Class 14 ‘Teddy Bear’ D9526 headed an unusual working on Saturday 13th April 2024, the load comprising a Mark 3 sleeper coach 10542 and an ex-GWR ‘Toad’ Brake Van, with Class 09 Shunter D4107 (09019) bringing up the rear. The ’09’ was left in the siding and the rest of the train ran to Minehead. Photo by Terry Deacon © CC BY-NC 3.0
A most unusual working took place on Saturday 13th April 2024 when Class 14 ‘Teddy Bear’ D9526 hauled an ex-Caledonian Mark 3 sleeper coach from Bishops Lydeard to Minehead Carriage Workshop to undergo roof repairs. As the coach is air braked and the loco is vacuum braked, the ex-GWR ‘Toad’ Brake Van was attached at the rear to provide the train braking. Once the coach had been delivered to Minehead, the loco and brake van departed for Williton so that the loco could be in position for her next booked duty, an infrastructure working on Friday 19th April. It is great to see this loco getting more frequent use on the WSR.
This coming weekend will see some Class 33 ‘Crompton’ action with D6575 (33057) out on test on Saturday in the Norton Fitzwarren section with sister D6566 (33048) tagging along to provide a load and act as insurance should the loco under test encounter any trouble. At the end of the session, if D6575 has been pronounced as OK then the locos will swap duties, with D6575 remaining at Bishops Lydeard as the Duty Loco, and D6566 heading for Williton for some well-earned TLC. Click here to see the DIESELGEN bulletin relating to these special workings.
DIESEL LOCO RUNNING ON THE WSR:
On Sunday, the Duty Class 33 will haul the 1230 service from Bishops Lydeard to Minehead and return, as a booked working under the RED timetable that remains in force until 19th May (except for the Steam Gala, see below). Keep an eye on our DIESEL RUNNING DATES page for details of diesel-hauled public services and sign up to our DIESELGEN email bulletin service to get advance notice of non-public service running.
CONGRATULATIONS to the DIESEL TRACTION GROUP for their successful charter run behind D1015 ‘WESTERN CHAMPION’ on Sunday 14th April 2024 when the loco hauled a load equivalent to 17 coaches (the Class 57 on the rear was not providing power) from Paddington to Birmingham, to the delight of everyone on board and the lineside photographers and spectators along the length of the route. An outstanding feat of heritage traction, that’s for sure, and a tribute to the team at the DTG who have worked so hard to get the loco into such good condition. Hats off indeed !
The DTG’s Class 52 D1015 ‘WESTERN CHAMPION’ was evidently hard at work when pictured approaching Kings Sutton (obviously non-stop!) on Sunday 14th April 2024, hauling a 17-coach equivalent load from Paddington to Birmingham. Photo by Graham Perry © CC BY-NC 3.0
The DTG’s Class 52 D1015 ‘WESTERN CHAMPION’ was pictured at the Banbury station stop on Sunday 14th April 2024, surrounded by admirers. The loco had just arrived with ‘THE ONE WAY WIZZO‘ railtour from Paddington and was en route to Birmingham. Photo by Ashley Harris © CC BY-NC 3.0
IMPORTANT DATES:
The first major event of the year is the SPRING STEAM SPECTACULAR which will take place throughout the Bank Holiday weekend, 3rd through 6th May, during which our loco shed will be open to the public, with Rod’s Model Railway sales stand alongside our own DEPG sales stand. Click here or on the image below for more information via the WSR’s website.
WSR DIESEL GALA 2024 – Thursday 6th through Saturday 8th JUNE
The WSR’s Diesel Gala will take place from Thursday 6th through to Saturday 8th June with mixed traction running on Sunday 9th, hopefully with at least one of the visiting locomotives at work. Our Williton depot will be open to the public from Thursday through Sunday, with a number of unusual and interesting exhibits on display. More details coming soon.
