16:12Fortunately, in Yorkshire, Fred's fans have all the right connections.
0:16:12 > 0:16:16- I might just know a coal yard with a bit of coal if you're stuck.- Great.
0:16:16 > 0:16:18- I could bring some up. - Yeah, we could...
0:16:18 > 0:16:22- A Willis Jeep,- Yeah, 1942. Not quite as old as your machine, though.
0:16:22 > 0:16:27Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, we... Is he in today, the guy, you know?
0:16:27 > 0:16:30They might be out haymaking today but I can probably get...
0:16:30 > 0:16:34- Farmer-cum-coal merchant. - Exactly. Any particular type?
0:16:34 > 0:16:36The bigger the lumps the better.
0:16:36 > 0:16:40- Right, I'll go get some. - All right, thanks very much.- Bye.
0:16:40 > 0:16:42Yeah, see you later.
0:16:57 > 0:16:59The water tanks hold 60 gallons.
0:16:59 > 0:17:02They're going to be another 20 minutes.
0:17:02 > 0:17:05The tired and the weary.
0:17:05 > 0:17:08- It's all going in now. - That's all right.
0:17:08 > 0:17:15- Precious!- We've had this...er... helpfulness everywhere we've been.
0:17:15 > 0:17:20Everybody's enjoyed seeing us, talking to us, helping us.
0:17:21 > 0:17:24See what I mean?!
0:17:24 > 0:17:27Thank you, dear, thank you very much.
0:17:27 > 0:17:30- Is that all right for you? - That's smashing, yeah.
0:17:30 > 0:17:34- Shall I take it out. - No, are you frightened of er...?
0:17:34 > 0:17:36Frightened that you might bite me!
0:17:37 > 0:17:40Thank you.
0:17:40 > 0:17:45Tell him it's Guinness, he'll drink it all(!)
0:17:45 > 0:17:48Thank you, dear, you're very kind.
0:17:56 > 0:17:58Superior service!
0:17:58 > 0:18:01How did you manage that so quick?
0:18:01 > 0:18:04- Eh?- Welsh steam coal, I believe.
0:18:04 > 0:18:08- Is it? Oh, brilliant! - Shall we put it in the back?
0:18:08 > 0:18:11- Well, hang on. I'm not supposed to lift owt.- Well, I can.
0:18:11 > 0:18:15- Aye, right. Well, just tip it in t'coal box.- Right.
0:18:17 > 0:18:21- I've got bloody bladder cancer. - Oh, dear.
0:18:21 > 0:18:24Is that something that's...?
0:18:24 > 0:18:29- They can't mend it, no.- They can't? - No.- Oh, dear.
0:18:42 > 0:18:45- There you are, you're full up.- Yeah.
0:18:45 > 0:18:49- Well, thanks very much.- You're welcome.- Nobody's paid him yet!
0:18:49 > 0:18:50- Nice to meet you.- Yeah, thanks.
0:18:50 > 0:18:53With the coal and water replenished,
0:18:53 > 0:18:57Fred's getting irritated by a leak that's appeared in his boiler.
0:18:57 > 0:19:01These holes are only as big as flies' legs.
0:19:01 > 0:19:05They're not great big gaping holes. That one's a bit of a nuisance.
0:19:05 > 0:19:11You know, it's... When it's not under pressure, there's nowt there.
0:19:11 > 0:19:13It's dry. I mean, me steam roller...
0:19:13 > 0:19:17it leaked for two years and it was a major job to stop it, you know.
0:19:17 > 0:19:21I thought it that'd seal up, but it never did.
0:19:21 > 0:19:26The boiler inspector mustn't think it's gonna blow up so we'll be OK.
0:19:26 > 0:19:31These leaks aren't a problem. It's just that Fred's a perfectionist.
0:19:31 > 0:19:35In the old days, new boilers were put out in the rain to go rusty
0:19:35 > 0:19:37for 12 months, which sealed them up.
0:19:37 > 0:19:40But Fred didn't have 12 months.
0:19:42 > 0:19:47Fred completely rebuilt his engine from a depressing pile of rusty old bits.
0:19:47 > 0:19:51The boiler was the most challenging part.
0:19:51 > 0:19:56As a steeplejack, he couldn't afford a professional boilermaker.
0:19:56 > 0:19:59He rebuilt the whole thing himself.
0:20:01 > 0:20:05The boiler uses much more water to climb steep hills.
0:20:05 > 0:20:07Great strain is placed on the engine
0:20:07 > 0:20:13as 12 tons of iron slowly hauls itself uphill.
0:20:13 > 0:20:14But the effort's worth it.
0:20:14 > 0:20:18Fred is going to visit one of Britain's last boilermakers.
0:20:18 > 0:20:23Boilermaking were one of Britain's most important industries.
