NYMR Loco news

I think it is about time we had a thread for NYMR loco news, and as there have been exciting developments this week, now is a good time to start.

The main news is of course that standard tank 80136 has arrived, to be based on the NYMR initially for 10 years, although we hope that will be extended in due course. It arrived in two halves, boiler and chassis. The boiler needs a little work to prepare it for hydraulic and steam tests, whilst the chassis is said to be more or less complete. It is hoped that it will be finished and running in around 3-5 months. It was moved to Grosmont as a freight train hauled by visiting sister loco 80072 which arrived the day after and is expected to stay till around the end of May, I believe. Also in Grosmont works, the overhaul of the boiler from 30926 "Repton" is almost finished, with the loco due to return to service towards the end of the year.

 

What livery will 80136 carry?

 

What livery will 80136 carry?

Whatever its owners want it to, I would imagine. 80135 is likely to remain green because that's how Jos De Crau liked it (although it is said that when it was first restored he had to be talked out of LMS maroon!) and although he is no longer with us he sold it to the NYMR at a favourable price, so I hope his wishes will continue to be respected. A change of livery is rumoured for 30926, though.

 

And he's a sneak preview of the new livery on a proving model:

 

I was only joking.

 

Is it known how 30926 will appear, there was talk of BR lined black

 

Nothing definite that I'm aware of.

 

I forgot to mention -76079, which had been stopped because of tender wheel flats, is now back in traffic having had its tender wheels swapped with those of 75029 (reversing a swap for similar reasons a while ago!)

 

I believe trust board has decided on something else.

Sawdust.

 

Any news on the B1's driving wheels?

 

So what is the latest re: NYMR Locos?

Running -: 45428 / 62005 / 63395 / 76079 / 80072
Repairs -: 44806 / 61264
Overhaul -: 30926 / 34101 / 80135 / 80136

Also what's happening with 3814? There was a report somewhere it's heading Llangollen for overhaul. Is she to return to NYMR upon completion?

 

Any news on the B1's driving wheels?

A state secret, or so it would appear! No-one seems to be saying anything. I'd join the society and make a donation towards repairs but there's not much reassurance to be had that that they keep anyone informed about what's going, which puts me off. The web site wasn't up to date last time I looked and the facebook page is just a Wiki extract.

 

This Wikipedia page seems fairly up to date, although it doesn't mention the K1 and I think it might be slightly ahead of the game on the subject of 3814 as I'm not sure that it's left yet: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_rolling_stock_preserved_on_the_North_Yorkshire_Moors_Railway

ETA: It was updated today, it turns out.

 

IIRC if there isn't a Facebook page for the thing you're looking for then the system automatically directs you to an extract from the Wiki page.

 

Don't think 3814 has left yet. It is said to be going to Llangollen for overhaul, but no-one (apart from the owner, presumably!) knows what will become of it then. I think most of us at the NYMR would like to see it back, and 2807 certainly made some fiends when it visited.

 

I hope that's a typo.

That list of engines which have left the line is interesting, in part because the number of small engines which have moved away shows how traffic requirements have changed over the years, and in part because it goes to show how much the preservation scene itself has altered. There was a time, and it's not so long ago, when a loco's home base was for life and visiting engines were almost unheard of, but how many standard gauge lines today have a motive power fleet which has barely changed since the early days? The Bluebell, obviously, and to some extent the Severn and Worth Valleys, but I can't think of many others.

 

A lot of the industrials that arrived on the NYMR never really saw any serious use, it has always been the case that anything much smaller than an Austerity 0-6-0ST is unlikely to be able to manage a practical load - more for reasons of boiler capacity than actual power. It would have been interesting to see how the Longbridge Bagnalls performed had the opportunity arisen, and the large RSH 0-6-0T from Weardale. It is to be hoped, though, that when NELPG's J27 is returned to steam a role on the NYMR will be found for it.

In terms of movements, what we have seen is not just between locations, it's also from private individuals to the railways themselves - the NYMR, NNR , MHR and WSR all having built substantial fleets of locos owned by the operating parent body, and that seems to be a trend that will continue as the cost of ownership rises beyond all but the wealthiest.

 

I think in the Bluebell case at least, ownership has a lot to do with longevity - the majority of locos on the railway are Bluebell-owned (22 out of 32, I think). As far as I can tell, only two locos that were once in Bluebell ownership have subsequently been sold: one of those (178) was latterly repurchased by the railway, and the other (Blue Circle) was realistically never going to find operational use on the line.

It's interesting that the three railways you mention as having had continuity in motive power are also very long established, all of them starting in the 1960s. Whether that is causation or correlation I don't know.

Tom

 

I think it is causation, GWSR for instance owns no locos itself, never had the money as we were trying to play catchup with the early starters. What about Swanage, they started at a similar time; do they own any locos?

 

I understand that the wheels are awaiting new crankpins but that info is third hand to me. Hoped to be back by the end of May. Fingers crossed!