Remaining Ex Barry locomotives?

I would agree : 68077 is more easy to see than 68078 however and is tucked inside the shed at Tunbridge Wells West last time I visited.

 

Also Jinty 47445.

 

Not an ex-Barry loco. But restoration of the frames is ticking along at Riley & Son.

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/18a8QUKxoX/

Frames were rewheeled a month ago.

 

80150 is being actively fundraised for by a group at the Mid Hants - not sure of the group's name off the top of my head.

As @Jamessquared has said above, nothing has been done to 80100. There are some fairly recent photos of it here: https://preservedbritishsteamlocomotives.com/80100-2/ It is still in the same place in Horsted Keynes up yard as of a couple of weeks ago, so can be viewed (and, with potentially some challenge, photographed) from the station by any ticket holders. It may be moved soon as the up yard is being relayed. Maybe not immediately, as I think the siding 80100 is in has been condemned!

I suspect it will be retained for now, again as said above, it is owned by the railway. 80064 has moved away. They're perfect for the line; 80151 is well-liked and (I suspect) the most reliable steam loco of the operating fleet. If you come to the Bluebell, theres a 80+% chance it'll be out on a weekend!

It was floated that possible the team restoring 84030 might take it on next, but I'm not sure if that will happen. I suspect one of the following things will eventually happen:

• A group of Bluebell supporters fundraise for and restore the engine
• Another line will agree a 'restore & run' deal, whereby they restore the engine, get to run it for say 5 years, and return it to the Bluebell after a certain period of operation

 

4MT 80100 at The Bluebell in May 1979 and 47 years later in April 2026

 

It amazes me that the Barry 'RESERVED' writing remains visible on the back of the bunker.

 

Although there is string round the chimney it looks like the associated piece of tarp is no longer there.

The missing chimney cover over many years became very expensive for 76077

 

Is any GWR loco great to work on? Admittedly my experience is largely confined to 4277, 5224 & 6619 but I found them horrors to oil up and not the most comfortable to drive and fire. The odd days on Panniers and others were no better.
I passed out for driving on 6619 so have a bit of a soft spot for it, though.

 

My earliest GWR footplate experiences were 2857, 3822 and 6998. At that stage I had limited comparative experience but they each seemed decent to work on. Very soon I gained a wider knowledge of LMS stuff which provided more perspective!
However, the 'Manor' is a very decent machine, albeit rather exposed tender first inclement weather. Strong, free steaming, roomy cab, fire hole not too low like some GWs.
Had mixed experiences with 1450, 57xx.
Three Castles, 5029 decent, 7029 was a bit tired but ok and 5080 sent so much steam directly to exhaust without using it that 6 coaches felt like 18! Ball ache to oil up.
The big tanks are the worst to work on but PDSR seem to collect them so perhaps they dislike the crews!
One thing I never liked was lack of loco steam brake on the bigger stuff, not entirely secure even with the tender handbrake screwed down.
A "vac pump" is really good when working properly, saves a surprising amount of steam.

 

Been lucky enough to fire a 57xx, 64xx, 1369, 14xx (2) 55xx, (2) and a 78xx. Considering the tank engines only I would rate the 64xx as the best for comfort, space in the cab and firing, and visibility but then it’s the most modern of the locos described being built in the 1930’s. 55xx is good to fire as well. Shame about the handbrake being positioned where it is on the fireman’s side though.

The essential issue with the GWR tank locos are that the majority are essentially Victorian in design so do feel outdated compared to the more modern locos such as a standard or black five. Perhaps one day I’ll get to experience one of those too!

 

I've fired over thirty different locos. Given that that list includes a 20 ton Fletcher-Jennings 0-4-0T from the 1870s and also Tornado, it is hard to give an absolute ranking; they really aren't comparable. But I doubt it is a great surprise if I were to say that far and away the best all round loco from a fireman's perspective from amongst those 30+ is an 80000 tank. Crew comfort, steaming ability, ease of preparation - it is pretty much top on all fronts from the fireman's side. (I haven't been on an Ivatt 2MT tank, but most people I know who have rate them highly as well).

At the other extreme - the worst all round was a 56xx. Not really a fair comparison to look at a loco designed for controlling loaded coal wagons down steep valleys and pulling the empties back up and then ask how it did on a six coach passenger train, but it was just all round unpleasant to work on. I also wasn't really impressed by my one go on a Black 5, but I think it was a particularly rough example.

