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RHDR Samson set for April relaunch

Discussion in 'Steam Railway' started by Thomas Bright, Mar 15, 2018.

    Samson, one of only two 4-8-2s to have run in Britain, is set to return to traffic on the Romney, Hythe & Dymchurch Railway for the first time in five years on April 21.

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    Set for relaunch into traffic in April, RHDR No. 6 Samson’s boiler is ready to be returned to the frames inside the works at New Romney on June 12 2017. THOMAS BRIGHT/SR

    The RHDR ‘Mountain’, will be relaunched into service at a special event, where it will haul revenue-earning passenger trains for the first time since 2013 when its boiler ticket expired.

    The locomotive, which is No. 6 in the RHDR fleet, was designed by Henry Greenly and built by Davey Paxman & Co. in 1927, ostensibly to haul heavy ballast trains on the 15in gauge line. This traffic never developed, so both it and identical classmate No. 5 Hercules were seldom used during the RHDR’s early years.

    Its return to steam means that all but two of the railway’s steam fleet is currently operational, with only 4-6-2s Nos. 1 Green Goddess and 11 Black Prince out of traffic. The former is being repaired after sustaining damage in a level crossing collision in September 2016.

    The Samson relaunch event will also feature a special timetable and parallel running. You can pre-book you tickets here.

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