Caledonian Railway No.828

I am not sure if many people are aware that there is a website dedicated to the restoration of CR 828 that is based on the Strathspey Railway. It has charted the progress of the overhaul and provides some interesting historical information about the locomotive, its designer and the Caledonian Railway company.

The address is: www.caley828.co.uk.

It is expected that the locomotive will return to steam sometime in 2009.

 

Would look rather nice double headed with L & Y 1300 =P~

 

An interesting combination! Would they paint it Caley blue to match?! ;-)

 

Its due a repaint next year and Caledonian blue and Furness red were mentioned as possibilities

 

Well that would make a rather interesting combination!

 

...would that be a purple livery then? :smt002

 

Would look exceptional in the Caley Station at Brechin. Any chance of a loan sometime, Neil?

 

I'm sure the Strathspey Railway Company would consider any approach to loan the locomotive, but I cannot speak for the Board of Directors.

My personal opinion is that I would like to see the locomotive travel about a little in its next ticket to increase its exposure to people who may have not seen it before and to raise it's profile. It really is a hidden gem of railway preservation.

 

I'll see if there's any significant anniveraries coming up in the next few years we could organise an event for at Brechin! It'd be good to get it for an enthusiast event and then stay for a "Thomas" weekend - it'd be a super Donald/Douglas for one of them.

I take it it's coming back in Caley blue? Sorry to mention paint so early!

 

:-k I hope you are joking...;-)

It will be back in a 'new' shade of Caledonian Railway blue as advised by the SLPTF (the locomotive's owners) and the Caledonian Railway Society who have assisted the SLPTF and SRC in finding the correct shade of blue. The locomotive will appear in quite a dark shade of blue, Oxford blue is the closest shade appropriate, as it would have appeared from St Rollox in 1899. Apparently a lighter shade of blue was introduced at the start of the twentieth century.

I believe that there is a new book out that has dispelled the myths over 'St Rollox blue' and 'Perth blue'.

 

I'm disappointed if the Perth/St Rollox blues are a myth! In the pic below you can see 419 in "St Rollox" blue, Barclay 1863 in "Perth" blue, and Barclay 2107 in "North British/M&GN/Lite Sh*te" livery.

 

Had it at a Strathspey Thomas event as Donald.

 

I am pretty sure that this is the book that I mentioned previously.

http://www.ianallanpublishing.com/product.php?productid=59788&cat=0&page=1

My Father has a copy in Boat of Garten which I'll check next time I up north.

 

Remember in the Rev. W. V. Awdry's orignal stories, after they arrived on the Island Donald & Douglas were repainted from black to blue. So you could use the engine in blue for such an event without repainting it in theory...

 

As the Strathspey Railway doesn't 'do' Thomas events and I think the Trustees of the SLPTF would be mortified if their engine was to go to another railway as 'Donald/Douglas', the chances of seeing 828 with a big face on her smokebox, thankfully, appear to be slim.

I think it would be a little disrespectful to a grand old lady.