The Bells of Holv Trinitv Church.
Dovnton
Report on an inspection carried out on
20 March 1999
lntroduction
Three members of the Bristol Rural branch visited Holy Trinity church, Doynton on
Saturday 20 March in order to carry out a brief inspection of the bells and fittings, and to
make some suggestions as to the way forward concerning ringing of these bells. A
further visit was canied out on 10 April in order to carry out some simple maintenance
work and to investigate the possibility of regular ringing of at least some of the bells for
Sunday services.
Results of lnspection
The condition of the bells remains much the same as noted in the inspectlon report of
1991. No further noticeable deterioration has taken place, the following headings detail
the findings.
Bells and clappers
All the bells and clappers are in a sound condition, although some of the clappers would
benefit from rebushing to correct wear which has taken place over the years. The tenor
bell has a cast in crown staple, which should be drilled out and replaced by a wrought iron
or steel crown staple and clapper, before corrosion of the existing crown staple causes
damage to the bell.
Headstocks and Bearings
All of the bells have wooden headstocks, some of which show signs of woodworm attack.
Standard insecticide treatment would prevent further damage. Bells 1 - 4 have plain
bearings, and the tenor is mounted on self-aligning ball bearings. The treble has one
bearing on the frame proper, and one bearing on a frarne extension into the window on
the south side of the tower.
The bearings on bells 1 - 4 were examined and found to contain quantities of
contaminated grease which had gone hard and had shrunk back from the gudgeons and
journals, leaving the bearings dry, albeit substantially undamaged. One of the bearings
on the number 2 bell was moving very slightly in the frame, and this requires repacking
and tightening.
The tenor bearings have been the subject of long debate, and this inspection confirmed
previous findings that the bearings are badly misaligned causing severe problems in
ringing the bell. The headstock also appears to be slightty bowed causing some
misalignment of the gudgeon pins.
Wheels
The wheels are generally in need of some maintenance to ensure that no further
deterioration occurs. Some of the wheel shroudings need replacement, and the wheel on
the tenor requires replacement due to damage, warplng and general wear.
Sliders. stavs and running boards
There was again some evidence of woodworm attack in the sliders and running boards,
but all were still serviceable. Some of the stays have been replaced with inappropriate
pieces of timber, one at least appearing to be a table leg. The set position of at least one
bell had been altered by means of nailing packing pieces onto the stay, instead of
adjusting the slider/running board stops.
Ground Pullevs
Most of the ground pulleys showed signs of severe wea!' in the bearings and rope paths.
The frame level pulley on bell no. 4 is badly aligned to the rope causing the rope to have
worn a considerable groove in the side face of the pulley housing.
Rope Guides
The rope guides are generally serviceable, although minor local repair work ts neces$4ry
in places. The guide for the treble rope requires replacement, consisting at present of a
single board with a hole in it.
Ellacombe Chiming Apparatus
This is in working order, being used regularly for service ringing. Most of the chiming
hammers would benefit from rebushing, and new chiming ropes are required.
Ropes
New ropes are required throughout.
Work carried out
A further
mornings work was undertaken on April 10
to carry out some
minor
maintenance works.
All the plain bearings (bells 1 - 4) were cleaned of the old grease and the bearing
surfaces were examined. While traces of wear were noted in the bearing, this was
consistent with normal use and was not considered a problem. New grease was packed
in to the bearings, and the bells swung to distribute this around the bearings.
The bearings and headstock of the tenor were further examined with a view to making
suggestions for repains.
Results of work carried out
Having first obtained permission, the front four bells were rung up individually whilst a
close watch was kept for frame movennent. There was little detectable movement of the
frame when each bell was rung individually. When the front four bells were rung together,
there was some movement detected in the frame towards the tenor pit. This was
however still slight, and in the opinion of those present, not at all likely to cause problems
or result in damage to the fabric or danger to any person present.
Recommendat!ons
The bells rang remarkably easily given the length of time that has elapsed since they
were last turned full circle. Although not an easy ring of bells, there would appear to be
no immediate reason why the front four bells could not be rung for Sunday services and
maybe even forweddings given some further minor maintenance.
Should it be declded that the bells could be rung for services on a regular basis, then
some parts require replacement. New ground pulleys would assist in improving the
handling of the bells and replacement of the stays with items made from well-seasoned
ash would be a prudent move.
The tenor requires a new headstock, gudgeons and bearings, and the bearing plates
require to be correctly seated on the frame.
Most of this work is within the capability of the enthusiastic amateur, and willing help is
available within the Bristol Rural branch. Members of the branch have assisted in the
removal and replacement of bells at Stapleton, St James Priory Broadmead, Westerleigh
and Dyrham, and would be willing to assistwith works at Doynton. There is also plenty of
help available for training of new ringers.
On the finance front, a donation could be expected from the Gloucester and Bristol
Association, and grants may also be available from other bodies for this type of work.
A pleasant sequel to the ringing of the front four bells was the number of people who
spoke to the maintenance team afterwards and who commented on how nice it was to
hear the bells being rung once more.
The team attending the bells on these two occasions consisted variously of:
Tony York (Secretary, Bristol Rural Branch)
Martin Blanchard (Ringing Master, Bristol Rural Branch)
Brian Angel
Chris Musty
Gary Crisp
Bryan Hardwick (Author)
Thanks are due to Mrs Marsh for ananging access to the bells.