Pannier 3650

Official Bluebell website tell you all: "...cover for any maintenance and washout requirements for the U-class, and is mainly to be used on our Santa trains". ( leaves after Christmas.)
Inference is that the Bluebell is not over-blessed with medium power engines at the moment.

Cracking good engine, by the way. Had a ride behind it on a quiet day on the SVR, and had the leading vestibule window with the loco chimney just a few feet away. Performs well.

 

Not my photo, but 3650 was out and about today on a test run before entering revenue service this weekend.

Haven't heard anything to the contrary, so assume all went well.

Tom

 

Shes a lovely loco. Plenty of room in the cab compared to either 5764 or 7714. My only gripe is she shakes herself to death if you pull her up towards mid gear!

 

Ahhh, us Western types don't like to pull 'em up the rack too soon. GW locos with deep boxes were designed to tell you when they are coming!!

 

Interested to learn of the reason why 3650 has the more roomy cab compared to her two sisters.

 

Shes a later 8750 class variant with a bigger cab with a different roofline, the others are the original 57xx class with smaller cabs.

 

Thanks for that.

 

Not much chance of that at the Bluebell I'd have thought, she has been passed for 6 coaches on our gradients

(interestingly, only about 1000lbs less TE than the U Boat, though 5 tons less adhesion).

Tom

 

Woe betide anyone that comes near my baby with a brush and tin marked Malachite,... they'll have me and the coal pick to contend with!!

 

Malachite is for proper locos, not toy ones like 3650

 

3650 + 6 up to Sharpthorne tunnel will sound good.

 

Not so much Malachite as Maunsell's Olive Green at the Bluebell . But I have to say that 3650 does actually look quite at home on the Bluebell.

I'll have to find a spare weekend between now and early December to have a ride behind her.

 

Had her on Saturday with 5 on and had no problem. Steams well (if you give our welsh soft coal time to get going ;-)) and plenty of power. As said earlier, can't pull her up much, 3 notches max. Bit rough in reverse, but overall a lovely engine and a credit to all involved with her restoration and maintenance.

Dave G.

 

It's 3650's 75th birthday bash this coming weekend.
Theres a Bar, Barbecue, music and even a flypast both days around 14:30 by the DC3 (subject to the usual conditions of course) and on Saturday, a reunion of the Black Cupboard Gang that restored and now maintains 3650.
D9516 and either W22 or the SRM will also be operating.
And of course, 3650!

 

Well, if you didn't make it to 3650's birthday, this is just one of the many things you missed!

 

Something slightly different if you've got 7 minutes to spare.

 

Very nice!

 

Bob Fry 1945 - 2015.
One of 3650's restoration engineers and latterly, DRC Locomotive Manager and GWS board member.
Will be much missed.
Kevin.