Class 33 ‘Crompton’ D6566 (33048) was the vantage point for this shot of WSR ‘Mogul’ 9351 leading BR(W) 7828 ‘ODNEY MANOR’ into Williton Station on the last afternoon of the WSR’s very successful ‘Spring Steam Spectacular’ event. Photo by Natalie Royal © CC BY-NC 3.0
The WSR’s ‘Spring Steam Spectacular’ event took place over the the May 3-6th Bank Holiday weekend and the wide range of visiting locos combined with some decent weather to bring in the crowds, with well-loaded trains and busy platforms adding to the atmosphere. The WSR have reported an increase in ticket revenue of 50% compared to the 2023 event, so WELL DONE to EVERYONE involved in putting on this very successful show !
The WSRA had two steam locos on display outside the WS Restorations ‘Swindon Shed’ at the far end of our yard, and these drew visitors into our yard and generated good business for the MOBILE CATERING VAN, in turn generating an income for the DEPG and for Williton Station funds. This same van will be back for the SUMMER DIESEL FESTIVAL and we will also have a VIEWING AREA marked out with tables and chairs, where visitors can relax with their refreshments while taking photos from the lineside.
The ever-popular Rod Saunders was very busy in our loco shed with his MODEL RAILWAY SALES stand, and our own DEPG SALES STAND was strategically positioned opposite. Over the four days, including profits on sales plus donations and commissions, we will have earned over £1,000 for DEPG funds, from a STEAM gala, plus we met new potential members and volunteers, so not bad at all and well worth the effort.
The scene inside the DEPG’s loco shed at Williton before the gates opened on Saturday 4th May 2024. Left is Class 14 D9518 undergoing a major restoration. The DEPG sales stand is alongside with Colin F, Julie and Paul T (L-R) in discussion, then right of centre is Rod’s huge model railway sales stand. Impressive indeed ! Photo taken from the mezzanine floor by Jon Tooke © CC BY-NC 3.0
A big thank you goes out to the volunteers who prepared the shed, met the visitors, manned the displays and worked the sales stand for four full days, and then tidied up afterwards. Well done all !
BR(E) Class B1 4-6-0 61306 ‘MAYFLOWER’ added some colour to the gala and was a very popular visitor. The mainline-registered machine was pictured alongside our smallest loco, Barclay 0-4-0DH 578 (ROF1) with Class 52 D1010 ‘WESTERN CAMPAIGNER’ in tow on the morning of the first day, Friday 3rd May 2024. Photo by Martin Howard © CC BY-NC 3.0
Having the steam locos out of the Swindon Shed for a long weekend opened up an opportunity for us to get Class 52 D1010 ‘WESTERN CAMPAIGNER’ into the ‘Swindon Shed‘ and over the pit, so that we could disconnect the thrust brackets that transmit the traction and braking forces between the bogies and the loco body. These large and heavy brackets are only accessible when the loco is positioned over a pit, and even then the job is very hard and unpleasant, the whole area being covered with dirt and grime from many years of operation.
Our intrepid team was formed by volunteers Neil, Colin F, Viv, Paul T and Martin, and they set to work under the loco on Saturday 4th and by the end of the day, all four brackets had been released, with some bolts putting up more of a fight than others. The next loco was shunted back into our loco shed at the end of the last day of the gala, as soon as the sales stands had been packed away and the area cleared. WELL DONE TEAM !
Class 52 D1010 ‘WESTERN CAMPAIGNER’ was moved inside the ‘Swindon Shed‘ on the morning of the first day of the steam gala, Friday 3rd May 2024 and positioned over the pit. Photo by Martin Howard © CC BY-NC 3.0
Left to right, the frames of the WSRA’s GWR ‘Small Prairie’ 4561 were out on display alongside BR ‘Standard 4 Tank’ 80064 for the duration of the steam gala. Class 52 D1010 ‘WESTERN CAMPAIGNER’ was pictured while being shunted back to the DEPG yard by Barclay 578 (ROF1) at the end of the day on Monday 6th May 2024. Photo by Josh Brinsford © CC BY-NC 3.0
DIESEL LOCO RUNNING ON THE WSR:
The next scheduled diesel running will take place on Sunday 12th and again on Sunday 19th May when Class 33 ‘Crompton’ D6566 (33048) will be back in action with the 1230 from Bishops Lydeard to Minehead and the return service under the RED timetable.
