7027 Thornbury Castle

Yes the driving wheels and axles are at the front of the shed. Then there is the chassis of the 04 on jacks, the tender of 777 minus a bogie, then the frames of Thornbury on jacks. so not likely to move any time soon.

 

I imagine the GCR will be wanting serious rent for prime shop space as its not their project any more, so I would have thought there'd be plenty of motivation to move.

 

Are there funds in place for a move though? Actions involving 7027 seem to be clear as mud at the moment.

 

Especially if Didcot only have purchased the boiler, and are not interested in the other parts, A castle without a boiler is hardly a viable proposition, unless its just going to be a static exhibit with a dummy boiler somewhere.

 

Hogwarts Castle ? and get that nice Hall back instead

 

Never fear, someone in the GWS will have plans for the frames etc, probably for a Dean Single wheeler project or something.

I suspect the Annual Report from the GWS will be out in the not too distant, its normally July IIRC, that should shed some light on matters relating to how the locomotive was brought and where the money came from, especially noting the earlier suggestions that the 47 group were expecting some help from the GWS in funding matters?

 

Has it been bought though? It appears that only an unspecified deposit has been paid. Where and when is the rest of the money actually coming from given that there is a huge amount of work, yet to be undertaken, some of it substantial remedials, to just get to a point where wheeling the chassis is possible. Needing a boiler is a long way off.

 

Whilst many on here obviously disagree with the fundamental policy of dismembering the (partially restored) Thornbury, it has made a lot of financial sense for the 47xx group. There was obviously not the financial backing readily forthcoming to continue the restoration of the seventh and final Castle.
So what is the future for the frames etc? Will we see a resurgence of the idea for recreating the major "missing link" in the GWR story..."The Great Bear" after all we would only need the special boiler, pony truck and modified end frames....?

 

That would be interesting, as next in the series Churchward may have called it 'the White Elephant'

 

To an extent it does but as others have said, it’s not the right type of boiler. If I restore a classic Ferrari but stick a Porsche lump in it, sure it’ll look like a Ferrari and probably go like a Ferrari but it won’t be underneath.

 

Honestly who knows, as its unclear whether the 47 group/GWS have bought the lot, the boiler only only paid a deposit I suggest everything is up in the air.

FWIW I cannot see the GWS getting involved in anything like this for a very long time if ever again, the 47 project has been barely mentioned in the Echo in the last 12 months, and when it has been its been purely in firefighting mode, the 47 Group website has not been updated for nearly 12 months so not sure where the project is going or where the money to overhaul the boiler (if they have actually bought it) is going to come from? Add into the equation that most of the work to date was completed at the Llangollen one has to assume they will need to go through a similar process as the Patriot Group have been required to do, which again potentially comes at a cost of time and money.

As for a Great Bear, it would probably be even more of a White Elephant than a 47 is going to be on heritage lines.

 

No smiley there?
You would also need new cylinders, a new tender ...
You probably could use the wheelsets, including the crank axle, the motion and the valve gear.
If anyone's daft enough to seek funding for a new Great Bear, they will be well back in the queue behind many other projects.

 

The wheel sets are the later type, with crank between spokes. I would expect the coupling rods to be the later type with the joint position altered too.

 

Take the double bogie tender from the Drummond T9 - it’s close enough

Tom

 

Deliberately disingeuous, because 'but if you restore your classic Ferrari but put a later development of that type of Ferrari engine in it' would be more accurate but doesn't sound as wrong does it. - unlike the 10xx no LMS /Porsche boilers are under consideration....

 

TBF historical accuracy doesn't seem to be as important as it was to the GWS previously

 

I think with the County it's not really a Ferrari with a Porsche everyone, more of a Ferrari with a downrated Land Rover engine bodged to fit.

 

There is a slim chance it can still be saved.
Wouldn't it be madness if a new boiler was made for 7027 and the original too small for 4709 boiler
went on that and never got the right sized boiler.

 

If what normally happens, 4709 will only get one ticket, then be discarded to the dead engine list, whilst the focus will be on, what long lost class can we resurrect next from our present line up,

 

Maths.
The GWS has/will have 10 or 11 tender locomotives. Arguably they need one operational on site, and possibly one out showing the flag. Lets add a third as spare. So if you assume 8 years for a boiler ticket each locomotive only needs to be steamed about every 30 years or more to fulfil the GWS aim of being a working museum and be reasonably responsible with component life so locomotives can be running for your grandchildren. So for the locomotives to run one ticket and then be on display for the next umpteen years is not only inevitable but also desirable. Next to run, hopefully, will be the County. by which time the Saint will be coming to the end of her ticket. When the County is complete it will be time to consider which the next to be overhauled and brought back into steam should be. Arguably, though, as there are usually Castles, Halls and Manors in ticket on other lines, one may make a case that it would be better to conserve those and overhaul the new builds first.