The first visiting locomotive to be announced was English Electric Class 50 50033 (D433) ‘Glorious’, no doubt to the delight of the many followers of the class, and the second visitor has now been announced as BR-Derby Class 46 ‘Peak’ D182 (46 045), courtesy of the Peak Locomotive Company and a fine example of another well-loved ‘Type 4’ class. Also visiting, courtesy of 20189 Ltd., are English Electric Class 20 ‘Choppers’ (or ‘Whistling Wardrobes’) 20189 (D8189), in BR blue livery and 20142 (D8142) ‘Sir John Betjeman’, in commemorative London Transport livery, so PLEASE MAKE A NOTE OF THESE DATES and do your best to attend. It is going to be a great event !
LOCO NEWS:
Class 52 D1010 ‘WESTERN CAMPAIGNER’ – our ‘tongue in cheek’ request for help from anyone who happens to have two spare Maybach engine stands bore fruit almost immediately with an offer of suitable rolled steel sections that will allow us to fabricate two engine stands to a pattern already developed by BOB CLEGG, two examples of which are already in use at Williton. MANY THANKS to Bob for his quick response and for his offer of help !
As our plans for the lifting of the loco develop, we are reviewing all of the possibilities with a view to balancing the need to minimise the cost with the need to minimise the risk. The over-riding concern is to ensure that the lifting procedure is safe, and this means that we are proceeding with caution. We hope to finalise the procedure during April with a view to performing the lift during May, if at all possible.
Meanwhile, work proceeds on the cooler groups and on the disconnection of the engines to allow them to be lifted out before the loco body gets lifted. The next step will be to position the loco over a pit to have the bogie thrust brackets disconnected. The engines will remain in the loco until that step has been completed and the spring hanger fastenings have been freed up, because we need to have plenty of weight bearing down on the springs before we attempt to loosen the massive nuts !
Our website now carries a new page, ‘D1010 Progress Report – Jan 2024‘, the content of which will be familiar to DEPG members because it was included in the January Newsletter. This information is now available to all by clicking on this link.
D1010 – the loco was moved back indoors on to number 2 road at Williton on Saturday 6th April 2024 to allow the resumption of the electrical overhaul work and to allow for the engraving of another 200 patches ! (click here for the SPONSOR A PATCH scheme). Photo by Martin Howard © CC BY-NC 3.0
D1010 – the first of the two cooler group assemblies approaches the end of its overhaul, with just one area of corrosion remaining to be repaired. Volunteer Ian F was pictured while working diligently on the cleaning and painting within the cooler group. Pictured at Williton on Saturday 13th April 2024 by Andy Royal © CC BY-NC 3.0
D1010 – the repaired surfaces were given a coat of grey paint by Roy at Williton on Saturday 13th April 2024. The corrosion repairs had been carried out by volunteer Tony during the previous week. Thanks guys ! Photo by Andy Royal © CC BY-NC 3.0
As stated previously, we will need MORE HANDS to help us get the work done. If you want to see this locomotive back on the rails soon, then PLEASE COME ALONG AND HELP US WITH THIS WORK ! There is a wide range of tasks that need to be done, so simply use the CONTACT FORM on our website to let us know if you can lend a hand.
Sponsorships for patches on D1010 continue to come in, for which we are VERY grateful indeed. We have many more patches waiting for sponsors, so please support the CAMPAIGN for CAMPAIGNER and click here or on the image further below to get your name engraved into the metal of the locomotive. We will be having another engraving session as soon as the loco gets moved back into the loco shed (the weather has not been cooperative lately!).
The certificates are now being emailed to the sponsors and we have already sent hundreds out with hundreds more to go, so we are very busy with this work. Here’s an example of what we are sending out:
Sponsorship includes a photograph and a certificate via email, but we can print the certificates on photo paper and mail them out upon request, in which case we will be asking for an additional £2.50 donation per certificate to cover photo paper, ink and postage. We can even put them in frame for you.
