4079 Pendennis Castle

I went to Didcot a couple of years ago for the first time in about 20 years. I found it a truly depressing experience - it was like a mausoleum

 

So the next castle to be mainline certified and steamed quite possibly for 2021 (if its having a fast track overhaul maybe for the double headed castles to penzance) is 5043. If G.W.S. Didcot did decide to run 4079 mainline but with how iconic pendennis castle is it does deserve to run on the mainline if the maintenance running costs to N.R. from G.W.S. can pay enough money on its 7 year ticket to do rail tours?

 

I wonder if some of the coaches could also be profitably hired out - a GWR set on the Glos and Warks wouldn’t be too far from their Didcot base and would look fine running through the Cotswolds behind a Saint, Castle or County!

 

Yes please!!!!! I promise we'd look after them!!

 

On a slightly more serious point regarding mainline ambitions - we know that a lot of the cost of getting a loco on the mainline is all the extra electrical equipment that goes beep and tells control where you are and what you're doing. If Didcot manages to make its transferable system work, might this make it more financially viable for 4079 or even 6023 just do do the odd mainline excursion but spend most of the time doing what they're currently doing i.e. rack up steaming fees on the hire market with some days at Didcot? Or is it still a considerable investment to do all the ultrasonic testing plus anything else I've forgotten (above and beyond what is required just to get locos on and offsite anyway).?

 

Doesn't absolutely everything leaving Didcot have to go through the ultrasonic process anyway as it has to go mainline to even leave via road?

 

Indeed, hence my parenthesis at the end!

 

Is there really a hire market for a Castle or King, though? Short visits for galas are one thing, but how many railways would want one for an extended visit when a class 2 or 4 tank loco would be both adequate and cheaper to run?

Didcot needs some massive prioritisation of what it does. It is particularly daft in my eyes that they haven't kept a broad gauge loco in ticket as it is the one outstanding feature that they have, but sorting out their overhaul priorities is definitely another.

 

The King has hardly been idle since it's been "let out", last year it spent a month on the GWSR followed by the summer season on the P&D, this year most of the main running season at the GWSR again. I'd agree more than one of those locos in that category at a time is probably overkill though.
I guess Didcot's ideal roster would be one big engine that can be a flagship, visit other railways and maybe the odd mainline excursion if it's viable, a smaller tank engine to run its own services plus the steam and diesel railmotors for the branch line, and something for the Broad gauge line, all with suitably staggered boiler certificates!

 

What are the costs of getting anything - locos or coaches - out of Didcot since it has no road access?

 

I'm sure that given infinite resources (labour and financial) they would be very happy to keep everything in ticket, but unfortunately they have to operate in the real world. They have been very short of volunteers for many years now.

 

I don't think 60044 is saying that they should operate everything, rather that they should prioritise giving a varied visitor experience, as well as using engines which are compatible with their current income. I have to say, and I'm not saying this is what you are tying to do, but I've frequently found that when discussing the prioritising of less glamorous engines over glory projects, you frequently get comments like 'oh well, you can't steam everything!' or 'people will only donate to what they want to see!' in an attempt to quickly close such ideas down as being irrational. I think the true motive behind these comments is pretty transparent... Like I said, I'm not saying this is what you are doing, but it's a useful example!

As for the costs of mainline running, I couldn't give you chapter and verse, although there are people on here who no doubt could. But the engines are subject to VAB inspections, and there are additional 'hidden' costs, such as keeping the support coach in ticket, having to have the TPWS inspected if any work is done on it, PTS for support crew etc. And even if a fully portable system was developed, there would still be a certain amount of hardware which would need to be permanently attached to the engine. And that's not taking into account the time and effort required to develop such as system. I did have a quick look at the society's accounts earlier, and was somewhat surprised to see that in the 5 year period from Jan 2014 to Jan 2019, just under £75k was spent from the mainline fund. The net result of this expenditure, I believe, was a weekend on the Brentford branch, and a day at Old Oak Common. (I should point out that this money came from a ring-fenced account specifically for mainline running, but still...)

I can only reiterate that I don't think this is the sort of activity you should be contemplating when you're having to farm out the overhaul of a basic 0-4-0.

 

As each would need a transporter to move I imagine not profitably unless done by rail?

The GWS do seem to be building closer ties with the GWSR and Tyseley so who knows what that might bring?

Isn't all engineering work at Didcot volunteer delivered, I imagine this makes planning alittle more difficult as its going to be skewed by what the volunteers actually want to do?

 

Probably not, but I can dream...

 

If/when the GWSR get their mainline link, I imagine things would be much easier?

 

Such logical sense which is why, sadly, you are fated to be ignored.

 

If. Can't see it happening myself, even the prospect of GWR coaches doesn't convince me such a venture would be worthwhile sadly.

 

Cannot comment really, only been to the GWSR once and that was 20 odd years ago when my dad has his wedding reception in a carriage going and up and down the line (I had to pause my best man's speech due to a tunnel!)

 

Oh, the nuptial symbolism!

Tom

 

There's currently one paid member of the loco staff, until quite recently there were two. There are also a couple of what you might call 'permanent contractors' within the loco dept.

Each place is going to have its own set of peculiarities, but I think that the East Somerset has shown what you can do with a properly organised volunteer work force.

I should probably add that if you turned up to a heritage railway only to be told 'sorry, there aren't any trains today as the crew don't want to work on that engine', then you'd be somewhat less than impressed!