D6575 – the light was fading fast when this picture was taken at Williton on Saturday 2nd December 2023, with volunteer loco manager Ian R and Tom at work inside the cab, braving the very cold conditions that prevailed that day. Photo by Andy Royal © CC BY-NC 3.0
LOCO NEWS:
Class 52 D1010 ‘WESTERN CAMPAIGNER’ – undeterred by the very cold weather, Ian F and Roy continued their work on the filling and sanding of the ‘A’ side at ‘A’ end. This side was previously the worst area on the locomotive in terms of corrosion and now carries more new metal than any other area of the locomotive. As the below photograph shows, the diligent work by these two volunteers has put shape back into the loco and she is close to being ready for a top coat of BR coach maroon (to replicate her original livery of 1962). Well done guys !
Progress on the ‘A’ transmission reached a milestone when the end plate of the turbine rail was re-fitted on Tuesday 28th November, completing the overhaul of this sensitive and complex assembly in an overall timeframe of less than 3 months. There are still several more stages of re-assembly to go before the transmission can be considered complete, but the work is of a more straightforward nature. Again, well done team !
Meanwhile, new volunteer Vivian made a start on the ‘B’-end bogie, removing the flaking paint and dirt from the outer framework in readiness for inspection and re-painting. It is great to report that we have new hands at work, but don’t leave it to others, if you want to see this locomotive back on the rails soon, then PLEASE COME ALONG AND HELP US WITH THE WORK ! There is plenty more to do, so simply reply to this email or use the CONTACT FORM on our website if you can lend a hand.
D1010 – the weather was too cold for top coat at Williton on Saturday 2nd December 2023 so the team applied the paint as an additional undercoat, after working on the filling and sanding. Roy and Ian F are doing a great job, as this view of ‘A’ end shows. Photo by Andy Royal © CC BY-NC 3.0
D1010 – the very robust and heavy turbine rail output shaft was lowered into the turbine housing at Williton on Monday 27th November 2023 while being guided by Geoff. This part will become attached to the secondary shaft (visible in the centre) via a tapered fit that will become a precise and very tight fit by injecting oil under very high pressure. Photo by Colin Foxhall © CC BY-NC 3.0
D1010 – the end cover of the turbine rail output shaft was pressed on at Williton on Tuesday 28th November 2023, with Tim watching over the process. This closes up the assembly in readiness for the milestone completion stage (next photo). Photo by Colin Foxhall © CC BY-NC 3.0
D1010 – the sensitive and complex phases of the turbine rail assembly of the ‘A’ transmission have now been completed and the assembly is ready for the fitting of the reverser gear wheels. This photo dated 28th November 2023 marks a milestone in the overhaul process and comes less than 3 months after the start of the overhaul. WELL DONE TEAM ! Photo by Colin Foxhall © CC BY-NC 3.0
D1010 – the bogie at ‘B’ end was the focus of attention of new volunteer Vivian on Saturday 2nd December 2023, with attention being given to removal of flaking paint and accumulated dirt. Not a glamorous task, but essential just the same. Photo by Andy Royal © CC BY-NC 3.0
Thanks to responses to our appeal for help, we now have two new volunteers working on the photographs and the certificates that will soon be on their way to all who have sponsored a patch on D1010. More patches have been marked out and are due to be engraved this weekend, to bring us right up to date !
The drawings are being developed in parallel so that we have 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. THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR SUPPORT – and your PATIENCE !
Click the image below to sponsor a patch. Thank you in advance for your support and your patience!
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 33 D6566 (33 048) – this loco is now in regular use on the ‘WINTERLIGHTS‘ services that started on Friday 24th November and run through to the end of the year. Click here or on the ticket icon below to go to the WSR’s ‘WINTERLIGHTS’ page:
D6566 – the ‘Cromptons’ are the workhorses of the WSR and are often found out and about in all seasons, as in the case of this engineering ‘tidy train’ working led by D6566 (33 048) on Monday 27th November 2023, picking up life-expired materials at Castle Hill, near Williton. Photo by Malcolm Anderson © CC BY-NC 3.0
Class 33 D6575 (33 057) – this loco has been receiving attention to a leak in a control air pipe that was in a difficult-to-reach place (of course), but the issue has now been resolved by the Class 33 team plus a little help from Terry, and the loco has been returned to service status. This will be a short-lived condition because the loco is due to go into the loco shed on Saturday 23rd December for approximately two months to undergo attention to a leaking exhaust manifold.
D6575 – the leaking control air pipe was isolated and bypassed at Williton on Saturday 2nd December 2023. The driver’s seat had to be removed and the floor lifted to gain access to the delinquent pipework. Photo by Terry Deacon © CC BY-NC 3.0
D6575 – the view under the driver’s desk at Williton on Saturday 2nd December 2023, with the Driver’s Safety Device (DSD or ‘deadmans’) pedal removed and the side panels also removed. Photo by Terry Deacon © CC BY-NC 3.0
Class 35 ‘Hymek’ D7017 – after another static engine test run that was conducted by Neil, John and Bob last Saturday 2nd December, the issue with the engine governor has been resolved and the loco has been pronounced as ready to return to service. There is no work scheduled for this loco until next spring, so the opportunity will be taken to perform an oil change and hopefully get some loaded test runs carried out as soon as the line is available again (expected to be March 2024). We are determined that this loco is going to have a very good year in 2024.
Class 35 ‘Hymek’ D7018 – no change this week.
Class 14 ‘Teddy Bear’ D9518 – the bad news about the cardan shafts last week has dampened the spirits of the team, but no doubt a solution will be found and the necessary funds raised to support the work. Meanwhile, work on the cab assembly is moving forward and this gives a new focus and restores the impetus. The cab assembly involves many small parts, all of which need to be cleaned, inspected and painted, so there is in fact a lot of work to be done.
D9518 – the pegboard lining of the cab roof section has been replaced with new material, pictured here at Williton on Saturday 2nd December 2023. The sealing strips around the outside edge of the panel have been removed and will also be replaced with new material. Photo 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 is stabled at Williton and is available for service, if called upon.
Class 47 47077 ‘NORTH STAR’ – this loco is undergoing a ‘top end’ engine overhaul at Grosmont Works on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway. The progress on ‘NORTH STAR’ continues in between having to work on the other diesel locos in their care but a milestone has been reached because all twelve cylinder heads have now been re-fitted and work on re-attaching the manifolds and services has begun. We look forward to seeing the loco completed in the very near future.
Andrew Barclay 0-4-0DH 578 – the internal cab repaint being carried out by ‘JT’ has progressed well, but he is keeping us in suspense and not providing photos until he has finished the job. We look forward to seeing the internal photos in the near future. Thanks Jon !
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 !