Salvage Squad
Encyclopedia
The "Salvage Squad" comprised a presenter, either Lee Hurst or Suggs
Suggs (singer)
Graham McPherson , better known as Suggs, is an English singer, actor, former radio DJ, TV personality, and most famous as the frontman of the band Madness.-Early life:...
, and a team of restoration experts: Claire Barratt
Claire Barratt
Claire Barratt is an industrial archaeologist, steam engineer and television presenter from the UK.She studied civil engineering at the University of Portsmouth, and whilst doing so, became more interested in mechanical engineering...
, Axel Cleghorn and Jerry Thurston. The team was also supplemented on each job by appropriate specialist craftsmen. The role of the presenter was mainly to narrate progress and to research the history of the item being restored, although they were sometimes roped-in to the restoration work itself.
The programmes included archive footage of similar machines in action, explanations of the characteristic technologies used, descriptions of the restoration techniques, and interviews with people historically associated with the items during their commercial life.
Produced by Wall to Wall, the three series of one-hour programmes were originally broadcast on Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
during 2002, 2003 and 2004 and have since been re-broadcast on the Discovery Channel
Discovery Channel
Discovery Channel is an American satellite and cable specialty channel , founded by John Hendricks and distributed by Discovery Communications. It is a publicly traded company run by CEO David Zaslav...
and the History Channel.
Series 1
Salvage Squad: Lee Hurst, Claire Barratt, Axel Cleghorn, Jerry Thurston
- SteamrollerSteamrollerA steamroller is a form of road roller – a type of heavy construction machinery used for levelling surfaces, such as roads or airfields – that is powered by a steam engine...
- Centurion TankCenturion tankThe Centurion, introduced in 1945, was the primary British main battle tank of the post-World War II period. It was a successful tank design, with upgrades, for many decades...
- Bristol carBristol CarsBristol Cars is a manufacturer of hand-built luxury cars headquartered in Patchway, near Bristol, United Kingdom. Bristol have always been a low-volume manufacturer; the most recent published official production figures were for 1982, which stated that 104 cars were produced in that year...
- Gyroplane
- SteamboatSteamboatA steamboat or steamship, sometimes called a steamer, is a ship in which the primary method of propulsion is steam power, typically driving propellers or paddlewheels...
- Fire engine
- Alvis Stalwart (FV620)Alvis Stalwart (FV620)The FV 620 Stalwart, informally known by servicemen as the 'Stolly', is a highly mobile amphibious military truck built by Alvis that served with the British Army.-History:...
or 'Stolly' (Restoration report)- Amphibious military supply truck, dating from 1968.
- The main aim of this project was to restore the Stolly's amphibious capabilities. This involved seeking out a set of 'swimming gear' – routinely removed from these vehicles by the ArmyBritish ArmyThe British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
to save weight – and to install new seals on the huge cargo doors. The final test was to drive the vehicle down a slipway at 20 mph into a river, to see if it would float. Fortunately for all concerned, it did.
- Racing car
- Thames sailing bargeThames sailing bargeA Thames sailing barge was a type of commercial sailing boat common on the River Thames in London in the 19th century. The flat-bottomed barges were perfectly adapted to the Thames Estuary, with its shallow waters and narrow rivers....
- de Havilland Gipsy Moth
Series 2
Salvage Squad: Suggs, Claire Barratt, Axel Cleghorn, Jerry Thurston
- WatermillWatermillA watermill is a structure that uses a water wheel or turbine to drive a mechanical process such as flour, lumber or textile production, or metal shaping .- History :...
- Steam-powered gallopers (Restoration report)
- in the Victorian fairground at Blists Hill
- Massey Shaw FireboatMassey ShawThe Massey Shaw is a former London Fire Brigade fireboat. The historic vessel was saved from dereliction by a group of enthusiasts who are currently engaged in its restoration....
- Shelvoke and DrewryShelvoke and DrewryShelvoke & Drewry was a British manufacturer of specialised commercial vehicles, now defunct. It was best known for its innovative waste collection vehicles, which were once the preferred choice of municipal authorities in the UK...
'PN' RevopakRevopakThe Revopak is a type of waste collection vehicle manufactured by the British company Shelvoke and Drewry.Introduced in 1971, the Revopak was in fact a British-built clone of a French Bennes-Ray Superpac...
(extra-short wheelbase) dustcart (See: Preserved Shelvoke and Drewry Vehicles#SCY 786 X) - SimplexMotor RailMotor Rail was a British locomotive-building company, based in Bedford. Formed in 1911 as The Motor Rail & Tramcar Co Ltd, they built petrol and diesel engined locomotives, mainly narrow gauge. During World War I over 900 locos were supplied for use on temporary military supply railways...
armoured narrow gauge railway locomotive - Steam carSteam carA steam car is a light car powered by a steam engine.Steam locomotives, steam engines capable of propelling themselves along either road or rails, developed around one hundred years earlier than internal combustion engine cars although their weight restricted them to agricultural and heavy haulage...
