35011 "GSN" to be restored

You didn't really mean that did you. Someone's bound to kick it off *.

Can Pac in blue? Probably be red oxide for a long while.

*Ooops - I just did!

 

DON'T start me off on what colour a three cylinder, non airsmoothed/non streamlined pacific should be after all my years following German steam. When I've mastered Paint Shop Pro v8, 35028 is going to be on my web site in black with red wheels etc!

More seriously it would be nice to see 70013 fill in between any gap for another Bulleid after 34067 goes off the main line. Whether a deal can then be done to see it on the mainly all Pullman VSOE in Kent with Golden Arrow insignia on loco remains to be seen...................... And maybe even a slight change of number and name for that day.... =P~ =P~ =P~

Ah. Those were the days.

 

I'll vote for either of these ......

http://fictitiousliveries.fotopic.net/p32390794.html

http://fictitiousliveries.fotopic.net/p28468678.html

Yes I know they're WC's ...... I'lll be off then ........

 

Very pleasing to see the yellow fronts.

Some very good work by the graphics person! Some way above my abilities.

 

I realise this is quite off topic (i'll happily repost if mods would like) but what would be involved in 'unrebuilding' a MN apart from obviously creating the casing and the associated framework. What internal/mechanical differences are there?

http://www.southern-images.co.uk/lightb ... 5a&start=0

 

New inside cylinder and valve gear for a start. Removal of outside valve gear and mods to outside cylinders to allow reinstatement of rocking shafts; reinstatement of steam reverser. No doubt a lot of smaller detail, as well.

 

34067 has had a ticket extension (to 2012 ??), so there is a good chance that both 34027 and 34046 will be on the mainline before 34067 finishes.

 

Any chance of 34092 being out by then?

 

Removal of rebuilt's riveted-in smokebox saddle and centre cylinder/slidebar, new centre cylinder (no pattern exists), new steam pipes and superheater, smokebox, crank axle, full new set of chain-driven motion/valve gear, removal of balance weights from all three sets of driving wheels, removal of screw reverser and replacement by steam type, complete new set of air-smoothed casing and supports, removal of motion brackets added for Waelschaerts gear, replacement of oil bath/sump...did I forget anything?

 

That all.....?!? ;-) ;-)

 

New ashpan, regulator, blastpipe, chimney, cylinder cocks, piston heads and rods, re-siting of lubricators, and new sandboxes (thanks SEMG).

Most people just think it's the casing that's the only difference, although if a certain "well-known group" got hold of the project it probably would be.

 

You know, dimensionally, the boiler on one of those is very close to that of the proposed Hawksworth Pacific... we already have the driving wheel pattern.

What shall we call it?

 

Oh dear. Does that mean "Most people" have forgotten the "dreaded" chain driven valve gear in it's so called oil bath that the original Bulleids became so famous/infamous for?

And as for just shoving a streamlined casing back on. Yep. Been done in Germany with a rebuilt 01.10 three cylinder pacific. Even though the whole class had been reboilered etc. Streamlined casing just nailed back on the outside of a once stuffed an mounted example, (01.1102), that stood for many years at Bebra. Done in the late 90s I think. I did have a return Berlin to Dresden run behind it. 83 mph max.

Sorry about that engineering description. It highlights my steam locomotive engineering expertise. Which was very soon recognised back in 1967/68 or thereabouts when I was working on 34023 as it entered preservation. So I was soon put on a job that equated to my abilities. But eventually the others at Longmoor had to accept the toilets we used could not get any cleaner and I was then promoted to scraping grease and s..t off the loco!

Thankfully my stopwatching etc skills were much better.

Getting back to 35011. Yes it would be wonderful if the person(s) behind the planned return of that loco to operational use were those who won the recent Euro Lottery that had got almost to £100m, (I think). And really did plan to get it back to as OVSB designed it. =P~

 

:lol:

It's perfectly possible for an "unrebuilding" project to go ahead; it's not that complicated compared to some of the new-builds, and when starting with a Barry wreck that is little more than frames/wheels/boiler, you're going to have to make most things from scratch anyway, but once again it comes down to money.

 

But from an engineering point of view, would you really want to unrebuild it? The class was rebuilt because they had numerous design faults/problems. Would anybody funding its restoration really want to pay to end up with an inferior machine. A bit like the suggestion that an unrestored 9F be rebuilt as a Crosti.

 

The negative reputation was largely down to the lack of maintenance/manpower in post-war years, which led to poor reliability. Overcomplicated they certainly are, but the preserved (Light Pacific) examples of Bulleid's original design have proved just how well they can perform when given a bit of TLC. There's no real reason for the project, it would just be a "gap-filler" and a curiosity, but then that applies to all the new-builds.

 

A few pics:

 

Lovely photos James.

 

Thread has moved on, but yes, Lord Nelson ran in Kent last year as you say. Would the NRM let it step in if Tangmere failed this summer? Accoding to the railway media, it is to be eased gently back onto the main line, probably the York-Scarborough run initially. Canterbury excursions are not particularly gentle. Steam Dreams' preferred route includes Kemsing and Bearsted banks on the way out (the latter being 3 miles at 1 in 60 starting from a severe slack through Maidstone East) then Martin Mill and Hildenborough on the way back, with a long stretch of 75mph running between Folkestone and Tonbridge in between.

All great stuff, but I don't think we'll be seeing Nelson in Kent before the end of the year at the earliest. Anyway, this is all hypothetical. Hopefully Tangmere will be able to handle all its planned trips.

An unrebuilt 35011 one day? Exciting thought but even more dosh would be needed. With "Tornado" virtually complete and a "Clan" under construction, an unrebuilt "MN" would be the only loco neded to complete the set of 4-6-2 tender loco's, apart from one-offs like the Turbomotive and The Great Bear.

 

Don't forget the NER Raven pacifics.