Swanage Railway General Discussion

The up bay at Wareham is reserved for future Swanage Railway operations. As a safeguard Network rail have agreed to move recent signalling equipment installations at their cost in order to install a bay, should one become desirable. The bay has been evaluated and will accommodate a 6 coach run round loop. It must be acknowledged that investment in the bay will only happen if Wareham, in general makes financial sense for the railway.

The carriage shed is currently part of a sequential test of facilities across the railway. This test will identify sites for development of maintenance and storage facilities.
Part of the problem at Herston is simply a difference of opinion of what exactly will fit on the site excavated. I am certain that a carriage shed will be built at Herston in the next few years, but the size is up for debate. Im pretty certain that the way forward will be established in the coming months, along with a progression plan for the old oak common turntable. Lots going on, and a lot of started projects to finish, along with the push to Wareham. Its a busy place!

 

Good news. I didn't know about the OOC turntable, glad someone saved it. A logical location for that would be Furzebrook. Then, locos off specials to Poole or Bournemouth or Weymouth, could turn there without taking up a path to Swanage. Its existence may even create an increase in specials to/from the above places. I hope Wareham gets a buffet at some point, whether in a coach or the station itself. It has long needed one and, extra SR traffic would increase that need.

 

I presume the plan remains to site the turntable at Herston in the field west of the industrial etate, a planning application was approved last year - it can be found on the Purbeck Planning site by using the application number '6/2013/0287'

Chris

 

Great to see the progress on 31874 on the dedicated Facebook page. If there were anyone doubting the Swanage Railways intentions to have 31874 ready for the stated August 2015 target they need to take a look, they're certainly giving it a go.
As an example less than 2 weeks ago they posted about the well known frame defect, a fortnight on and the said defect has been cut out and new plate welded in! Great progress.

Anyway if there is anyone on here working on said loco, can I just say well done and keep it up lads.

 

Money. Dedicated team. Nothing else being worked on by the team. Progress can be rapid. Just look at what Riley did with 5407 a couple of years ago.

 

The difference is though that our team working on 31874 consists of a couple of paid staff and the rest of us are all volunteers who all have full time jobs away from Swanage too!

 

According to the railways FB page 216267 passengers for 2014.....2% up on best ever year of 2009

 

Hello,
216,267 passengers carried in 2014 by the Swanage Railway.
Congratulations!

Nick

 

Its good to see that work is being done on the old girl, this must be the first proper overhaul done to 31874 since its last BR general, by proper, i mean boiler off, wheels out, and a full strip down, that frame crack doesnt seem to be as bad a job as expected, i cant remember if when she was restored in the cattle dock the wheels came out, the only time the boiler came off, was when she had the boiler swop will the original boler be going back on, or is that still on 31625 ?

 

From what I have seen the boiler lifted from 31874, is now being rebuilt by Adam Dalgleish in Stockton on Tees. The original boiler is still on 31625.

I too was surprised at the relatively easy procedure to repair the frame crack, as talking to some people at its previous home in the past the impression given was that it was much worse than has subsequently turned out. Some people on this forum seemed to even suggest that the loco was too far knackered that it was not worth bothering with and would be better off putting on static display at the NRM!

AFAIK the wheels on 31874 have never been removed from the frames since BR days, they certainly were not removed on its first restoration.

Anyway what is in the past has happened, the future certainly looks bright for 31874 at Swanage

 

very true, at least it would appear that shes not going to be that hard a job, it would be interesting to see how much copper has had to be cut out where that patch was on the left hand side of the firebox

 

People used to be surprised at the rate at which the MHR turned out ex-Barry restorations, but I think the reasons are now perhaps coming to light. At least one (and not one of the earliest) was returned to steam without even being retubed (I read in the MHR news) well after it became the norm elsewhere to fully retube.

 

Are 31874's wheels being retyred as part of the work?

Thanks

Steven

 

No. The loco tyres are half life worn but have excellent profiles.
Swanage Railway is relatively kind to locos, for example; 80104 has run for about 17 years off and on and its tyres (new at restoration) have never needed turning, yet.
31874s tender has good tyres.

 

What sort of mileages do the Swanage locos run each year?

Steven

 

Taking 2013 as the last full year I have records for (as I haven't had the chance to do December's mileage figures yet!), the figures are as follows:-

6695 - 3,366 miles
80104 - 10,136 miles
30053 - 4,045 miles
34028 - 4,930 miles
34070 - 4,813 miles

Total - 27,290 miles.

Not the highest mileages in preservation, but when you consider that we are only a 5 mile branch line, it represents pretty intensive use! The other thing to consider is that 80104 has only been out of traffic for a couple of years since 1997; one day I'll work out its total mileage in that time...I think there is every chance it is in the 100,000 club.

 

Thanks for that - most interesting.

I don't know which is the more impressive - 80104's mileage on the same tyres or covering the intensive service of the Swanage with just 5 locos! Well done!

Steven

 

Whilst in no way decrying the Swanage Railway (I'm always impressed by its operation and efficiency) I don't think that the tyre life of 80104 or the number of locos to cover the service is unusual. You are probably comparing with the NYMR where the lines curvature takes its toll and, once you turn tyres, you are no longer on a work hardened surface. 60007's tyres ran without turning from its Crewe works visit in 1967 until its last overhaul. Since that overhaul, they have worn considerably. I know of locos that haven't had their tyres turned since the early 1950's (possibly earlier) and they are still as good as new. OK, their annual mileage may be low but, over sixty years, it adds up. Perhaps NYMR locos with newly turned tyres should be confined to Levisham straight for the first few thousand miles to work harden the tyres!
As to number of locos, five is probably about right for what is generally only a two train service. The Torbay & Dartmouth generally only operate with three or four with little problem. The NYMR ought to get away with less than it presently needs but history indicates otherwise.

 

Possibly more indicative than just basic mileages is considering the steaming days for each loco; in 2013, they were as follows:-

6695 - 49 days
80104 - 165 days
30053 - 75 days
34028 - 79 days
34070 - 53 days

As Steve says, for what is generally a two-train service, 5 locos is just about ideal; 2 in service, 1 spare, 1 washout and 1 repairs. It is one of the reasons that we have sought to obtain the services of the three Maunsell moguls; there are now more days where we are using three locos, running (for example) dining trains during our two-train service, and as such to protect the service, and given that from next year we lose a loco per year for overhaul (2016 - 6695, 2017 - 30053, 2018 - 34070) it was considered that the additional motive power provision was essential.

 

You can't have to many locos because, in my experience, they never fail in ones or even twos! Well, you can, as each loco does cost in money and manpower but having extra in your back pocket is a real advantage.