- Blackpool "Coronation" tram car no. 304 (Restoration report)
- This was a 'special' restoration, to celebrate the Queen's Golden Jubilee, and was one of the most ambitious. The aim was to restore the tram in time for its 50th birthday.
- Morgan Super SportsMorgan Motor CompanyThe Morgan Motor Company is a British motor car manufacturer. The company was founded in 1910 by Harry Frederick Stanley Morgan, generally known as "HFS" and was run by him until he died, aged 77, in 1959. Peter Morgan, son of H.F.S., ran the company until a few years before his death in 2003...
car - Ruston-BucyrusRuston-BucyrusRuston-Bucyrus Ltd was an engineering company established in 1930 and jointly owned by Ruston and Hornsby based in Lincoln, England and Bucyrus-Erie based in Bucyrus, Ohio, the latter of which had operational control and into which the excavator manufacturing operation of Ruston and Hornsby was...
10RB 'crane'Crane (machine)A crane is a type of machine, generally equipped with a hoist, wire ropes or chains, and sheaves, that can be used both to lift and lower materials and to move them horizontally. It uses one or more simple machines to create mechanical advantage and thus move loads beyond the normal capability of...
– restored as a drag line excavator - Ploughing engine (or 'steam plough') "Margaret"(Restoration report)
Series 3
Salvage Squad: Suggs, Claire Barratt
This series had a distinctly different 'feel' to the first two. Rather than having a team of three to do the bulk of the restoration, this series featured just Claire coordinating the work undertaken by a number of specialist restorers, often herself having a go at some of the handiwork.
In addition to the usual ten restoration candidates, this series included two 're-visits' to projects from the second series that had not been entirely successful first time round.
- AmphicarAmphicarThe Amphicar is an amphibious automobile, the first such vehicle mass-produced for sale to the public starting in 1961. The German vehicle was designed by Hanns Trippel and manufactured by the Quandt Group at Lübeck and at Berlin-Borsigwalde. Its name is a portmanteau of "amphibious" and "car". The...
– (Restoration report) The Amphicar featured was not finished (the mechanical restoration was incomplete) and so the car was not used. It was sold in May 2011,http://www.amphicars.com/ac4sal.htm - Massey Harris 780 combine harvesterCombine harvesterThe combine harvester, or simply combine, is a machine that harvests grain crops. The name derives from the fact that it combines three separate operations, reaping, threshing, and winnowing, into a single process. Among the crops harvested with a combine are wheat, oats, rye, barley, corn ,...
- Scammell ScarabScammell ScarabThe Scammell Scarab is a British 3-wheeled tractor unit produced by the truck manufacturer Scammell between 1948 and 1967. Its name derived from the rounded bonnet that resembled the elytra of a Scarab beetle...
– (Restoration report) - Model T Ford
- WW2 Biber submarine
- 1936 Grafton steam craneSteam craneA steam crane is a crane powered by a steam engine. It may be fixed or mobile and, if mobile, it may run on rail tracks, caterpillar tracks, road wheels, or be mounted on a barge...
- located at Blists Hill Victorian Museum
- Skima 12 hovercraftHovercraftA hovercraft is a craft capable of traveling over surfaces while supported by a cushion of slow moving, high-pressure air which is ejected against the surface below and contained within a "skirt." Although supported by air, a hovercraft is not considered an aircraft.Hovercraft are used throughout...
- 1931 Sentinel steam lorrySentinel Waggon WorksSentinel Waggon Works Ltd was a British company based in Shrewsbury, Shropshire that made steam-powered lorries, railway locomotives, and later, diesel engined lorries and locomotives.-Alley & MacLellan, Sentinel Works, Jessie Street Glasgow:...
- Snow TracSnow TracThe Snow Trac is a small personal Snowcat that is roughly the size of a modern compact car.-Origins and description:In 1954, Lars Larsson, the chief design engineer for a Swedish farm equipment company, AB Westeråsmaskiner, decided to develop a tracked vehicle to take him and his brother on fishing...
- M10 WolverineM10 WolverineThe M10 tank destroyer, formally 3-inch Gun Motor Carriage, M10 was a United States tank destroyer of World War II based on the chassis of the M4 Sherman tank. It was numerically the most important U.S...
Tank Destroyer - Blackpool "Coronation" tram car no. 304 – revisited (Restoration report)
- The original restoration did not fully achieve the desired results. This programme showed the original restoration in an edited form, with the new content focussing on the re-engineering of the VAMBAC control unit.
- Massey Shaw FireboatMassey ShawThe Massey Shaw is a former London Fire Brigade fireboat. The historic vessel was saved from dereliction by a group of enthusiasts who are currently engaged in its restoration....
– revisited: first visit was in Series 2
External links
- The original Channel4.com official websites, now at the Internet ArchiveInternet ArchiveThe Internet Archive is a non-profit digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It offers permanent storage and access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, music, moving images, and nearly 3 million public domain books. The Internet Archive...
: - 'Behind-the-scenes' feature in Old Glory magazine