Cumbrian Coast Express April 12th.

71000 hauled 2 more around the coast in early 2008, not that it makes much difference, but just thought I would say for completeness

 

Way things are going the only viable Steam hauled consist will be a Schools class with 9 on and a box ticking over on the back....

 

Why do you need the box diesel on the back? A Schools will shift anything on its own!

You do need Restriction 0 stock, though...

Tom

 

Just to make sure that something might be out of gauge so you cancel it if its 'inconvenient, ?

Not decrying a schools, if you can borrow a bogie tender to get a really healthy range all the better, did bulleid ever bother to re-draught one ?

 

I think you also should be striking out "consist" and inserting "train" if you are going to be fussy about "box"!

 

Yes, but it had precious little effect (except to ruin the looks) since there was nothing much wrong with a Schools steaming in the first place.

With regard range: they used to run the Bournemouth expresses non stop, which I think was 108 miles in 2hrs. Are there many current mainline duties that call for a longer run between water stops?

Tom

 

There are a few pictures of Schools paired with LN bogie tenders around 1961. I assume they'd been pinched from withdrawn Nelsons, the Southern always was fairly pragmatic about redeploying useful tenders. In the case of King Arthur it all got a bit strange: rejected for the National Collection because it had acquired a hand-me-down Urie tender to replace its original Drummond watercart, which had long outlasted the G14 that 453 was nominally a rebuild of...

 

Ta, yes. 71000 also hauled one on 3 July 2010.

Perhaps more significantly, a number of tours ran via Carnforth to Ravenglass until summer 2011. Locos used were 44932, 5690 and 48151. Locos used to turn on a triangle inside the Sellafield complex. The Nuclear Decommissioning Agency abruptly banned them in August 2011, causing two tours to be cancelled. There have been no steam tours west of Carnforth since.

But it might be that 44932 or 48151 could work a coast tour as far as Sellafield, diesel forward to Carlisle, steam returns light tender first to Carnforth. (A diesel-hauled tour ran all the way round the coast last October with WCRC class 57/3s.)

Cheers

Andrew N

 

Without knowing where the restriction is, nor how severe it is, we can't know which locos might be able to deputise. However, the fact that Galatea has been declared unsuitable but the tour has not been cancelled, postponed nor re-routed (AFAIK), makes me think that an alternative steam loco is available. Since 44932 is on secondment to Southall ATM, my guess would be 48151 (assuming she's serviceable ATM?) The only issue then is whether a 50mph path can be found for the evening dash from Carlisle to Carnforth. Although it's always a pity when steam is replaced by a diesel, I suspect that a DL on that last leg will upset passengers less than losing some part of the coast line.

 

45231 is back at Carnforth if a black 5 fits and it is fit!

 

Is there any official information available regarding motive power for this tour?

I'd like to book for myself and other half, but with all the debate I'm waiting to see what's happening..

 

I don't think we actually know that NR would accept a Black 5 or 8F between Sellafield and Carlisle. Neither type has run over the section in the last few years, only 60163 and 71000. The fact that Galatea has been named may only be because it is the booked loco, and doesn't mean that 45231 or 48151 would be OK.

Andrew N

 

it looks like your thoughts have a lot of credibility about them when read in conjunction with working 0Z87 on RTT which is a light electric locomotive move from Preston (dep 1814) to Carnforth U&DGL (arr 1855)