Bishops Lydeard-based Class 09 Shunter D4107 (09019) has now been acquired by the DEPG and will continue to support the WSR under a combined hire and maintenance agreement. Pictured at Williton following completion of winter maintenance on 1st April 2023 by Jon Tooke © CC BY-NC 3.0
LOCO NEWS:
Class 52 D1010 ‘WESTERN CAMPAIGNER’ – the transmission team are waiting for the delivery of some new parts for the oil pump, which will then allow them to complete their overhaul of the ‘A’ transmission. This delay has allowed the team to divert some of their attention to ‘Hymek’ D7018, but they will be back on D1010 when the parts arrive, some time in the next week or two.
Tony has been making good progress on the restoration of the first of the two cooler groups, having now identified the corroded areas and made the decisions as to the best way to repair them. Once the welding has been completed, the cooler group will be pressure tested so that any remaining leaks can be identified and dealt with before the radiator elements are re-installed. Once tested and passed, the whole assembly will go into storage to await re-installation into the loco at a later date.
While Viv continued his work on the bogies, Gordon, Ian F and Roy concentrated their efforts on the many component parts that have been removed from the loco to facilitate the repair of the main sub-assemblies. There is no doubt that the floor space occupied by the component parts is many times greater than the footprint of the loco, and this creates headaches in terms of storage. Some of these parts are very bulky and heavy, so stacking is not an easy option. The best thing for these parts will to get them back on the loco ASAP !
We still have plenty of work ahead of us on other aspects, in particular the bogies, and 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 THE WORK ! There is plenty to do, so simply reply to this email or use the CONTACT FORM on our website if you can lend a hand.
D1010 – wearing a winter bonnet at each end, our example of the famous ‘Western’ Class of locomotives is outdoors enduring the very wet and windy weather that has been a characteristic of this month. Pictured at Williton on 24th February 2024 by Andy Royal © CC BY-NC 3.0
D1010 – one of the two cooler groups is currently undergoing repairs involving cutting out and replacing the corroded sections with new metal. Pictured at Williton on 24th February 2024 by Andy Royal © CC BY-NC 3.0
D1010 – two pallet loads of parts have been cleaned and painted in primer, ready to move into storage pending further work nearer the time that they are required for re-fitting to the loco. The additional space taken up by a disassembled loco is considerable and is a major challenge. Pictured at Williton on 24th February 2024 by Andy Royal © CC BY-NC 3.0
Class 33 D6566 (33 048) – this loco is currently based at Williton and is available for duty as required. Her next planned working is on Sunday 3rd March on an engineering train.
Class 33 D6575 (33 057) – with all of the reassembly work completed, the loco was started up and carefully checked for leaks from her exhaust system. Unfortunately, an expansion bellows was found to have cracked and will have to be replaced before the loco can return to service. The replacement part was not available from our stock, so a new part has been ordered along with some spares, on a 4-week lead time. Although less than ideal, this will allow other work to be completed and the loco readied for a return to service at the end of March, just in time to take up her role as the Duty Locomotive in support of the re-starting of WSR public services.
D6575 (33 057) – the exhaust system was re-connected to allow an engine start-up, which then revealed a fault in one of the expansion bellows, three of which are visible in the above photo. Pictured at Williton on Saturday 24th February 2024 by Andy Royal © CC BY-NC 3.0
D6575 (33 057) – meanwhile, Tony has been busy identifying the areas on the bodyside skin where corrosion has broken through from the inside. These areas will be plated, filled, sanded and painted. Pictured at Williton on Saturday 24th February 2024 by Andy Royal © CC BY-NC 3.0
D6575 (33 057) – two further areas on the bodyside skin where corrosion has broken through from the inside, the result of continual exposure to the weather, year on year. Pictured at Williton on Saturday 24th February 2024 by Andy Royal © CC BY-NC 3.0
Class 35 ‘Hymek’ D7017 – as reported last week, this loco is ready to return to service subject to some test runs that will be used to accumulate hours and ensure reliability. This loco will undergo an oil change when warmer weather returns and will be ready for test running as soon as the WSR re-opens.
Class 35 ‘Hymek’ D7018 – work has progressed well with the preparations for the removal of the transmission, which will be lifted out of the locomotive some time next week using a hired-in crane. The transmission will then be cleaned externally before moving to our transmission overhaul area where disassembly will commence. The completion of D1010’s ‘A’ transmission times in well with the work needed on D7018.
D7018 – this view through the radiator grille shows Graham at work on the transmission end of the Dynastarter drive shaft. Pictured at Williton on Saturday 24th February 2024 by Andy Royal © CC BY-NC 3.0
D7018 – Paul T evidently drew the short straw as he had the job of releasing the bolts from the output flanges of the transmission, under the loco and in the space between the fuel tanks. Not the easiest place to work, that’s for sure. Pictured at Williton on Saturday 24th February 2024 by Andy Royal © CC BY-NC 3.0
D7018 – this view through the tunnel formed by the cooler group is dominated by the Dynastarter, the drive shaft for which was being released by Tim when pictured at Williton on Tuesday 20th February 2024. Photo by Andy Royal © CC BY-NC 3.0
D7018 – Colin F was on board the loco on Tuesday 20th February 2024, releasing the bolts from the auxillary drive shaft that powers the Serck pump (hydrostatic pump for the radiator fan drive). Photo by Andy Royal © CC BY-NC 3.0
Class 14 ‘Teddy Bear’ D9518 – work continued on the cab assembly with a view to getting the frames and skins primed and painted and ready to start having component parts re-attached. When the cardan shaft issue has been resolved, the assembled cab will then be lifted into place on the loco, minimising the work to be done at footplate level. Here are some photos of the work done at Williton last Saturday:
D9518 – a patchwork of colours, but gradually the complete surface will take on the colour of the primer, then the many colour coats. Pictured at Williton on Saturday 24th February 2024 by Andy Royal © CC BY-NC 3.0
D9518 – another long section of electrical trunking has undergone restoration in the hands of Andy P and is now ready for the orange paint that is indicative of electrical items. Pictured at Williton on Saturday 24th February 2024 by Andy Royal © CC BY-NC 3.0
Details of the work remaining to be done on this restoration project along with a status report of the funding have been included in the new issue of the DEPG Newsletter, which has now been distributed to DEPG members. A summary will be posted via roundup soon, but JOIN THE DEPG to get the information in more detail and more quickly.
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 on standby at Bishops Lydeard for use on engineering trains.
Class 47 47077 ‘NORTH STAR’ – after receiving a top-end overhaul at Grosmont Works, this loco has now resumed duties on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway. We look forward to seeing her out and about on passenger services in the very near future.
Andrew Barclay 0-4-0DH 578 – this loco is stabled in the yard at Williton, sporting her cabside lettering and looking the part with a gleaming cab, in readiness for the busy year ahead.
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 !