NRM HST prototype 41001

The NRM and Project Miller in conjunction with the 125 group, have successfully started 41001 for the first time in 27 years on Wednesday. A great achievement! I believe the power unit S508, was an ex Virgin/First Great Western power unit.

 

Would be great if they got their hands on the other prototype power car too. Then add a set of MkIIIs, some of the originals I seem to recall were either adapted as new stock for the Royal train whilst the rest went into the MkIII "pool" and have seen regular "normal" services.

 

Pity, last I'd heard/seen she was part of the "Test/Research" Centre at Derby as part of there assorted fleet of obsolete locomotives/rolling stock....... So convert one of the production power cars! After all Grand Central have at least one HST where the power cars have buffer at the front along with the draw gear etc........

 

Unlike production HSTs the prototype also has a driving position at the back, presumably intended for shunting/depot moves. I guess another loco will need to be on the back when this unit eventually pulls a train. Since there is little chance of matching stock being used there will no doubt be some interesting combinations.

 

Whilst its a very worthy ambition restoring this power car, other than on a formation of a HST on the mainline set I dont see the point.

Maybe someday at least, a HST set will be repainted Blue/Grey and and this power car wouldnt look too out of place and certainly would put it in good place for railtours when the end of the HST's is nigh.

Does it have Vac Braking anyway ? if not it's role is even more limited.

 

twould have to be painted grey/blue of course

 

HST's never had vacuum brake equipment, as they were only meant to work with HST Mk3 coaches. It may however have standard 1000V ETS equipment which will allow it to heat/cool Mk2or Mk3 loco hauled coaches rather than the 415V supply used on HST vehicles
Still nice to see a Paxman start up again

 

I asked this a few years ago on another forum and was told how the power cars were originally designed to operate on their own, but that's not exactly a historical representation of the class.

 

What's the point of any project...?

 

By the way, we have a photo of 41 001 running with two Mk3 trailers only. Completely authentic.

 

No project should ever be started without a clear set of objectives for what that project is supposed to achieve.

I guess running brake van rides is authentic too ?
http://www.traintesting.com/images/HST rtc loop1 2-73.jpg

as would running it in a Blue and Grey HST Mark 3 set on the mainline
http://www.traintesting.com/images/Swindon76pp.jpg

It runs again, thats good... it's history is obvious, but can I ask what are the plans for it ?..

 

How many times did this happen?

 

as a one time World Record holder for diesel speed it ranks up there with Mallard, that's the point of the project. You couldn't have it displayed incomplete,any more than you could have displayed Mallrd without it's valences, that's not Preservation

 

So any piece of rolling stock in the NRM can be restored on the grounds that it's justified as long as the people doing it are having fun?

 

I suppose you could create a "hybrid" set with whatever prototype + a couple of production coaches and a production version power car. I make this suggestion on the bases of having visited Duxford many years ago they had one of the prototype/pre-production Concordes on display which you could walk through. The front half the cabin had all the dials, gadgets, recorders etc used in testing the plane and the rear half was fitted out as per the production version of the plane with the same seating and overhead lockers etc.

 

There are prototype coaches still running with FGW. Up until the FGW refurb they were fairly easy to tell apart from the production vehicles. As the prototype power cars did work with production trailers [but not in passenger service as far as I know] there should be no reason why they could not work with a production power car. FGW were quite happy to have Paxman powered vehicles work with both VP185, and MTU powered examples. The only thing they did not want was VP185, and MTU examples working together.
Surely the point of volunteers working on any project is they are doing it because they want to. This is an important vehicle, and is being restored to a very high standard at no cost to the NRM. What is not to like?

 

If it is being done properly then, yes