71000

71000 Made a welcome return to the mainline today on HF Railtours Cumbrian Coast Explorer. The Duke was immaculately turned out and performed well, a credit to all those involved. Hopefully this was the first of many more mainline outings to come.

 

Anyone know what plans there are on the main line for this loco over the next few months?

Not much I can find anywhere at present.

 

The trip to Bristol on the 15th of this month , plus 2 Torbay express runs in August seem to be the only planned mainline outings so far.

Dave B

 

Replacing Tornado on 2 Torbays in July, according to the A1 website

 

It would be good if the Duke got some work on the VSOE trains seeing as there is a shortage of class 8 locos for the job.

Brian

 

Rather it was on a train in a non fire risk area that I could travel on!

 

Thats brilliant news that the Duke is out and fine on the main line again. I cant wait to see it again on the torbays

 

The income from the VSOE would be useful after such a long time off the mainline, but God forbid that 71000 should end up like 35028, working on the VSOE to the exclusion of proper tours.

 

There are good reasons for that malc. So we MNLPS members are told anyway! If I have this correct, it is a combination of ensuring a steady income stream that allows each major overhaul to be done reasonably quickly. And the fact that the MNLPS do not have suffucient human resources to operate more than a couple of normal railtours each year above the core income work with the VSOE.

To me that means we so need another mainline MN working in the South of the UK. But I will grab some runs behind 71000 as soon as I can: she seems to be a superb steam locomotive. Wonderful video sequence shown above climbing to the tunnel.

 

The VSOE is a proper tour but it is taken for granted because it runs regularly throughout the year on largely the same 2 routes.

Edit - Sounds like we need 35027 then, Bryan :tongue1:

 

I thought you'd appear! LOL!

Yes, bring on 35027.

VSOE aren't really tours for head bashing steam freaks. It took long enough for us to educate the Pullman car staff on the Bournemouth Belle. "No, I don't want posh nosh or champers, just some decent bloody Merchant Navy thrash through an open window. So get them other dudes to take off their diamond tiaras and put on overcoats and gloves so they don't die of the cold. And give them a decent sized mug of coffee, none of this thimble sized cups rubbish."

 

Or maybe 34046 ? (Isnt this planned to go mainline ?)

 

I believe there was something on the WSR site that mainline testing would be in the Autumn. Is she air braked?

 

see www.braunton-management.co.uk

 

Was the CCE working the first time the "Duke" has been out on the main line since the winter work on the middle cylinder? There was a report in Steam Railway towards the end of last year that a "misalignment of steam ports" had been discovered on the middle engine, and was being corrected.
If this SR report was correct, it will be interesting to see some performance reports when 71000 gets a real test on the main line.
71000 has arguably been a long time "in development", starting with the faulty draughting arrangements discovered by the current owners. Certainly it was never fully developed under BR ownership.

Do we at long last see the full potential of this locomotive?

 

with the speed limits in effect, probably never !!

unless they want to have another set of races up to Shap again ... the Duke v Tornado, a Dutchess, an A4 that works, and a King (maybe even a MN if it doesn't get nosebleeds from being that far north!)

 

Oi! Watch it. The MN class would be very happy to go North from time to time, except for what was done to 35029 when she went to York.

(wink).

 

RalphW: I humbly stand corrected sir, but do we know if this "remedial" work on the middle engine was a fact or a "Steam Railway" fantasy?

46118