FR & WHR & WHHR News

"Cloister" was very strong for her size. Given two bogie wagons fully laden with cast steel soleplates to lift out of Minffordd yard, there was no problem in doing so.

 

Evening All,

I'm still passing the lockdown time digitalising some of my old VHS tapes, many of which were shot on the FR - and I've just completed another instalment of the FR in 1991. This one stars everybody's favourite...MOUNTAINEER.

So come with me on a nostalgic trip on the FR behind The Alco 29 years ago:



Hope you like it.

PS. If anyone hasn't seen it, the first instalment is here:

 

Wonderful stuff! Takes me right back to childhood holiday Ffestiniog journeys.
Mountaineer sounds just splendid in these videos.
Thanks for sharing.

RPSI, FfRS, TRPS, RERPS, RHDRA, WLLRPC

 

Glad you like it. Part three will be uploaded in due course. Bit busy doing my on-line Christmas shopping it the moment!

 

This seems a good moment to plug these.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Exclusiv...0?pageci=fcd99fe5-b492-4477-b2d3-add5ecc163bc

Perfect for those who want to make the ALCo great again. All profits go to the Mountaineer fund.

Tim

 

Ordered one. The Alco was the first loco I travelled behind on the Ffestiniog.

 

Always nice to see the Alco in action and on a healthy 9 coach train as well.

 

Which is strange when so many experts have told us it's not suitable for such things.

Tim

 

There will be lots of old FR footage added as time allows, so don't go away...

 

Good, looking forward to it.

I am trying to work out what the two(?) locos in Minffordd Yard by Maenofferen Sheds are. Monarch and ...?

It must have been an optical illusion and that time I did a trip behind it with 11 must have been dreaming that.

 

The other one would be the Baldwin 2-6-0 that was known as "Brazil" at the time. It is now Santa Theresa at Brecon.

Tim

 

Thanks for that. I always wondered what had happened to those locos. Have any BMR locos ever visited the FR?

On the subject of the Alco, I seem to recall many years ago someone suggesting (probably not very seriously) rebuilding it into a tender loco. I would imagine that the result would be something that looks quite similar to Saint Teresa.

 

AFAIK none of the BMR locos have yet visited the FfR. Personally I'd love to see one (or both!) of the Baldwins let loose on the WHR, but I suspect that it is probably difficult for the BMR to spare them given the small size of their fleet. Time will tell, I guess.

Yes, I remember the proposal to convert the ALCO into a tender loco - it was mentioned the the Autumn 1993 Ffestiniog Railway Magazine if you have a copy. It was proposed by the group which were about to overhaul the engine so must have been at least semi-serious? However, it was acknowledged that it couldn't be done without outside funding.

 

There are a couple of indifferent photos in the late Roy Link's "WDLR Album" (p.161) showing Baldwin 4-6-0Ts running behind the lines with their tanks removed, apparently to increase stability. The tanks are carried behind the loco on a 4-wheel flat wagon, and connected by hoses. I rather like the visual effect, although (like the Alco itself) it doesn't correspond to classical concepts of beauty...

Sorry, can't find the images online.

 

There have been various proposals over the years including turning it into an Engerth. These are mostly from concerns about weight distribution and water capacity.

The weight distribution is hampered by the boiler. The new boiler was designed as a standard replacement to fit the ALCo and the Ladies. The upshot of that is it doesn't fit any of them very well. The thinking at the time was that boilers would become increasingly difficult to procure. So having three standard designs would make things easier. Thankfully the opposite has come true, and there are now many suppliers of loco boilers.

In the end the SB3 boiler became standard for the ALCo and the SY Gondala on Coniston. I believe it is also too heavy for that

Personally I think it would be better to build a new boiler the right size for it, even if you're throwing away one that is 75% ok. But I guess we'll cross that bridge when we come to it. The original boiler has been kept in Minffordd just incase we need to measure it.

The other issue is water capacity. In the early 90s the loco was frequently running out of water on the way to T-y-B. Eventually this was traced to a problem with the top feed. When you put the firemans injecor on you'd get a stream coming out the drivers side overflow. The water capacity isn't generous. If half of it goes on the track and not in boiler you will struggle.

I do wonder of this is straying into sledgehammer to crack a nut territory though. The loco ran well from 1983 to 2006 despite these niggles. That's with barrelled cylinders, carbon build up in the valve chest, and all the other things that have hampered its performance.

Tim

 

@meeee sounds as if there might be a potential sale of a reconditioned boiler to the peeps who own SY Gondola to partially offset the cost of replacement. Glass half full? That's not like me!

Wasn't there also a proposal to fit the Alco with full length tanks at one point? Between that and what's been written on this thread, I'm amazed no-one's suggested a wood-burning smokestack, gaudy livery and renaming it Casey Jones Gerald Fox (definite American connection there)! For those of serious mind, fear not .... I jest.

 

Whilst it's not an ALCO but the Baldwin variety some have rebuilt their First World War 'cast off' beyond all recognition:

http://www.australiansteam.com/baldwin45215.htm


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

Well, I've seen far worse .... and it's at least found gainful employment, even if that livery reminds me a bit of the Triang 'Davey Crockett' sets of the 60s

 

I must say, that would be my preferred option. But then, I am not the one who would have to pay for it!

 

Out of sheer nosiness, what does a new boiler of that sort of size cost, tens of thousands? hundreds?