The drawings that have been developed in parallel will provide a formal record of the position of each sponsored patch and this will allow sponsors to look up the location of their patch when they visit the depot at Williton during the WSR SUMMER DIESEL FESTIVAL. THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR SUPPORT – and your PATIENCE !
Click the image below to sponsor a patch:
See our CAMPAIGN for CAMPAIGNER web page for more details. We still have a lot of work to do on this massive locomotive, so PLEASE DO COME ALONG AND HELP IF YOU CAN !
Class 09 D4107 (09019) – this loco in regular use at Bishops Lydeard.
Class 33 D6566 (33 048) – this loco has returned to Bishops Lydeard in support of the RED timetable although her stay will be short-lived if sister D6575 passes her test running on Saturday 20th April and takes over as Duty Loco. Either way, D6566 is due for some care and attention from Ian and the team and will undergo some maintenance in the coming weeks, either at Bishops Lydeard or at our Williton base.
D6566 – the loco worked the 1000 and 1430 departures from Minehead on Sunday 14th April 2024, and was pictured leaning into the curve on the approach to Stogumber with a service to Bishops Lydeard. Photo by Mark Ireland © CC BY-NC 3.0
Class 33 D6575 (33 057) – as already stated, this loco will be undergoing a period of test running in the Norton Fitzwarren section on Saturday 20th April 2024 (see our DIESELGEN bulletin for more details). The exhaust system has been fully overhauled but the loco needs to be worked hard to get everything up to the normal operating temperature (running in the yard or station limits is not sufficient to heat the engine thoroughly). Let’s hope for a successful outcome !
D6575 – the lower part of the photo shows the new bellows coupling that has been fitted to the loco as part of her exhaust system overhaul. These stainless steel components change their length to accommodate the expansion and contraction of the cylinder heads and exhaust pipes. Pictured on Sunday 14th April 2024 by Ian Robins © CC BY-NC 3.0
Class 35 ‘Hymek’ D7017 – this loco is ready to return to service apart from a very short list of minor issues that will be addressed at Williton over the next few weekends. We hope to get this loco rostered for some weekend public services in June, so keep an eye on our DIESEL RUNNING DATES page or sign up to our DIESELGEN email bulletin service to get the news as soon as it is released.
Class 35 ‘Hymek’ D7018 – the ‘transmission team’ continued their search for the issues that have affected the reliability of this wonderful piece of engineering, and so far have made several observations of differences between the service manual and the hardware in front of them. The explanation will probably be because of modifications or because of experience gained as the ‘Hymek’ fleet accumulated hours, but in the absence of documentation, we have to note the differences and research them. Luckily, we have two other transmissions to use as a reference, not including the transmission in D7017 (which we do not intend to disturb), but disassembling them will involve a lot of effort so will be the last resort.
So far, the only components that have been found to be unfit for further service are the claw rings of the directional clutch and one of the roller bearings, which shows damage to some of the rollers (we have spares for these parts).
The next phase of work involves the measurement of the clutch actuator mechanism to try to establish why the directional clutch halves do not engage properly. Only after we have gathered the information will we carry on with the disassembly, to ensure that we don’t miss something.
D7018 – the top casing of the transmission was lifted off by Tim and Colin F at Williton on Tuesday 9th April 2024. Photo by Colin Foxhall © CC BY-NC 3.0
D7018 – the input shaft was then lifted out and set aside for inspection. The control block assembly can now be seen, protruding from the top of the casting. Pictured at Williton on Tuesday 9th April 2024 by Colin Foxhall © CC BY-NC 3.0
D7018 – the damaged directional clutch can now be seen clearly. The clutch will not engage properly because the spring-loaded baulk ring (not visible from this angle) has jammed. Pictured at Williton on Tuesday 9th April 2024 by Colin Foxhall © CC BY-NC 3.0
Although we hope to be able to use spare parts that we have available, we will still need to replace seals, bearings, gaskets as necessary and we also need to drain the oil and have new oil available. All of these things cost money. PLEASE HELP by making a donation of £10 or by buying our 64-page A4 HYMEK D7018 BOOKLET (£10) which covers the history of this locomotive from build through to her return to service in 2019 following her major overhaul. THANK YOU VERY MUCH !
