Church Bells of Warwickshire

PILLERTON HERSEY St Mary the Virgin 3: 7-0-10 in Bb - Unringable

Grid Reference	151/489299
Postcode	CV35 0QJ
Recording	None Available
Affiliation	Coventry DG
Peals	None
Sunday	None
Practice	None
Other Information	Unringable

History

The church stands on rising ground to the north of the small village. It consists of a chancel, with a north small modern vestry, nave, north and south aisles, and a west tower. The chancel leans to the south of the axial line of the nave. The chancel is of mid-13th-century date and one of the best local examples of its period. The nave was probably of the same date, and the lower part of the tower was perhaps added a little later in the same century. The tower was altered and heightened in the 15th century. The south aisle, shorter than the nave, was added probably c. 1400, but the south arcade of the nave, as well as the north arcade and aisle, dates from 1875, when much alteration and restoration was done.

A three - ringable until the 1970s. Rehung with new fittings in a composite frame by Henry Bond of Burford in 1901 at a cost of £48/10/0. The tenor is Bb-48c and the second and treble Db-53c and C-46c respectively. This means that the treble and second are 93c apart, just short of a semitone. Therefore the bells are the front 3 of a ring of 4. Let's call them Bb, C and Db! They do sound good. They hang in a composite frame, Henry Bond 1901 and have been quarter turned. (At a cost of £48/10/-)

A recent brief visit by the Guild BRF team showed that the tenor is loose on wheel and headstock and there is worm in the headstock where it needs to be tightened. There is also some worm in other stocks & stays too. It would be inadvisable to get tenor up even though it might last for a bit! The treble and second's wheels are need of minor repair. The clappers are at best "iffy"!

Some parishioners have been trained to chime by local ringers and this might generate some interest in a full restoration, one would hope. Indeed a scheme has been launched in early 2013 to restore the bells and add a further 1/2 bells to make them a ring of 4/5. The plan is to use a redundant bell from the ring of 5 at Adlestrop, which were remodelled into a lighter ring of 6, as the treble of four. The bells were removed from the tower in mid-January 2017. The plan has been modified to include an all new metal 5-bell frame. They are expected to be re-installed as a four in late 2017. Weights given now reflect the "as received" values at Taylors

Details of the Bells

Nu1 Abraham Rugdhall I 1711 4-1-00 25.75" 1264.0Hz (Eb+27c)
1 Henry Bagley, Chacombe 1668 4-1-21 29.50" 1075.0Hz (Db-53c)
2 Henry Bagley, Chacombe 1672 5-2-17 32.25" 1019.0Hz (C-46c)
3 Newcombe, Leicester 1602 7-0-10 35.25" 907.0Hz (Bb-48c)