35018 British India Line

Send it down to Ian Riley, at least he won't mind the colour get him to sort it out and time the valve events.

 

Mr Smith has always refused to run his engines on a heritage line and I don't think Lakeside could take a Merchant Navy

 

Must have imagined this then?

 

Without doubting your mechanical engineering credentials, if the crag bank line is sufficient preparation no engine ought to run hot when it steps out of the gate? Is a 1/4 mile running line really as good as 10+ miles some of which may have 60mph dispensation, and not having to work around franchised services?
Secondly, it must be very costly in access charges to have to use the network to test any work but I suppose that may not matter if financial resources are vast?

 

Not exactly petty cash to bung it on a low loader either, without the associated risks of damage in the process. If its going to run hot even if you tow it somewhere (incurring access charges) it will still run hot, think what chaos could be occured taking something to the ELR through the middle of Manchester.

I wonder whats next for debate regarding the operations at Carnforth, I look forward to 20+ pages criticising the way they make the tea?

 

So what are your engineering credentials? I'm sure Carnforth do not let a loco loose on the Mainline without being absolutely sure of its condition and fitness to run and they have a very skilled workforce. A failure out on the line is a costly business. The other Merchant Navy has just run a successful high mileage tour without any additional running in over and above the loaded test run around the Chester circuit

 

The problem seems to be that whatever I for example post there is an almost knee jerk reaction from a handful of you quick to retort in full on defence. My recent comment about length of running line was simply an observation, as part of an already running discussion, of one possible way the operation could be enhanced.
As @Johnb points out, the reasons for not collaborating with a heritage line are not for reasons of engineering best practice. It is frankly absurd some of you would suggest that running a loco for the first time in over 50 years with loads of new components wouldn't be optimally accomplished on a suitable stretch of private line, accumulating gradually. It is a matter of choice not to, that's all, and things have to be dealt with accordingly. At one time all locos had to do 1000 miles of heritage line running before getting even a light mainline test run.

 

Surely it's a question of horses for courses, and of the risks and benefits of the different approaches to running in? What do Tyseley (an equivalent facility) do?

And if I wanted somewhere to test run quietly, the section from Carnforth to Hellifield (at least) would be nearly ideal for lack of traffic to interfere.

 

There is a lot of merit in what you say. Not least the publicity that a newly restored loco generates. It is a draw for the heritage railway and provides the opportunity to test at the same time. Would be nice to see collaboration on things like this. Surely Messrs Riley and Smith collaborate and anything that happened at Bury could be managed there.

 

T'tea pot/urn in t'mess room gets charged up at 05:30am Monday morning (a 'healthy' strong brew), and hot water gets added as required throughout the week

 

Riley Engineering is no longer based at Bury and Thr Carnforth folk are not amateurs so I'm sure their decision to admit locos to the operating pool in the way they do is based on good practice. Certainly none of us are qualified to tell them how to do it.

 

Since when did that dictate content!

 

No, you didn't. That was a cracking gala. I especially remember a particularly good run behind 48151.

 

Fair point, the main distinguishing feature between the two is that DRS is not generally returning locos from 50+ years of inactivity having been substantially mechanically renewed? There is also a great deal more diesel "support services" than steam perhaps.
Not knocking the WC approach at all, in fact I said "the only thing WC lacks" which was intended to convey a positive thing. Achieving success, however, should not limit the opportunity for improvement?

 

Very few main line locos have been run in on a heritage railway. Getting some miles in at 25mph - yes I know one or two have a higher limit for test purposes - over short distances is no real substitute for testing at main line speeds on a long run. After 35028's triumph on Wednesday, I think she's living proof that running in on a heritage line is not required.

 

And as post #1424 illustrates that is not correct.

Possibly so, however we are not talking optimally but reality, I am sure in an ideal world the best solution would be to run her in on a test plant? I am not a steam mechanical engineer, however one would expect WCRC have to meet any standards that any other operator of rolling stock has to meet and I would assume that the decision ultimately lies with the competent person/organisation who signs the locomotive off for operation. I assume you feel similarly strongly about the Tyseley operation, I don't recall this when 5043 was released but again that wasn't WCRC was it?

Ultimately the options are to either trailer her somewhere many miles from base where the engineering expertise is based with the scope for damage both during the journey or with non WCRC crews operating the locomotive or alternatively tow her somewhere incurring acces charges with the scope for her to equally run hot as she would if she was doing the Hellifield circuit/run.

I assume that this is no longer the case and thus irrelevant to the debate here.