Click here or on the image above to order your copy of our ‘HYMEK D7018’ booklet, available for £10.
Click here or on the donation image above to go to the donations page on our website. If you feel able to donate more than £10, simply increase the quantity when on the donations page. Thank you in advance for your support !
Class 14 ‘Teddy Bear’ D9518 – the re-wiring of the driver’s desk is making very good progress with John doing the electrical work, Terry doing the pneumatic work and Colin doing the desk restoration work. Some items, such as the driver’s brake valve, have been re-fitted to the driver’s desk temporarily to allow the cable lengths to be measured. These parts will be removed again to allow the desk covering to be reinstated, then they will be fitted properly. The photos below show the progress, with John doing the electrical work, Terry doing the pneumatic work and Colin G doing the desk restoration work.
The cardan shaft issue is moving along and we now have the feedback from the specialist company that evaluated the alternative set of shafts. The results are better than our original shafts but still short of what we need, so work continues to find the most suitable solution. We will report further on this in a future edition of Roundup.
D9518 – looking down upon the driver’s desk in the cab at Williton on Saturday 13th April 2024, the Westinghouse driver’s brake valve and handle dominates the view. This item has been fitted temporarily to allow the wire lengths to be determined. It will then be removed and stored again, until the desk covering has been completed. Photo by Andy Royal © CC BY-NC 3.0
D9518 – the horn valves have been re-fitted to the inner edge of the door frames, where they are in easy reach of the driver and secondman. Pictured at Williton on Saturday 13th April 2024 by Andy Royal © CC BY-NC 3.0
D9518 – Some original signwriting from BR-Swindon days has been uncovered in the cab, serving to identify which end of the locomotive is which (A or B). Pictured at Williton on Saturday 13th April 2024 by Andy Royal © CC BY-NC 3.0
This loco is the subject of a fundraising appeal so please follow this link to find out more. We need your help ! In addition to funds, we also need plenty of HANDS. 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 fully operational condition as ‘NCB No. 7‘.
Class 14 ‘Teddy Bear’ D9526 – this loco has now relocated to Williton and is being rostered for use on several engineering and infrastructure workings over the next few weeks. Keep an eye on our DIESELGEN postings for details.
D9526 – working in a safe manner on an infrastructure ‘tidy train’ on the site of the former Leigh Loop on Friday 12th April 2024; the equivalent view from the 1960s would be no hard hats, no hi-vis and no Road-Rail vehicle. The 1960s workforce would have probably been wearing suit jackets and reading newspapers ! Photo by Malcolm Anderson © CC BY-NC 3.0
Class 47 47077 ‘NORTH STAR’ – this loco worked several services between Pickering and Grosmont on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway during the week and we received plenty of feedback on our social media channels, proving that this loco is actually the most popular member of our entire fleet ! Here are some of the photos that we received, showing visitors making the most of the very poor weather. Many thanks to all who braved the weather and provided photos, and apologies that we can’t use them all.
47077 (D1661, 47613, 47840) ‘NORTH STAR’ was pictured departing from Goathland on Tuesday 9th April 2024 during a sustained period of unseasonably poor weather. Photo by Martin Fisher © CC BY-NC 3.0
47077 (D1661, 47613, 47840) ‘NORTH STAR’ was pictured arriving at Grosmont Station on Tuesday 9th April 2024 during a brief spell when it had actually stopped raining. Photo by Gary Attridge © CC BY-NC 3.0
47077 (D1661, 47613, 47840) ‘NORTH STAR’ at the platform at Grosmont Station on Tuesday 9th April 2024, looking very smart indeed. Photo by Gary Attridge © CC BY-NC 3.0
Andrew Barclay 0-4-0DH 578 – this loco is stabled on number 3 road at Williton and has been busy of late, handling the various shunt moves in the yard. This powerful little loco will be in use again on the weekend of 20/21st April.
