Heritage Railway Magazine- Didcot to build 47xx class

So how many years before Didcot actually manages to finish a project?

 

Somewhat unfair Michael - although Maindy Hall was purchased from Barry a long time ago with the long term intention of a Saint recreation serious work on the project has been ongoing for less than 10 years - which is well within the timeframe of many Barry restorations. In addition the King (which many wrote off as unacheivable) is reportedly within a year of steaming, and significant progress is being made on the railmotor. Pendennis has taken a lot longer than expected for well documented reasons, and the County is relatively new on the works floor. In the meantime high quality overhauls on 5322 and 3650 have been completed. Hardly a place where nothing gets finished!

 

I would agree that great things are achieved at Didcot, although I would agree with Michael in some ways regarding the saint - I have never really understood why the County was started before the Saint was finished - although no doubt there was a reason.

 

The successful launch of the Saint was in 1995. Since then, it has received new cylinders, new wheelsets, all the axleboxes and springs have been reconditioned, new forged front bar frames, and a lot of new platework including a cab has been made. The rolling chassis is complete and to a standard that allowed it to be towed down the main line from Milton to Didcot on its return from Bury. Right now the firebox is being restayed, the first of the brakegear is being fitted and most of the cab fittings are on order. For a project administered by volunteers, I would say that progress is reasonable, and indeed better than some straight Barry restorations which require much less engineering input.

 

I'm old enough to remember the start of the Saint project - in about 1974.

What project has Didcot finished in the last 35 years?

 

I think 1995 was actually about the 4th re-launch of the Saint project

 

If you work off the idea that 'well, there are people willing to organise it, and donate towards it' then you can justify just about anything, be it a replica platform trolley, or a recreation of the Titanic with copper capped funnels. I could donate 20 quid a week towards the latter... doesn't guarantee it'll ever be finished though.

The problem with a lot of the pro-newbuild discussion is that it often takes this narrow minded view. Maybe elsewhere it doesn't matter so much, but with the situation at Didcot, you simply cannot focus so much attention on just one project, eyeing up all the pros and cons within that project, yet not take in the wider scene. Otherwise you're just going to end up with some blinkered, distorted view of the implications such a project has. If the 47xx project was to go ahead, then your easily looking at a 20 year timescale, like the King has been, the Saint is being, and the County no doubt will be. 20 years spent occupying space in the works that could've been used by other engines, 20 years spent raising funds for it it, when that effort could've been spent on other engines.

Or look at it this way. The Society's original engine, the reason Didcot exists today, managed to miss out on the Society's 30th anniversary, as its overhaul wasn't completed in time. It then just managed to miss the 40th, having failed a few months previously. 2011 will mark the 50th, a good reason to get the old thing going if ever there was one. But since 2001, has there been any official effort to get it going? No, instead we've had first the County project, and now this.

Likewise, the overhaul of 1363 has only just started. Surely the Society should be throwing its weight behind that, and not be casting its eyes elsewhere, so soon?

If you struggle to raise money for something, because it's not perceived as being glamorous enough, then surely the last thing you want to be doing is putting something next to it that completely overshadows it. It's only going to make the situation worse.

Btw, I believe the original, unsuccessful launch of the Saint was in 1982, although they've been talking about it since at least 1973.

 

Doesn't this show that Didcot talks about things, whilst heritage lines do things?

Didcot was "state of the art" in about 1970, but the world has moved on since then, and Didcot has not kept up

 

It seems to me that this topic is becoming unnecessarily offensive and combative, and probably needs some intervention...

As an outsider unconnected with any line or museum, it would seem obvious that Didcot, essentially a working museum, must do things differently from heritage lines.

As a visitors experience they also largely avoid the sidings of scrap experience at some heritage lines. It matters not a jot to the ocasional visitor how fast projects are progressing, and indeed the more projects there are at different stages then in many ways the more interest there is. It also doesn't make much difference to the casual visitor whether a project is a new build, a recreation, or a heavy general overhaul. On the other hand it probably makes an enormous difference to the enthusiasm and availbility of volunteer labour etc, which is of course a vital factor.

As for "the world has moved on": indeed it has, but that's not precisely the point of a museum.

 

Rome is a beautiful city, but it wasnt built overnight.
At Didcot they are building a beautiful collection... but it means we have to wait a little longer for it.

Sure they could have a few quick cheap wins...but a prarie, a hall and a castle are hardly rare, and what happens after you have a few cheap thrills and have worn them out ?

kudo's to them for taking on the big jobs to provide something no other musuem will have.. some of us eagerly await the results of a saint, county, railmotor & 72xx !

 

I guess at the end of the day the important factor is what those working and giving money are prepared to do. If the new build projects reach a stage where they are stretching the point too far it simply won't be possible to complete them because no-one will fund them or work on them..

The very limited amount of time I've ever spent working on site doesn't qualify me to know what the real workers think so I can only speak from managing volunteers/donors in another context. That suggests to me that transferring them from projects they want to be involved with to other things isn't entirely productive. That said whilst there may be a group of frustrated 47xx builders waiting in the wings, there might equally be a group of frustrated 4866 lovers also waiting to get stuck in. I'm not so sure on the funding side, but I guess until its tried we won't know. It is vitally important that management keep both volunteers and donors on side otherwise things will very quickly grind to a halt.

I think on that note I'm probably going to bow out of this as I really don't want to have a big falling out with those on here who I know put a lot of time in on the ground (like for example Pannier Man who was in fact partly responsible for getting me off my butt to actually do something albeit I could only find a couple of days this year). Hopefully as other commitments wane a bit I might find time to spend more time working and thereby gain a better understanding. At the end of the day its those putting their money in and those getting their hands dirty whose views need to be treated with most respect - I'm pretty low on that pecking order right now!

 

New build 4700

The extension frames and pony truck off 4115 are the same as the 47xx. Hence only a new set of plate frames are required to complete a rolling chassis. One new 5'8" wheelset will be required. The cylinder block off 2861 is the same as the 47 apart from a slight difference in the saddle which will need reprofiling.

 

Wasn't there a set of wheels from a praire that Woodhams scrapped mounted on a plinth somewhere? Where are they now?

 

You make it sound so easy!

 

Wasn't there a set of wheels from a praire that Woodhams scrapped mounted on a plinth somewhere? Where are they now?

I think they were from astandard 4 2-6-0 and have been swapped for an 08 wheelset to free them for use in another project.

 

What no stretchers,dragbox, motion bracket, axleboxes, spring hangers, springs, spring hanger bolts & a host of other bits etc etc??

I think you must be much more used to 00 gauge kit bashing than the reality of 12" to the foot scale locos !

 

But can you be sure that everything you read in the magazines is completely accurate or just chasing a story?

 

If folks want to build a 47XX and are prepared to put their time and money into it, the best of luck to them. It doesn't matter what is there that has been restored and only needs xxxxxxK to get it back into steam. Didcot doesn't need a large operational fleet, it doesn't matter that a lot of its engines are out of ticket, as long as they are being cared for and are not deteriorating. They've done the restorations; they can afford to bring back into steam what they want, when they want, or can afford. In the meantime, they are providing the atmosphere of a steam shed, which is part of their raison d'etre. The small operational fleet and any visitors can provide the "atmosphere," which, let's face it, is what most of our fraternity want.

 

47xx

Please take it as read that ANYTHING re-useable will be re-used!!!!