FR & WHR & WHHR News

Supposed to be Sir Arthur Heywood

 

Am I imagining it but didn’t it also include a reference to whiskey?

I just remember reading the line a very very long time ago in a discussion (maybe an FR magazine) about why Linda had the convertible sports car cab and Blanche had the full tender cab. The line was given as the rational for Linda’s look.

 

I think it is a case of how cold and wet you want to get or are prepared for. I appreciate that the cab may give little protection sat on the Cob with crosswinds you had on Tuesday and it was noticeable that loco crew appeared to be sheltering beside the first carriage but I think I would have welcomed it running tender first in that rain.

I have only ever had one run on Linda and I think it was in the day it was on a coal gas producing system. The run to BF was pleasant but it was a coolish late spring day with the odd light shower around and returning to Port I soon found myself with a donkey jacket on when on a loco with a cab I probably would still have been in shirt sleeves. It was also memorable as leaving Minffordd in the down direction I was hit with a banana skin that presumably had been lobbed out of a passing car.

 

He certainly preferred his oilskins and Linda's open cab to the enclosed cab on Blanche.

 

The weather we have had this week presumably it would have been topping the tank up on the move ;-)

 

Just back from a good few days in North Wales, mainly focused around the F&WHR. It was good to see the trains well loaded and the overall experience on the two rides we took was very good. Some photos below, more at https://www.flickr.com/photos/24236352@N02/

 

We have a similar dilemma with Sherpa at Fairbourne. I've been out on that in the rain a couple of times but the drivers have always refused to put the tender-cab on, saying it is too cramped and offers very little protection anyway. I take their point (Sherpa's cab is a bit too low to be comfortable at the best of times), but personally, I take the view that when you're caught in a proper Welsh downpour you want all the help you can get. But then, I am an Englishman and a southerner at that - I'm accustomed to a much more favourable climate, you see...

 

'England' locomotive day on the Ffestiniog Railway featuring No.2 'Prince', No.4 'Palmerston' (hauling its first solo passenger services) and freshly restored No.5 'Welsh Pony' - 30th August 2020.

Video Available Here

 

I wonder if some of it is almost psychological. If you are used to something then some different seems to exaggerate it? Linda with the tender cab seems cramped especially after being in it without, but Prince for example didn’t seem cramped even though it is smaller. But this may just be me and I might be an outlier here.

Before the tender cab, Linda had the old backplate, which I think only went half way down and didn’t even extend back to the tender. Someone told me that the rain just came in anyway underneath.

Prince must be heading towards to its highest mileage figures since the 1980s. Thankfully, 2 turns to TyB on 5/6 is a lot more gentle than 3 turns to BF, on 6, or 11 with Upnor or Conway Castle.

As we are on the Fairbourne/FR/WHR connection, what is the story/views on Beddgelert? Is there a reason (ie it isn’t very good) that is has been out of use for so long?

 

Partly funding, I am sure if somebody donated the cost of the overhaul it would be done quickly but also I understand that it has a fair amount of the valve gear between the frames, or certainly it is not as accessible as on the other locos. This is not ideal the Fairbourne's gauge and especially where is a lot of sand about. I know that on some of the locos they changed over some of the lubrication points to grease from oil to help with the friction caused by sand

 

There's an appeal in hand for Beddgelert's restoration, especially poignant since Malcom Cameron, the "face of the railway" and Beddgelert's regular driver in the Atkinson/Melton era died recently. He was the loco's biggest fan, but it has to be said that when it was withdrawn it was very tired mechanically. It was withdrawn not long after Malcolm left and up to that point most other drivers only got a very occasional go on it! On the other hand, its boiler is in very good order and requires little or no work. Had it not been for Covid we'd probably be seeing its overhaul underway next year, and that might still be the case (subject to finance) but the priority for this winter will be Sherpa's 10 year overhaul.

 

There's a thread rather more relevant to (Fairbourne Rly) Beddgelert's restoration prospects too. Jus' sayin'!

Now a newbuild 2ft gauge recreation of the NWNG 0-6-4st Hunslet, on the other hand .....

Edit: Damn my sausage fingers!

 

I could be wrong here - this is just off the top of my head - but wasn't there a plan to put Pony's old boiler on display in the Old Engine Shed when that is opened to public tours? Or am I misremembering something there?

 

Yes you are correct.
As part of the Boston Lodge HLF project the plan is to restore the old engine shed to its former glory complete with the workshop at the back. One of the ideas is to have Welsh Ponys' boiler, frames, and a pile of other bits arranged to look like a loco under overhaul. One of the big themes of the project is to bring back that atmosphere you see in old pictures that has been lost in recent years.

Tim

 

I crewed a visiting locomotive which was shedded here and the atmosphere was astonishing, particularly when lighting up at dawn.

 

With a stonking great new WHR carriage shed occupying much of the erstwhile Glan-y-Mor 'site of gricing interest', that's gonna be a pretty tall order!

It always strikes me that the top end of the line ( Blaenau / Glan-y-Pwll / Dinas ) could use something to attract more visitors ..... the place (which doesn't currently warrant so much as a webcam) scarcely comes across as a serious honeypot, does it?

 

Yes sadly Glan-y-mor changed a long time ago, long before the new shed was built. It will continue to do so as this area is now crtical to the running of the railway.

The pre-preservation heart of Boston Lodge was the top yard and loco shed. Much of this can returned to how it was though.

As for the top end, the UNESCO bid could be the key to unlocking things there. So we will just have to wait and see.

Tim

 

If anyone would like a reminder of what Glanymor Yard used to look like, here's a couple of pictures from 1964:

R1550. Glan-y-Mor. June,1964. by Ron Fisher, on Flickr
R1551 Glan-y-Mor Yard Jun1964 by Ron Fisher, on Flickr

 

It is not specifically a WHR shed; it will be used to house both FR and WHR sets. If it was dedicated to the WHR. it would have been built with only one road!

 

Is it still hoped to run that Vintage Weekend? Had hoped to make it and booked time off, but with things as they are, I wouldn't be surprised if it had to be postponed. Attended a few years ago and had as much (probably more) fun at that as I've had at any 'big' railway gala. The 'Flying Bench' is a particular favourite.