If you can help by donating your time to any of these projects, then please JOIN US and come along to the depot for an introduction to what we do and how we do it. We currently have people on site from Saturday through to Tuesday and we can open on other days if we can be sure of getting at least two volunteers on site at all times, so there is plenty of scope. We have tasks of all types to suit most capabilities, both skilled and unskilled.
Many thanks to all of our volunteers who give up so much of their time to work on the cleaning, painting, maintaining, restoring, managing and fund raising for our fleet of heritage locomotives !
BOOK REVIEW – both of our recently-added books are selling very well and making useful contributions to our loco funds, so if you haven’t already got your copy, then click on the images below to go to our online store to get yours now !
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Price : £19.95 |
Price : £17.50 |
The new book by BERNARD MILLS is a very nice piece of work and is available at £19.95 per copy. We have now replenished our stock so that we can continue to meet the demand. This book provides ESSENTIAL READING for anyone interested in diesel-hydraulics and diesel-electrics of the South-Western varieties.
We also recommend the new book by ROGER GEACH entitled ‘HYDRAULIC MEMORIES’ and we have a BOOK REVIEW from regular contributor Neale Long on this title, and have posted it to our website; click on this link to find out what Neale thinks of this new book.
In the pre-owned category, we have posted several new titles and they are selling as fast as we are posting them, so PLEASE DONATE YOUR SURPLUS BOOKS so that we can replenish our stocks and keep the funds flowing in. Click HERE for our contact form.
All monies gathered from the sale of pre-owned books go directly to DEPG funds for the upkeep of our locomotive fleet, so we would like to say thank you very much to all who have donated and all who have purchased from our online store. Check our online store regularly and change the ‘default sorting’ to ‘sort by latest‘ to keep an eye on new postings.
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WILLITON in BR days on the cover picture! |
A very interesting book ! |
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Price : £11 |
Price : £8.50 |
ON SHED – and now for something completely different. While on a European vacation recently, our Chairman Martin Howard spotted two examples of diesel-hydraulic locos that are still in service in Germany. The Class 218 locos are developments of the ‘Hymek’ concept with single engines and hydraulic transmissions (in this case made by Voith). Although abandoned by the BR technical leadership in the early 1960s, diesel-hydraulic transmission remained in use on other railway systems (mostly in mainland Europe) and is still with us today in the many examples of Sprinter, Super Sprinter and Thames Turbo DMUs that can be found on most of the modern UK network. Many thanks to Martin for sharing his photo with us all.
A pair of DB Class 218 diesel-hydraulics wait for their next duty at Frankfurt Hauptbahnhof. Pictured on 19th March 2024 by Martin Howard © CC BY-NC 3.0
DEPG NEWS – with more infrastructure work planned for this coming weekend and a test run in progress, this will be another week that flashes by with more tasks to be done than it is possible to do. PLEASE JOIN US AND HELP US to keep moving forward with the restoration and operation of our fleet !
The next Board Meeting is scheduled to take place at Williton on Saturday, 27th April. Please let us know by using our CONTACT FORM if you have a question that you would like to have placed before the Board.
The DEPG is entirely run by volunteers and we need to expand our volunteer numbers if we are going to be able to continue making progress on so many fronts simultaneously. If you have some time and feel able to help, please let us know by clicking this link to use our online CONTACT form. We look forward to hearing from you !
The DEPG depends on the support of all of our members, so please JOIN US and if you are already a member, please make sure that your membership is up to date. If you want to join or are not sure about your membership status, please click here or on the image below to open MEMBERMOJO. It is very quick and easy, and does not require you to remember yet another password. Thank you very much !