On Victorian and Edwardian locos - I like working on them. The one issue that a lot of them seem to have is more fiddly injectors. (In their defence, all the GWR locos I've been on tend to be very good in that regard). Far and away the worst loco in that regard I've been on was the Beattie Well Tank, but I think there are good reasons why that would be so. The LNWR coal tank was also awkward in that regard, but Fenchurch can also be a bit temperamental. The Chatham engines are better, but they are still not the absolute reliability of a BR standard.

Amongst modern GWR locos, my most recent experience is a modified Hall. Give or take a missing gauge glass, it is quite good from the fireman's side - once you are off shed. But I'd still prefer a BR Std 5 over it, and a Std 4 tank over either of them. More comfort, and better controls.

Tom

 

Very true. 76077 lost it's chimney and smokebox door between 1980 and 1985 whilst at Barry so keeping the weather out will have been so much harder.

 

These photos are

I have a theory that Collett bore a grudge against Welsh enginemen hence the 56xx class! I wonder if the indigenous 0-6-2 tanks of the Welsh railway companies were as difficult to prep and dispose?

 

Thank you Tom for a more hopeful report on 80100 than the person I spoke to at last year's Giants of Steam, who told me that it may end up being nothing more than a source of spares to keep 80151 running. I very much hope not. It never worked on the Southern Region after completion at Brighton (and no doubt a trial run to somewhere like Tunbridge Wells) but I have rather a soft spot for it as it worked over the Gloucester- Ross-on-Wye-Hereford line and had I lived in Gloucestershire in the early 1960s instead of 2011-2015, I would have been able to hear its distant whistle from my back garden.

I know two members of the 78059/84030 group and they have never mentioned 80100 to me, although they are relatively new members of the team. I do recall that it was originally the plan that once the new 2MT is complete, the group would then turn their attention to 80100, but obviously plans do change over time.

It would be good the 50th anniversary of its arrival at Sheffield Park (October 2028) could be celebrated by the beginning of its restoration to working order as my friends in the 84030 group told me that it was hoped to complete that project in two years' time.

 

Well, the last of the Rhymney locomotives the 56s were inspired by was withdrawn from service in 1957, so there must be few people left who would know.

 

I don't have your experience of older designs Tom but concur that the 4MTT is the finest of the bunch. Did 42085 visit Bluebell or am I misremembering?
As far as your experience of a Black 5 goes, I don't know which it was but I think you must have had an unusually poor experience. Although slightly large for most heritage lines, I never had anything but a good day on the 4 I sampled - 5337, 5407, 5231 and 4767. Most experience of the first 2 mentioned, with the former whilst being a bit "rough and ready" seemed slightly stronger than the much better condition 5407 - go figure!
Ivatt mogul - a dream to work on and surprisingly strong, always steams well. Likewise 76 BR mogul.
Jubilees, just like a Black 5 but with a turbo!
Of the largest types, Stanier Pacifics seemed just like bigger 5MTs but wasted on a heritage line.
71000, again too large for the job really, but surprisingly easy to work on.
My favourite 'giant' though was 92214, absolute Rolls Royce both for driving and firing.

Of Eastern lineage, I enjoyed the K1 very much both fired and drove. Likewise 61264, but only on the shovel.
60007 was a great engine but I didn't have my best outings with it in my earliest days. We had 60532 for a short visit and I think I only managed one round trip which was straightforward. The B12 was ... quirky, very long box took some practice to get right and driving was similarly a learning experience with the air braked. The J27 was enjoyable, again some learning to be done on the job.

Southern region, 34027 was very decent, steamed well, bit like a BR standard in some respects. 34067 again steamed well, limited driving experience but was in top class order so went very well too. My first observation ride out as a beginner cleaner was on 35005 funnily enough but I didn't actually feed the beast that day so can't comment.

Overall though, you could try everything and still come back to the same conclusion - Std4 tank is unsurpassable.

 

You're not misremembering, Danny. Branch Line weekend 2010.

 

Nice shot, a rare treat away from LHR.
Did @Jamessquared get to sample it though?

 

No, I missed it (in footplate terms).

Tom

 

72xx in particular, I think you are looking for a long and very straight line. I have a suspicion that they will be less useful than people think when it comes to running round...