Bulleid Pacifics - Past or Present

Very good news about 35009, and given Riley's track record we should have another great runner when she is eventually completed.

Things are starting to look very bright on the MN front with:

35005 under overhaul.

35006, 35018 and 35028 are all operational.

35009 and 35011 under restoration with 35011 being back converted to Air Smoothed condition.

35010's owners are slowly building up parts before they can finally tackle her restoration once space is available.

35027 will hopefully have it's overhaul resumed once theres a bit more space at Crewe, with
35022 supposedly planned to follow after.

 

Class 8 Power shortage a thing of the past... ?

 

sorry if I'm missing the obvious here but I was of the belief that 35009 was already at ELR - where exactly would it be moving to?

 

Possibly into his works?

 

Well yes but where is that exactly? I thought he was located close to ELR in Bury?

 

As I understand it, they've moved from the ELR yard at Baron St (and by the looks of the photos the frames were a bit overgrown) into Riley's works a short distance away. I'm not sure of the precise locations but I think they're a few streets apart.

Edit: I was confused, he's in Heywood, near the ELR but not near Baron St.

 

If you read the Facebook post, Riley's new works are not rail connected so everything had to be roaded in and out for the time being, I understand the idea is to have it connected to the ELR At a later stage .

 

Yeah, there's a really good interview he did a couple of years back where he outlines the masterplan.

Found it: https://www.railwaymagazine.co.uk/3...eams-newest-works-where-rails-are-not-needed/

 

Riley's site in Heywood, which is not rail connected.

 

depends on where you are in the country, up north, I would say no, 6201/ 35018/ Duchess , so that's three down here, theres just Clan Line, and she is not generally available, Steam dreams, are mostly reliant on either one of rileys black 5's or Mayflower, so the possible addition of 35009 into that equation especially if she is duel braked has to be welcome, Depending on Rileys order book, they generally turn them round very fast also, and I would think that 35009 would certainly earn its keep , now all we need is someone to arrange the Bulleid reunion railtour 35009 to York , 35018 t0 scarbourgh then both together over shap and the S&C . get 35028 to do its own tour with the Pulmans to York, , with a southern style Yorkshire Pulman headboard lay over at NRM,and arrange for the other working and one non working to be on display to pay for it, have the NYMR host 35005, 35006 on the following week end,

 

Not forgetting 60163, with 60007, 2007, 60532 along in the next few years...

 

Thanks Martin, I'm not a FB user as such but followed links to see what I could see yet missed this piece.
Thanks also for other's responses to clarify my confusion. I somehow assumed that Ian Riley's and ELR were rail-connected but seemingly not. 35009 was missing it's wheel sets in the images so that wouldn't have helped anyway!

 

Yes the wheel sets from 35009 were swapped with those from 34016 to enable Bodmin to run on the mainline. At the time it was thought that there were flaws in those fitted to 34016, however subsequent investigation and testing revealed that in fact they were subsequently OK.

 

and 71000 & 6024.

 

Absoloutely,
Although some more Merchants are many years off yet, they might be in place to take up the baton when some of the above fall for overhaul.
Question... In a few years time; Routing/gauging/ (hire fees?) aside... would you book a Black five or a Jubilee for your charter if you could have a Merchant, Duchess, Princess, Duke, King, Castle, Brit, Scot, WC/BB, A1,A2 A3, A4, or P2. ?

 

Given that they seem relatively gauge friendly, and have large water capacity by default, a Merchant Navy does seem to be close to the optimal mainline motive power for modern conditions, giving a lot of flexibility on available routes, scope for stretching out between stops etc while also able to haul any load that is realistically on offer.

Tom

 

Or, indeed, a Clan...

 

Or indeed a Patriot, but these are Class 6 - same as a jubilee, all the above are 7 or 8's.
and i think we are still a few more years off for the Clan even though progress is really picking up.

 

Yes, I realised the Clan was a Class 6 (though I mistakenly thought that the Patriot was a Class 5, apologies) but I always had thought of the Clan - possibly wrongly - as a 'Near 7', in that I understood they subsituted for Britannias and were due to come to the Southern to work turn-about with WC/BBs. Every day is school day at NatPres!

 

A mistake being made by MPDs since 1952...