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Introduction
Evolution of the horse
A range of skills
Delicate task
Reflected glory

When the Salvage Squad arrive at the showman's yard in Ironbridge, they see the steam-powered Gallopers ride scattered around in pieces. They have three months to get it turning again.

The Gallopers were built in 1912 and would have been the centrepiece of the fair. After a busy life travelling the fairgrounds of Britain and carrying hundreds of thousands of fairgoers (including King George VI when he was the carefree Duke of York) the Gallopers ended up in Switzerland. There it was discovered by enthusiasts, Simon Harris and Kevin Scrivens. They rescued the ride, which hadn't been used for 20 years, and shipped it back to their small fairground at the Blists Hill Victorian Museum outside Telford in Shropshire.

The first fairground roundabouts were hand-powered, with crudely-made wooden horses called 'dobbies'. By the 1880s the rides were steam-powered and much more complex, featuring beautifully carved wooden horses. By the late Victorian era the steam fair in all its gaudy glory – with the gallopers at its centre – held a special place in the nation's affections.

The restoration of the Gallopers includes everything from heavy engineering – rebuilding the steam engine that powered the ride – to intricate crafts – cutting and polishing the decorative mirrors that grace the centre section. The Salvage Squad also have to rebuild the rounding boards and assemble the ride at the fair, while Ian Cruickshank, a skilled wood carver with 25 years experience, repairs the once-beautiful carvings and fully restores the horse that was ridden by the Prince of Wales.

When Axel and Claire strip the modern mirrored tiles off the centre truck, they find some interesting markings underneath. These show the pattern on the original Victorian mirrors. Axel takes on the task of having replicas made.

He visits Kestrel Glass in Bradford, a company that specialises in the production of decorative mirrors, known as 'brilliant cutting'. Expert Eric Holmes informs Axel that the old pattern was a traditional 32-pointed design called a Brunswick Star. They mark out a new piece of glass with great care, carefully reproducing the traditional pattern.

Axel then takes the marked-out glass to the grinding wheel and offers it up for the first cut. The wheel is made of an abrasive stone and requires a very steady hand. This is a much more delicate job than Axel normally takes on – any mistake and the glass will break and he will have to start again from scratch.

After a couple of hours, Axel has cut the beautiful old design into the pane of glass. The next stage is the most crucial: Axel has to polish out the cut marks with pumice powder to make them completely smooth and clear. All that remains is to spray the glass in a special mixture of chemicals that deposit a layer of real silver, turning the glass into a mirror.

When the Squad start to assemble the ride, the new mirrors sparkle in the sunlight and Axel glows with pride. Axel and Jerry even bring their children along to have a ride as Suggs collects the fares. All the Squad members agree that seeing the 90-year-old Gallopers turning again is a high point of the series.