Class 35 ‘Hymek’ D7017 has been rostered for two weekends in June, the 15/16th and the 29/30th being under the BLUE timetable with 80-mile diagrams both days, originating from Minehead. 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.
MESSAGE FROM MARK BLADWELL, DEPG Publicity Officer
The Diesel & Electric Preservation Group are collecting Coins and Banknotes from anywhere in the world, modern and any vintage, as part of their fund raising activities.
We can use any of the following:
– The old (large) 50p, 10p and 5p, together with ½ p
– Old £1 coins together with any old £1, £5 and £10 notes
– Euros & Cents; US, Canadian, Australian and New Zealand Dollars / cents coins and notes
– Pre-decimal coins (pre 1971)
– Isle of Man, Guernsey and Jersey coins and notes.
– In fact, any coins and notes from around the world.
A collection jar is at Williton Depot but we will be happy to receive items in the post. Contact Mark at publicity@depg.org or write to Mark at The Old Goods Shed, Williton Station, Somerset, TA4 4RQ
IMPORTANT DATES:
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. We are also offering a viewing area with a mobile catering van, so make a plan to spend an hour or two at Williton !
The visiting locomotives are:
- English Electric Class 50 50033 (D433) ‘Glorious’
- BR-Derby Class 46 ‘Peak’ D182 (46 045)
- English Electric Class 20 ‘Chopper’ 20189 (D8189)
- English Electric Class 20 ‘Chopper’ 20142 (D8142) ‘Sir John Betjeman’
- BR-Derby Class 24 D5054 (24054) ‘Phil Southern’
MAKE A NOTE OF THESE DATES and do your best to attend. It is definitely going to be a great event !
An additional bonus on Saturday 8th June will be a presentation by former BR Fleet Manager GEOFF HUDSON entitled ‘FIFTY YEARS WITH FIFTIES‘, taking place inside Williton Diesel Depot with 50033 (D433) ‘Glorious’ stabled outside the shed as a backdrop. Click here or on the image below for more information about this special event.
DEPG SUMMER RAFFLE 2024
Last summer’s DEPG Raffle was reasonably successful and resulted in donations to our two main restoration projects D1010 and D9518 totalling around £1000, but this year we want to DO MUCH BETTER and we have opted for cash prizes that will be of interest to all.
As you will see from the ticket image above, the draw will be made on the Saturday 8th June at Williton Diesel Depot at 16:00 on the DEPG sales stand inside the main shed. Click here or on the ticket image to buy your tickets online, or use our CONTACT FORM to request paper tickets by post. THANK YOU IN ADVANCE FOR YOUR SUPPORT !
LOCO NEWS:
Class 52 D1010 ‘WESTERN CAMPAIGNER’ – as previously reported, this loco was the focus of attention from underneath while positioned over the pit inside the ‘Swindon Shed‘ last weekend. Now that the thrust brackets have been removed, we are able to prepare for the next trick, which is lifting the loco from it’s bogies and lowering the body onto stands. When completed, this will result in a sight NOT SEEN SINCE BR SWINDON IN THE 1970s. We will try and get this work done before the diesel gala, but such things cannot be rushed and we will not take any shortcuts, so we can’t commit to this at the moment. The good news is that several hurdles have already been jumped and we are preparing to jump the last few.
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 reply to this email or use the CONTACT FORM on our website if you can lend a hand.
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Above – Neil and Colin F (L-R) were part of the team involved with D1010 on Saturday 4th May 2024 |
Above – Paul T, Neil, Colin F and Martin discuss the need for a special tool which Colin F would then make. Volunteer Viv was behind the camera. |
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Above – Looking upwards under the loco, one of the large and heavy thrust brackets is visible, with the four retaining bolts (the ones with split pins) still in place. |
Above – looking upwards at a different bracket after the four retaining bolts have been removed (only two of the bolt holes are visible in this view) |
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 this coming weekend.
