Class 14 ‘Teddy Bear’ D9526 was pictured at Blue Anchor station at the head of the 11:00 departure from Bishops Lydeard to Minehead on Tuesday 22nd August 2023. Photo by John Crocker © CC BY-NC 3.0
Apologies in advance to all those who were hoping for a double-headed Class 33 ‘Crompton’ hauled service on Saturday 23rd because this is now very unlikely to happen.
Our DIESEL RUNNING DATES page is updated several times per week and is kept as accurate as we can make it. The loco allocations are subject to availability (of course), but we do try to field the allocated loco wherever possible. Click on the banner below to go to the website page:
The DIESEL RUNNING DATES pages is supplemented by our DIESELGEN bulletin service which captures non-public running such as special trains and engineering workings (where we have sufficient notice to publish such workings). Sign up for DIESELGEN emails or keep an eye on our website homepage.
LOCO NEWS:
Class 52 D1010 ‘WESTERN CAMPAIGNER’ – the main focus of activities at Williton last week was the preparation for the AGM, but some work did take place on the ‘A’ transmission. We will cover the progress in a combined update in the near future.
The bodywork of the loco continues to progress, with ‘A’ end already having been repainted. There are still some patches waiting for sponsors at the ‘B’ end of the loco, so GET IN QUICK TO HAVE YOUR NAME ENGRAVED before the painters reach this end. Many thanks to those who placed their orders during this last few weeks.
Having the loco outdoors has generated an increased interest in our SPONSOR A PATCH scheme, with several more patches being engraved with their sponsor’s names or messages. This initiative remains the single most successful fund-raising activity and has allowed us to make significant progress with the restoration work. PLEASE CONTINUE TO HELP US FUND THIS PROJECT.
Photographs and certificates of sponsorship will be sent out to all who have sponsored the restoration work, but we are still short of volunteer resources and have not yet been able to catch up with this obligation and deliver the documents. Apologies for the delay, we will get it done ASAP. 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 the WSR Standby Loco and is stabled at Bishops Lydeard.
Class 33 D6575 (33 057) – this loco is outstationed at Minehead and will handle the Blue timetable workings on 16/17th September.
Class 33 ‘Crompton’ D6575 (33 057) was in use on the weekend of 2/3 September on the 10:00 Minehead 80-mile diagram. The loco was pictured while departing from Bishops Lydeard station with the 16:35 return working. Photo by Josh Brinsford © CC BY-NC 3.0
Class 35 ‘Hymek’ D7017 – no change this week, still awaiting electrical fault-finding work on the engine speeder valve circuit and the Vacuum Governor circuit.
Class 35 ‘Hymek’ D7018 – the work taking place on this locomotive continues to be of an analytical nature as the Root Cause Analysis develops. The loco did get towed out of the loco shed for a few hours, which made for a rare appearance this summer – we needed the space for the AGM !
Class 35 ‘Hymek’ D7018 was towed out into the open on 2nd September 2023 to make space for the AGM. Ahead of the errant ‘Hymek’ is Class 14 ‘Teddy Bear’ D9526 and the whole consist had been hauled out by Barclay 0-4-0DH 578 (ROF 1). Photo by Josh Brinsford © CC BY-NC 3.0
Class 14 ‘Teddy Bear’ D9518 – work continues on several fronts, with progress even being made on the morning of the AGM, right up until the arrival of the members prevented the continuance of any kind of restoration activities. Details will be posted in a future roundup.
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 – now stabled at Williton and available for use at any time. This loco will be due for a 1000-hour service very soon.
Barclay 0-4-0DH 578 (ROF 1) and Class 14 ‘Teddy Bear’ D9526 were pictured together in perfect late summer weather conditions at Williton on Saturday 2nd September 2023. Photo by Josh Brinsford © CC BY-NC 3.0
Class 47 47077 ‘NORTH STAR’ – this loco is undergoing a ‘top end’ engine overhaul at Grosmont Works on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway. Work is proceeding well, but the amount of work being done means that the loco is unlikely to emerge until after the main running season ends, but she will be in very good shape for 2024 and beyond.
Andrew Barclay 0-4-0DH 578 – this loco was in use to shunt the yard on Saturday 2nd September. The cab is undergoing an internal repaint in the capable hands of Jon T, but the loco remains serviceable and ready for action.
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 !