0:20:23 > 0:20:25They even had a boilermakers' union.
0:20:27 > 0:20:31To me, it's a great privilege to go and watch how they did it
0:20:31 > 0:20:36in t'olden days, being a bit of an amateur boilermaker myself.
0:20:36 > 0:20:40Nobody told us you lived on the top of a mountain!
0:20:43 > 0:20:47At Israel Newton's Boiler Works in Bradford, boilers are still made
0:20:47 > 0:20:51in the traditional way, using rivets instead of welding.
0:20:52 > 0:20:57It's run by Mr Gordon Newton, who's the sixth generation of family
0:20:57 > 0:21:02in a business that was founded in 1803. We'll leave it here a minute.
0:21:02 > 0:21:08Fred's proud of his boilermaking and he wants to show off the best bits.
0:21:08 > 0:21:12Aye, the er... We got the rivets from Barnsley, a very nice man
0:21:12 > 0:21:14and er...for the foundation ring
0:21:14 > 0:21:19and up the er...up the new throat plate and round the barrel.
0:21:19 > 0:21:23But when we hydraulic-ed it, everything were all right, but...
0:21:23 > 0:21:28- That bloody great tank of water! There's nine rivets on each side, you know.- Oh, right.
0:21:28 > 0:21:30When you go over a bump, you know.
0:21:30 > 0:21:33And of course it's bloody leaking, you know.
0:21:33 > 0:21:36But I'm not bloody squealing about the leaks.
0:21:36 > 0:21:40- I think eventually they'd stop. - They'll make up.- Yeah, yeah.
0:21:40 > 0:21:42Did you replace the box only?
0:21:42 > 0:21:45Oh, it's got a new box and new barrel.
0:21:45 > 0:21:49The only original plates of the boiler are this plate,
0:21:49 > 0:21:52- top wrapper, and the back end. - Yeah..
0:21:52 > 0:21:57We've had no bother with any leaks from the, you know, from the gasket.
0:21:57 > 0:22:00Well, I'm telling a lie. This is just fizzing a bit.
0:22:00 > 0:22:03There's bit of stain coming on it.
0:22:03 > 0:22:08We came home from somewhere, and half a strip out.
0:22:08 > 0:22:12It were a bloody disaster, so we got back and we had a week off!
0:22:12 > 0:22:16In the week off, I decided, like... I got up one morning at six o'clock.
0:22:16 > 0:22:22I got all that off, all that, had the pipes off and everything by the time Alf come.
0:22:22 > 0:22:26I got that off and got going tap tap tap and all that, you see.
0:22:26 > 0:22:30They'd nearly all gone but I weren't happy and then another guy come,
0:22:30 > 0:22:34who's like a larger-than-life man and he says, "I've got the stuff."
0:22:34 > 0:22:38He says, "It'll block a bloody bullet hole up in an engine block."
0:22:38 > 0:22:42Them were his words. Oh, he's gone to sleep.
0:22:42 > 0:22:47Anyway, we... And it were £9. £9.99 a bottle.
0:22:47 > 0:22:53- I thought owt's worth a try. I didn't want to put any more chemic in it.- No, no.
0:22:53 > 0:22:56God's natural ways, I think, are better, bloody rust.
0:22:56 > 0:23:01- That's right.- Anyway, I slung 'em in, corked it up and all the leaks went.
0:23:01 > 0:23:06But after a bit they've bloody come back again. Not as bad, but back.
0:23:06 > 0:23:10Anyway, it's not bloody peeing out. There's not a puddle of water.
0:23:10 > 0:23:14You see some, don't you, at steam rallies and they're like a sieve!
0:23:14 > 0:23:16Well, I saw one where the tube...
0:23:16 > 0:23:19Ready for five minutes.
0:23:19 > 0:23:21Fred says this is what engine men do.
0:23:21 > 0:23:25They fall off when it looks comfortable and relax...
0:23:25 > 0:23:27I'm just short of a pillow!
0:23:40 > 0:23:44Here, at Israel Newton's Boiler Works, they manufacture and repair
0:23:44 > 0:23:48all kinds of locomotive and steam engine boilers.
0:23:48 > 0:23:54They use traditional plate-bending, flanging and hot riveting techniques.
0:23:58 > 0:24:05Local boiler rebuild could cost anything from £20,000 to £200,000!
0:24:07 > 0:24:09- You've got plenty of rivets!- Yeah!
0:24:09 > 0:24:15There's about nine ton, all various sizes, my father bought years ago.
0:24:17 > 0:24:22Boilers contain steam at a very high pressure, which is very dangerous.
0:24:22 > 0:24:24The boilermaker has to ensure
0:24:24 > 0:24:29the riveting and the plate work is done to a very high standard,
0:24:29 > 0:24:32or this could lead to an explosion
0:24:32 > 0:24:36that would create mayhem and havoc over a great area.
