Weekly Roundup – 29-Aug-21

Weekly Roundup – 29-Aug-21

The weekend after next will see the return of the the very popular ‘1940s weekend‘ events on the WSR and as in previous years, the DEPG are delighted to be able to play a small part, even though our locos were just a glint in their respective designer’s eyes during WW2. This year, the event will be supported by our two Class 33 ‘Crompton’ diesel-electrics, D6566 (33 048) and D6575 (33 057) so please do try and get along to this event if you can. Click here for the 1940s WEEKEND timetable details.

S&DJR Class 7F 2-8-0 53808 stands at Williton station on 13st September 2019 with a ‘wartime freight train’ as Class 35 ‘Hymek’ D7017 stands in the South Yard. Class 33 ‘Crompton’ D6575 (33 057) can just be seen in the distance in front of the Goods Shed and the boiler of GWR 4-6-0 7027 ‘THORNBURY CASTLE’ also gets into the picture, on the far right. Photo by Gordon Crook © CC BY-NC 3.0

 

Our projects continue to progress, as below, but the key news this week is the release of the timetables for the MIXED TRACTION WEEKEND that will take place on Friday 17th and Saturday 18th of September. This will be the WSR’s first true ‘hop-on-hop-off’ event since 2019 and will feature our two ‘Cromptons’ plus ‘Hymek’ D7018 and will include running to Norton Fitwarren in the afternoons. Here’s the outbound part of the timetables to whet your appetite (click the images to go to the WSR website timetable pages to keep up with any updates):

The timetabling is quite intense and has plenty of interest for fans of both types of traction, so please do try and come along to support the event if you can.

A very big THANK YOU to all who have bought and are buying tickets in support of our 2021 diesel-hauled services, and an equally big thank you to all of the volunteers who have been and are involved in putting on the shows !

If you have a question, please reply to this email or fill in the contact form on our website. Thanks ! Please help us and help the WSR make these diesel-hauled services a success by buying a ticket to ride !

 

 

OTHER LOCO NEWS:

Class 14 ‘Teddy Bear’ D9526 – this loco remains out of action at the KENT & EAST SUSSEX RAILWAY because of an issue with the fuel injection system. The spare fuel pumps and injectors have been sent from Williton to a specialist company for calibration and balancing, and will then be sent to the K&ESR for installation into the loco. Hopefully, this will resolve the issue and allow the loco to return to service.

 

Class 47 47077 ‘NORTH STAR’ – our ‘celebrity’ remains marooned at Bishops Lydeard because of delays in obtaining permission for her oversize road haulage move from Bishops Lydeard to Pickering on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway. The latest indications are that the loco will now be moved by rail, but we do not have the date or route information yet. As soon as we do, it will be shared via a DIESELGEN bulletin.

Class 47 47077 ‘NORTH STAR’ remains in the bay platform, next to the signal box at Bishops Lydeard on 24th August 2021. Photo by Charlie Cox © CC BY-NC 3.0

 

Class 52 D1010 ‘WESTERN CAMPAIGNER’ – we continue to receive donations towards the restoration of this much-loved loco and we would like to say a big THANK YOU to all who have already contributed to the fund to support the £100,000 restoration of D1010.

Yesterday, the engine at ‘A’ end was started up as part of the investigation into an electrical sub-system issue that had prevented the engine from running during the ‘yard shunt’ in June. Although a temporary repair has been made to allow the engine to run, a permanent repair will be needed before the loco returns to service. Here’s a short video covering the engine run, thanks to Martin and Leroy for providing the video clips:

 

We intend to raise £100,000 for the whole restoration project so please help us by using one of the below links to make a donation:

After selecting a donation link, you will then be able to use the quantity buttons to select the precise value that you want to donate. Please remember to select the GiftAid option if you are eligible because this will give us a 20% boost via a contribution from HM GovernmentThank you very much for supporting the D1010 Restoration Appeal !

In addition to funds, we also need plenty of HANDS. If you love the ‘Westerns’ and you are not already a member of the DEPG, please join us so that you can become one of the team that is going to return D1010 to full operational condition.

 

Class 33 D6566 (33 048) – this loco is stabled at Williton, ready for use during the forthcoming ‘1940s weekend’.

 

Class 33 D6575 (33 057) – this loco is stabled at Bishops Lydeard, ready for use during the forthcoming ‘1940s weekend’.

 

Class 35 ‘Hymek’ D7017 – no change this week – this loco is waiting for its turn to go into the Swindon Shed for bogie disconnection and lifting to replace the weak leaf spring. We are hoping to make a start on this work in late October/early November, depending on availability of space in the Swindon Shed.

 

Class 35 ‘Hymek’ D7018 – after standing-in for a steam locomotive last weekend, this loco is at Williton and is being made ready for her next turn of duty which is planned for the MIXED TRACTION WEEKEND of Friday 17th and Saturday 18th September.

 

Class 14 ‘Teddy Bear’ D9518 – we are very happy to report that donations to our D9518 restoration fund continue to build and as a result, the Board has approved the re-installation of the springs, hornguides and wheels. This specialised riveting and alignment work will be performed by WSR Restorations at the Swindon Shed, Williton.

This week, attention has turned to the many parts required for the restoration of the cab assembly. Several edges of the sheet steel components have completely corroded away, making identification difficult. The parts being repaired in the below photos are from the cab door wells, where the cab doors open inward to reveal a step up to the cab floor above. The photos of the excellent work being done by Colin F will hopefully make more sense when we can show the repaired parts being re-fitted to the cab structure. 

