Isle Of Man Steam Railway

Does anyone know what’s happening with 17, is she completely done now or could she return to service?

 

And is there still any hope for making 21 usable, or will it be a write-off?

 

AIUI No.17 could be returned to service but it requires a reconditioned power unit and the couplings/vacuum brake gear refitting (pinched for No.21). As regards No.21 the traction motors are off-island for repair. I don't see it being "written off" any time soon as that would cause a 'loss of face' in certain quarters.
Ray.

 

Thanks - I sincerely hope there will be good times ahead for no.21 when the motors return, but after so many 'cabbage' years one does wonder.

 

I did wonder why I got send a link for an auction of loads of railroad tools branded as MPI, that would explain that! It's a shame, I was looking forward to seeing the Durango and Silverton locos in use, they're monsters for narrow gauge.

 

Only tiddlers compared to the new White Pass locos though. Perhaps the Isle of Man should a aquire a pair of the shovel nose GE locos. They'd look great next to a Donegal railcar

Tim

 

.... or two.

 

They should just go in for the new White Pass locos, I love them. There may be an odd loading gauge interface issue mind.

 

Why not give up on diesel and obtain a battery electric locomotive? Wabtec FLXdrive might scale down to 3' gauge and in the present times it might be best to draw a line in the sand with respect to number 21 and move on. The London Underground has had battery locomotives for years but they lag far behind what can be achieved today.

 

Cost and a degree of personal reputations would be my guess. But for the fact The Cabbage's bogies got a special mention, I'd have wondered about the feasibility of switching out the lump for battery stacks or a hydrogen fuel cell (or two), which brings us back to cost.

The other factor in play is the IMR's loading gauge. I'd imagine the bulk of metre gauge kit is way too large to make regauging an option. How suitable a converted 750/762mm gauge loco might be, I've no clue.

 

The IMR needs a locomotive offering how many horsepower to work passenger services? If we look at the developments in the HGV world as well as the railway world it appears that the railway could have a battery electric locomotive that would meet its needs and choosing this option could be a good face saving exercise. With an approach to the right party or company they might get some worthwhile support from a company that knows what it is doing unlike with number 21. As a general rule any company with 'Solutions' in its name should be avoided

 

I'm always wary of speculating (beyond the basics) when it comes to the IMR. There are so many factors uniquely specific to "matters arising" on this historic, isolated, nationalised operation that the most innocent sounding speculation can open a veritable can of worms.

At this point, I'm bravely going to duck out of this one until some of our better informed island based membership pitch in!

 

As far as I am aware, since the engine was replaced under warranty, all the major problems have been with the running gear i.e. cracks in the bogie frames, loose tyres, motor/gearbox issues etc. so switching out the power unit for battery wouldn't help. These were all 'refurbished' donor parts from the original GE loco. Right at the start of the tendering process it was suggested that a rebuilt 750/760mm g. Faur/Lx2 would suit our needs but that was overruled in favour of MPE's finest! Let's look forward to a 100% steam season starting on Friday - every cloud has a silver lining.....
Ray.

 

How very Zen of you Ray! Though I doubt you'd be saying that if you were offered the opportunity of filming Maitland attacking Nunnery from the rear cab of 19/20.

Do you think The Cabbage will ever be of any use, beyond the purely academic for students of contract law? .... or keeping shed roofs up?

 

Sorry to mislead - in my book 19 & 20 are 'honourary' steam engines and well worth restoring. In fact they are the first IMR vehicles I rode on back in 1967. Unfortunately it all comes down to hard cash and the Gov't hasn't got much to spare with Covid and the ongoing major infrastructure projects. I assume that upper management think that once the current problems with the motors are solved there won't be much left that hasn't been repaired/replaced so No.21 should be reliable ... I'm not holding my breath! On a brighter note I believe No.11 has performed well on test and we are all looking forward to seeing it back in service. The Douglas based shunter, N0.18 'Ailsa' aka 'The Zanussi', is receiving a reconditioned Deutz engine in the workshops. The detailed programme of events for 'Rush Hour' over Easter should be out very soon.
Ray.

 

Based on the presence of connecting rods, can can assume?

I'd imagine if / once a sufficiently watertight economic case can be made for restoring 19/20, there'll be no delay in getting 'em going. At least they're securely stored, which is more than can be said for much else kicking around heritage lines in these islands.

Excellent news about No.11. Have the paint shop now finished working their magic? Speaking of which, will No.18 return in white? It never looks the most practical colour for a loco.

Have to confess, when it comes to No.21, with events to date being what tbey've been, I'll believe it when I see it! As diesels go, it's far from the ugliest machine I've seen, but of the IMR IC fleet, rather lacks the special appeal of the Donegal railcars.

 

Any machine can be fixed...it just depends how much of it you're willing to replace

Seriously though...my advice would be, send it to Keef's. Years ago, I used to volunteer at the Ruislip Lido Railway, which bought two new diesels from Severn-Lamb, only to find that the hydraulic transmission wasn't satisfactory. They both went to Keef's for conversion to diesel-mechanicals, and they have been running reliably ever since. Of course, the work came at a price, but you get what you pay for. I remember the board members who dealt with Keef's couldn't praise them highly enough.

Sadly, though, I haven't yet managed to persuade the IoM government to hire me as a consultant...

Sent from my SM-A125F using Tapatalk

 

I believe No.21 is diesel-electric, so nowt too off the wall there. The lost of woes from day one is pretty compendious. At least I've seen no mention of problems with MU controls

.... and I honestly thought the cousins had diesels sussed half a century ago. Strangely and sadly reassuring the S&D have had no better luck.

 

Keef's have been the 'go to' place for the IMR for some years, most recently for the early rebuild work on No.11. IIRC the bogie/wheel remediation work on No.21 was done there. I believe that Keef's were originally asked to quote for the new loco but our Gov't 'bean-counters' thought that a reconditioned loco from MP&ES would be cheaper.......
As regards Howard's question re N0.11's lining out the photo below was posted on IMR Online which shows it almost complete. No.13 took stock down to Port Erin earlier this week to form the South based set when services commence tomorrow morning - photos at https://www.facebook.com/hrviom/
Cheers,
Ray.

 

When I was there a few weeks back there were at least two IoM pony trucks being overhauled there