GWR 'Dean Goods' no. 2516 - suggested restoration in Steam Railway issue no. 401

Wow! - and all in one sentence too. I got out of breath just trying to read it! Ray.

 

Is there someone organising this scheme? I know it was mentioned in Heritage Ry Mag (and on here) but not much else appeared?

http://railways.national-preservation.com/heritage-railway/35687-hr162-new-build-dean-goods.html

 

HOW about GWR No 252 you may even get HLF for EBWilson's last engine restoration, and Britains only outside frame 0-6-0?

 

Armley Mills Industrial Museum - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Be interesting just to see that in daylight...

 

This one...
(not my image)

34 (GWR 252) (EB Wilson /1855) (K Ward © 2013)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/14581588@N05/4735888906/

 

Never knew such a thing was still in existence, what's it look like, an outside framed Dean Goods ?.

 

There are plans to reassemble the frames at Armley - why not join in and give a hand?

 

Don't get too excited: my understanding is that over the years its lost a pair of wheels , the end of the frames, everything above the footplate and much below.


The cut-down frames, motion and four-coupled wheels from Oxford, Worcester & Wolverhampton Railway steam locomotive 34 (later GWR 252), Leeds Industrial Museum, Armley Mills. | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

This articlehas interesting detail..
http://www.historywebsite.co.uk/articles/Railway Gazette/OWWR.htm

 

Looking at the state of that, it probably woulden't be much more expensive to construct new frames and wheels as opposed to returning that to the state of a usable 0-6-0 chassis.

A replica Dean Goods would be more likely to make money from hire fee's and photo charters than a double framer as it can wear early BR livery, the list of lines with authentic GWR passenger and freight stock is short, generic early BR Freight vehicles are easier to come by, I know some people will be rolling their eyes at the mention of BR Livery, but it's a pointless idea about a Dean Goods unless it can pay for it's own upkeep, and I think that stands a better chance than GWR liveried double framer looking very out of place at the head of some Mk1's.

Presumably also the expense of knocking up a 3,500 gallon tender unless Didcot has a spare hidden round the back ?.

 

However did City of Truro pay for itself... oh yeah... it was BR Black on one side for a week or so once.. so I get it. :behindsofa:

I suspect the novelty value of the outside frame will endear itself to the public.. as it will have lots of "ancient parts" and all that brass will make it look very old..
Maybe it needs to be either BR livery or Great Western :rain:

 

FR20 seems to earn a decent living despite not having an emaciated ferret on her tender sides.

 

I Think after the panning dished out by SR to the last head of the NRM, regarding £4472, they have some neck to "decide", that the next loco for restoration is decided by them.

If i was the NRM, would not let them decide there loco overhaul queue for the future.

If, and If, they raise the whole amount to do the restoration to standards acceptable by all, would still say no!!!!

 

It's just my opinion of course, I expected others to have other views.

I'm not sure City of Truro is comparable to be honest, that's a loco with a legendary status and fine pedigree so livery is irrelevant to a point, bit of difference to a humble Dean Goods which if a replica as opposed to 2516 doesn't even have an interesting service history, so a Dean Goods start with the disadvantage of being less of a crowd puller in comparison, being in a condition to pull in more hire fees and photo charters would help bridge this financial gap to an extent.

As for FR20, is it that widely traveled apart from Haverthwaite, Butterly and the NRM sites ?, certainly I don't think it's moved from trundling around Shildon with a brake van for over 2 years, don't get me wrong, FR20 is an interesting and wonderful machine, but it's not really doing a "grand tour" of preserved lines turning up at numerous gala's is it ?, if GWR stock is hard to come by, FR stock is virtually non existant.

I'm not saying paint it early BR Black permanently, I'd love to see it do a period in GWR green too, but how many places have appropriate stock to run with it in green ?, SVR, Didcot, SDR, any others ?, I'm not against Big Four or Pre Grouping liveries if you have the right stock for them (Bittern on the Teaks looked stunning for example), but something in Furness or LNWR livery does look rather silly tagged onto Maroon MK1's, may as well have stock in Intercity Livery in that case.

 

And there's not a great shortage of 3,500 gal tenders whose owners might be willing to earn a few quid whilst their loco is getting her heavy general is there?

 

Off the top of my head, it has made successful visits to the NYMR, the Bluebell, and Beamish, but that's by the by. It is more or less constantly on hire somewhere, and is hardly ever to be seen at its nominal home base on the Ribble Steam Railway.

 

Fair enough, but is it likely to put in an appearance at the Severn Valley, Mid Hants, West Somerset etc anytime soon ?, though admittedly it's limited haulage capacity doesn't lend itself to such lines, suspect we'll have to agree to disagree Bramblewick.

 

You won't earn a lot of money from photo charters. Half a dozen a year, at most. SVR, SDR, Bodmin and Llangollen for GWR lines. Err, that's about it. WSR still host photo charters, but the costs and restrictions are excessive, so no one bothers any more (except Don Bishop very occasionally). The hire fees for the loco will be the same as a normal running day.

 

That's sort of where I'm making a case for early BR livery, in that guise coulden't it run with some early BR Wagons at Keighley for example without looking too alien once out of the stations ?.

 

FR20 ran at the Bluebell very successfully twice to my knowledge. Once in 2010 for the 50th anniversary gala, where it ran for three days doing Imberhorne Lane shuttles with the LNWR observation car (and was completely ideal for that task) plus a couple of full line trips with the 4 wheelers and one or two photo charters. Once in 2012 for a film contract, where it ran (downhill only - it had to be towed back up the hill after every take by another engine!) with the Mets and four wheelers.

Tom

 

All this talk of new builds, paint etc; must be time for a Facebook group... ;-)