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 is stabled at Bishops Lydeard and is in regular use as the station pilot.
Class 33 D6566 (33 048) – this loco will run ‘light engine’ from Williton to Bishops Lydeard on Saturday 11th May to go over the pit in Westridge Shelter for an underframe exam and for lubrication of the bogies and traction motors. The loco will then be ready for action the following day. See our DIESEL RUNNING DATES page for details.
Class 33 D6575 (33 057) – currently stabled at Williton.
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 weeks. We have rostered this loco for two weekends of public services in June, the first being 15/16th June and the second being 29/30th June, under the BLUE timetable. Additional dates will be allocated ASAP. 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’ have been making careful progress with the repair of the damaged transmission, retrieving spare parts from an old transmission and checking them very carefully to ensure that we don’t end up with new issues in the repaired unit. So far so good, the retrieved spare parts are in very good condition and fit properly.
The re-assembled shaft will be trial fitted into the transmission housings and if everything checks out OK, we can move on to the next layer in the housing, which includes the oil pumps and the intermediate drive. Fingers crossed ! Here are some photos:
D7018 – the No. 5 clutch that has been retrived from the transmission that last worked in D7018 in 1995 (without issue). The baulk ring is the inner set of dog teeth that are offset from the driving teeth. Pictured at Williton on Tuesday 30th April 2024 by Colin Foxhall © CC BY-NC 3.0
D7018 – the baulk ring is a separate assembly that includes a return spring. This photo shows the spring and the retainer, all parts that were smashed to bits in the photos shared last week. Pictured at Williton on Monday 29th April 2024 by Colin Foxhall © CC BY-NC 3.0
D7018 – the retrieved spare parts were assembled with the rest of the geartrain so that a trial fitment could take place. Volunteer Tim is pictured at Williton on Tuesday 30th April 2024 while tightening the locknut with a custom-made ‘C’ spanner. Photo 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 – although the ‘open shed’ made working on this loco somewhat difficult, several of our volunteers did make progress on the cab assembly and with some of the metalwork associated with the driver’s desk. More progress will be made this week and hopefully some photos can be provided for next week.
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 is now stabled at Williton and is ready for action. Keep an eye on our DIESELGEN postings for details of any workings involving this locomotive.
Class 47 47077 ‘NORTH STAR’ – this loco has worked several services between Pickering and Grosmont on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway recently and we continue to received plenty of feedback on our social media channels, proving that this loco is actually the most popular member of our entire fleet ! We would welcome some more photographs though !
Andrew Barclay 0-4-0DH 578 – this useful little loco continues to be busy almost every Saturday, handling the various shunt moves in the yard, with more moves planned for Saturday 12th. Watch the Williton RAILCAM to see this loco in action !
Barclay 0-4-0DH 578 (ROF 1) was pictured in the North Yard at Williton on Saturday 27th April 2024 after being used to shunt D1010 into the ‘Swindon Shed‘ (behind) Photo by Martin Howard © CC BY-NC 3.0
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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Price : £7.50 |
Price : £6.00 |
ON SHED – this week, we feature a photo that is 50 YEARS OLD depicting Class 35 ‘Hymek’ D7026 working a freight train through Ealing Broadway station. By this time, there were only 9 ‘Hymeks’ left in service and D7026 only had five months left to live before her number came up. The BR standardisation curtain finally fell on the ‘Hymeks’ in March 1975, but thanks to the DEPG, the DTG and the BHG, there are four survivors. Many thanks to Gary for providing us with this photo.
Class 35 ‘Hymek’ D7026 was in fairly good external condition compared to others at that time. Pictured at Ealing Broadway station in May 1974, this loco was destined to work for another five months before joining the scrap line. Photo by Gary Lemon © CC BY-NC 3.0
DEPG NEWS – thank you very much to all of the new members and new volunteers who have come forward to support the DEPG during the last few months. We are very grateful of the additional help !
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 !
Go to the previous Weekly Roundup post