After a bit of a protracted refurbishment programme, the bells finally returned to Holy Trinity Church tower on the 10th of June. With the team* now working like they’d been in the bell hanging business for years, five bells were lifted and in place by the end of day one, with the tenor ready for lifting the next day. At the end of the following day all bells were in place with wheels, stays and clappers fitted.
At this stage, James needed to take some measurements to allow him to make the runner boards, as these can’t be fabricated until the exact location of the bells in the frame are known. He plans to return in the last week of June to fit the boards so hopefully the bells will be ready for a test ring then. Doubtless there will be some minor snagging, for example adjusting rope lengths, painting the frame where it has been drilled or knocked, and there is always a lot of tidying and vacuuming to do.
Given that by the time this has been completed the holiday season will be upon us, the plan is that a celebration of their return, and to thank the sponsors, will be held in early Autumn. Further details will be provided shortly.
* A big thank you to Peter Barrett, Dave Byrne, Raza Rizvi, Tony Almeida, Pete Gettens.
Andrew Williams
Steeple Keeper, Holy Trinity, Penn.