0:24:39 > 0:24:44My father always used to say, "Never give a man a job unless you can do it yourself."
0:24:44 > 0:24:50- Agreed.- That's how, in my opinion, businesses should be run, but that's not so any more..
0:24:50 > 0:24:53The modern world of accountants.
0:24:53 > 0:24:56Exactly, exactly, yeah.
0:24:56 > 0:24:58Take quarter of an inch...
0:24:58 > 0:25:01Traction engines are an expensive business.
0:25:01 > 0:25:05When a quote for a boiler repair comes in at upwards of of £1,500,
0:25:05 > 0:25:10Fred was never afraid to have a go himself.
0:25:10 > 0:25:15That was for a special throat plate for a new boiler we've got going.
0:25:15 > 0:25:19People don't realise, do they, how much preparation you have to do?
0:25:19 > 0:25:21No, the tooling and what have you.
0:25:21 > 0:25:26- When you tell them how much it is, they're like...- Exactly, £1,500.
0:25:26 > 0:25:30I know somebody in Lancashire that went somewhere else!
0:25:30 > 0:25:34- You've got the remains of a smoke box.- That's right, yeah.
0:25:36 > 0:25:38Come on.
0:25:40 > 0:25:45The centrepiece of Gordon's workshop is a 1930s press,
0:25:45 > 0:25:49which makes the curved plates common in boilers of this type.
0:25:49 > 0:25:53Gordon, what pressure does this press do?
0:25:53 > 0:25:57It's only about 50 ton, which is quite amazing,
0:25:57 > 0:25:59but that's all you need.
0:26:07 > 0:26:10This is my pride and joy just now.
0:26:10 > 0:26:14The Great Western Society approached us about two and a half years ago
0:26:14 > 0:26:18with some very old drawings going back to 1904
0:26:18 > 0:26:22to make a brand new vertical steam rail motor boiler.
0:26:22 > 0:26:27- Mmm.- It's quite something I think, even if I say it myself.
0:26:27 > 0:26:33There's 415, er...tubes in there. There's quite some heating surface.
0:26:33 > 0:26:36- What pressure?- 160 psi. - That's a lot of weight!
0:26:36 > 0:26:41People don't realise that for every square inch...
0:26:41 > 0:26:45- there's 160 pounds trying to blow it apart.- That's right.
0:26:45 > 0:26:49Yeah, looks to me like a long-term project!
0:26:49 > 0:26:53With something like this... There isn't another one like it to copy...
0:26:53 > 0:26:56You've got to take your time.
0:26:56 > 0:26:58You don't want to make any mistakes.
0:26:58 > 0:27:01No, it's got to be done right first time.
0:27:04 > 0:27:07Have we got a good future here, Gordon, in this works?
0:27:07 > 0:27:11We've enough work that's ongoing 12 months. The work we're doing
0:27:11 > 0:27:16is a mixture of locomotive work and traction engine work.
0:27:16 > 0:27:20There is a definite future and with there being a lack of skills,
0:27:20 > 0:27:22er...you'll always get the work.
0:27:22 > 0:27:27How are you going on about getting people to learn the skills?
0:27:27 > 0:27:31Very difficult. You just can't get anybody to...
0:27:31 > 0:27:35They don't want to wear boiler suits for a start, it's not street cred.
0:27:35 > 0:27:37Sorry about that.
0:27:37 > 0:27:40But, um...but that is a problem.
0:27:40 > 0:27:43They don't want to dirty their hands.
0:27:43 > 0:27:45A trust is now being formed.
0:27:45 > 0:27:52Our business will transfer to this other trust and then from then on,
0:27:52 > 0:27:57we can get young people in, and try and make boilermakers of them.
0:27:58 > 0:28:02People still want traditional type of work.
0:28:02 > 0:28:08The trust will be the boiler skills and training trust and then a subsidiary of the operating company
0:28:08 > 0:28:13will be Israel Newton 21st Century Ltd. And that's how it'll go.
0:28:19 > 0:28:21Bye!
0:28:21 > 0:28:25And as boilermaking heads into the 21st century,
0:28:25 > 0:28:29Fred and Alf are heading south to visit Sheffield...
0:28:29 > 0:28:33the city that made the steel for an engine like this.
0:28:34 > 0:28:38They'll visit a forge where they used to make things
0:28:38 > 0:28:42like the axles and crankshaft for an engine like Fred's.
0:28:42 > 0:28:44And they'll go to a working museum
0:28:44 > 0:28:48that tells the early history of steelmaking in Sheffield.
0:28:48 > 0:28:50Subtitles by BBC Broadcast 2005
0:28:50 > 0:28:53E-mail us at subtitling@bbc.co.uk