D9518’s heavily corroded cab door wells in obvious need of repair at Williton on 28th August 2021. Photo by Colin Foxhall © CC BY-NC 3.0

 

D9518’s cab door well metalwork replacement in progress at Williton on 28th August 2021. Photo by Colin Foxhall © CC BY-NC 3.0

 

D9518’s cab door wells repaired at Williton on 28th August 2021. Photo by Colin Foxhall © CC BY-NC 3.0

 

In preparation for the rebuilding of the Paxman 6YJXL diesel engine, the ‘turnover’ stand has been cleaned up and painted in readiness for the V6 engine to be installed. This stand allows the three-tonne engine to be positioned securely and safely as it undergoes disassembly, inspection, repair and re-assembly. 

D9518’s Paxman 6YJXL engine turnover stand cleaned and painted and ready for use at Williton on 10th August 2021. Photo by Terry Deacon © CC BY-NC 3.0

 

We intend to raise £10,000 for the whole restoration project so please help us by using one of the below links to make a donation :

After selecting a donation link, you will then be able to use the quantity buttons to select the precise value that you want to donate. Please remember to select the GiftAid option if you are eligible because this will give us a 20% boost via a contribution from HM GovernmentThank you very much for supporting the D9518 Restoration Appeal !

If you love the ‘Teddy Bears’ and you are not already a member of the DEPG, please join us so that you can become one of the team that is going to return D9518 to operational condition – and see her haul passenger coaches for the first time in her life!

 

Andrew Barclay 578 (ROF 1) – this loco is undergoing bodywork repairs prior to priming and painting. The livery chosen for this loco will be the Government-standard (in 1972) deep bronze green that the loco carried during her days in service at the Royal Ordnance Factory (ROF) in Puriton, near Bridgwater, Somerset.

 

Many thanks to all of our volunteers who are hard at work cleaning, painting, maintaining, restoring, managing and fund raising for our fleet of heritage locomotives !

 

BOOK REVIEW – long-term member and regular contributor Neale Long has brought our attention to a number of new books that should be of great interest to our readers. The titles are as follows, and we need readers to provide us with book reviews ASAP so that we can share opinions about these new publications. Here goes:

Many thanks to Neale for bringing these books to our attention.

 

Check out growing number of PRE-OWNED BOOKS that are available from our online store. All such books have been donated by members and supporters and ALL PROCEEDS from the sale of pre-owned books goes directly to the D1010 restoration fund. Please reply to this email or use our contact form if you have books that you would like to donate. We welcome your donations!

 

ON SHED: last week, we asked readers to try and spot D9526 among a group of 10 Class 14’s on shed at Bury Bolton Street shed on the East Lancs Railway for the 50th anniversary of the introduction of the Class. Our own loco was fairly easy to spot because she was the only one wearing the logo of her previous owner, Blue Circle Industries, as in this photo below:

Our D9526 carries the Blue Circle logo at Rawtenstall on the East Lancashire Railway on 24th July 2014. Photo by Simon Purvis © CC BY-NC 3.0

 

Of the 56 locomotives produced by Swindon Works, all but 8 went on to work in industry after their short career on BR and many including our own D9518 and D9526 worked into the 1980’s doing hard labour in less than ideal settings.

Many thanks to Simon for sharing his photos. If you were at the 50th anniversary bash and if you have a story to tell, then we would love to hear from you.

 

DEPG NEWS: Following the success of the ‘excursion’ season so far, we can now focus on selling tickets for the fifth and final run, which takes place on Saturday 25th September with haulage from our Class 35 ‘Hymek’ D7018 with an extension to Norton Fitzwarren on the return leg. The ticketing links for this service is below (this is a link to the WSR website):


IN ADDITION TO THE ABOVE, our diesels will be in use for the ‘1940s WEEKEND on Saturday 11th and Sunday 12th of September and again for the MIXED TRACTION WEEKEND on Friday 17th and Saturday 18th September. This running opportunity will feature an extension to Norton Fitzwarren to provide both additional mileage and additional interest from this little-used section of the line. We will also be operating a diesel during the AUTUMN STEAM GALA (believe it or not!) on Friday 1st October and Saturday 2nd October (probably D7018). Mark the dates in you diary !

Below are links to the WSR website:

       

 

OTHER DEPG NEWS: Our Williton Diesel Depot will be the venue for the forthcoming Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the DEPG, taking place at 1430 this coming Saturday 4th September. Only fully paid-up members can vote at the AGM so please renew your membership online by clicking this link.

 

DEPG WEBSITE: Our ONLINE SHOP IS NOW LIVE so go ahead and visit our store! Our next new product will be the 2022 calendar, for which we have now received many high quality photos, so thank you very much if you have contributed. We have made the selection and the calendar will be at the printers during the coming week.

 

WSR NEWS: The WSR are now operating public services to Minehead via a connecting bus service between Dunster and Minehead, so please support these services by buying tickets to ride!

Don’t forget to read about the WSR appeal by clicking this link – this appeal also needs our support because we need a thriving railway to run on !

The WSR’s Class 03 shunter D2133 awaits its next shunting duty at Dunster West Sidings in the afternoon of Friday 27th August 2021. Photo by Paul Fleet © CC BY-NC 3.0

All members of the WSR family have to do what we can to help and one easy way is to make a donation via the WSR website. Another way is to ensure that all of the timetabled services are a commercial success, so please buy a ticket if you can.

 

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