48624

We're looking forward to it as wel Gav,just to see her do some work!
It's been almost 5 months now since she turned a wheel in anger.I wonder if she's seized to the rails yet?

 

Had her Annual boiler exam (empty) today, as we thought, everything was fine ! (No doubt due to little use!!) Box up tomorrow, and steam test next week......and maybe the possibility of a surprise?????

Simon.

 

??? tell me more haha.......

 

Black?

 

Experimental blue?

 

Would that be the surprise of having the free use of the loco turned down this weekend?
Madness!

 

Well,it certainly wasn't get painted today,but we had a nice fire in her,and even took her for a trundle to Church Lane.
Shame it will be sat cold again tomorrow.
Ah well,always next week.

 

Did she pass then?

 

That really is strange! You have to feel sorry for the lads in the MPD at Peak Rail knowing that they probably be stuck with an a little shunt engine for the forseeable future.

Peak Rail's loss is definately Churnet Valley's gain

 

Got to agree that it seems strange not to use a great bit of kit straight out of the box. But, where does the superior attitude towards Hunslet Austerities come from?

As outlined elsewhere on here, where would heritage railways be without Austerities?

 

It's amazing how the debate on the PR chatrooms and in the Peak Express has created two opposing factions. I will definitely have a trip over to the CVR to see her

 

Absolutely agree that there brill locos. BUT..... how many lines pull in Big crowds who spend money with them. Last time i looked at a gala at the west somerset and even on normal days there is something running which is much bigger. The Peak Railway should be one of the best railways in the country, matlock (honeypot) and buxton also honeypot, bakewell, darley dale twin viaducts, bridges and tunnels, stunning scenery. The peak District is the second most visited national park in the WORLD!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The line should be back and running for network rail nevermind a heritage railway. But as a Heritage line there should be Big locos to support its profile. The costs of re building the bridge are valued at 5-6 million i believe and costs are only getting higher. Great shame. im 24 and when i was 8 years old i went to the peak district and went home dreaming about the peak railway , telling my dad that the two best heritage railways of the future would be peak dale and gloucester warwickshire. 16 years later and the gwr have gone to cheltenham race course, on there way to broadway with good plans ahead. peak rail doesnt seem to have moved.

But im now a member of the CVR and cant wait to have her running down our lines (and beyond maybe) at the november gala.

 

This is taken from the unofficial forum quoting from the official forum

The following is from the Peak Rail Discussion Forum

Earlier this week the directors of the 48624 Locomotive Company completely out of the blue made an offer to Peak Rail of two free steaming this weekend (24th & 25th April).

After much deliberation we had to turn down this kind offer, one of the reasons being the three pre-existing steam experience courses already booked on “Royal Pioneer”.

Peak Rail would like to thank the directors 48624 Locomotive Company for their generosity and look forward to seeing her take the honours next weekend on opening the turntable with Pete Waterman

 

If i was booked on a footplate experience with a shunt engine i would be delighted if an 8F was used instead!

 

This is extremely disapointing to read that PR could not take advantage of having such a fine locomotive on their line more often.
If this is how the managment really can not be bothered to change their way of doing things then it is quite obvious that they will end up with no steam to use on their trains
even more so disapointing if they are to end up a diesel only run line,especially when the likes of my closest local line (Mid Norfolk Railway) are effectively a diesel run line and are looking to run steam locomotives on a more frequent basis and to have a locomotive based on the line!(that is correct if memory serves me correctly)
how about moving 8624 to MNR then she'll be the only steam loco in operation till we have the use of our 18 inch hunslet and with 11 miles of line eventually being increased to 17.5 miles when we reach County School, 8624 will definatly be able to stretch her legs

 

Why should anyone be surprised at the antics of the Board in refusing free use of the 8F when you hear the way volunteers who worked on the Rowsley turntable from 2001 until load tested more than two years ago were considered to be incapable of seeing it through to completion. See separate post on Rowsley Turntable Thread.

 

I can't believe that no one else has mentioned it,but this weekend 48624 will actually be running.I know it may sound like complete fantasy but I assure you, It is true!

 

Yep it should be running today for the big event. Give the fireman on the afternoon runs a wave and ask him why he is not at work.. Also a coach party of ex Liverpool University Transport Society members turns up this afternoon. I just hope the weather is better than is is here.

 

As a PR member i was aware that it was running there was a post elsewhere on the forum. But as a member of the general public there was no promotion in the local press or on the A6 at Harrison Way so unless you were in the know you wouldn't have known that anything special was happening. I didn't go down so don't know what the numbers were like

 

Is the 8F running on Monday too? I'm not interested in politics or liveries - just a ride behind it thanks! ;-)