GWR 2859

Take the post as it's meant. It's NOT a sweeping stereo-typical one, but one made against an individual who just wants the glory of having restored a loco yet goes looking for his 'next' project when some effort is required with his 'current' project. He's destroyed his reputation before even making it, and yet now has scarily set it up so that he can receive donations through (presumably) his PayPal account for his fantasy.

 

It just gets sillier and sillier - within 2 hours he has changed his mind about whether the page will ever be closed

 

I appreciate that the comment probably wasn't meant as a sweeping generalisation but it's set up to be interpreted as such. The attitude which is implied by such comments do just as much good for the younger members of the movement as Mr Reeder's exploits: none.
I don't want it to come across like I am lynching ADB for his comment because it is indicative of a wider attitude which sadly still exists in our hobby. I'm delighted that Alex hasn't experienced it, or if he has it clearly hasn't put him off, but it remains all to common an occurrence that potential young volunteers are put off by unfortunate attitudes from old hands who should know better.

 

I don't really think this has much to do with age to he honest, doesn't matter if he's 14 or 40 he'd still get the same ridicule. I'd have thought anyone with any bit of sense could see the comments here justified no matter how young too, contrary to popular belief some us young'uns do have sense. So looking at it it's Mr Reeder's who's putting older people of younger people, so it's his fault

 

It may have been justified at first to point out the obvious flaws in these schemes but to continue to regurgitate them for a few cheap laughs is unnecessary and petty.
I don't believe the attitude to Mr Reeder is primarily based on his age but it has brought to the fore some unfortunate misconceptions that continue to thrive. I think your use of the phrase "contrary to popular belief" inadvertently illustrated my point very well.

 

That was sort of my point too, that it's Mr Reeder's fault that these beliefs exist, unfortunately they are true for some people...

 

Maybe he will get a proof reeder .........

 

Yes, he's doing metalwork at school

 

all facebook pages seem to have vanished.

 

Surprise surprise...

I've just had a brilliant idea, maybe we should introduce Mr Reeder to the Meon Valley railway people that'll keep us amused for a while.

 

Unfortunately not - https://www.facebook.com/#!/mixedtrafficloco


Keith

 

My advice to young Mr Reeder would be join an established loco restoration group and get some real skills and knowledge under his belt, he's got time on his side, then investigate restoring an engine,if you do it under the umbrella of a known group, you will stand a better chance of restoring it , starting facebook page after facebook page, means that no one will take you seriously 2859 isnt in danger of getting broken up is it? so in a few years when you have helped to restore another engine, you will stand a better chance of getting her,and more important you will have like minded others who will be able to help, so stop this stupid facebook idea, get yourself down to your local railway join up, get stuck in, learn how to rebuild an engine, once you feel you can do it and have the skills, start fund raising with others who are so minded and get the backing of the motive power manager so that you have somewhere to put it,

 

Excellent news that he's found 2580! What condition is it in and is it possible to repatriate it?

 

sorry i put down the wrong number i meant 2859, strange thing is i was looking at the number whilst typing

 

One of the trustee's is a member of the Swindon and Cricklade Railway, apparently claims to have done restoration work on Owsden hall and other locos on site. Now I am one of the steam loco dept at the S&CR who works on owsden week in week out. This trustee however, has never laid a single finger on Owsden hall....

"Walk away!" sounds about right....

 

Youth is a wonderful thing, naivety which you can get away with because everyone accepts bright ideas of the young.
The difference between youth and adulthood is the ability to separate fact from fiction and realize those dreams, or sadly let them fade.

The "facebook rebuild" unfortunately has gone from naivety, to fairy tale, to fantasy, to myth and legend.
Another difference between youth and adult hood is to learn from mistakes..
sadly, for all the world to see those mistakes are constantly repeated.

Now I am not that old myself, but growing up around 30-40 somethings who had an idea of buying a steam locomotive in their 20 somethings, and I now see the same people as 50 somethings, there is three major differences between the youth of the 60s and the youth of today when it comes to buying a steam locomotive..
1. Skillset
2. spare parts
3. finances

Gone are the days when a bunch of kids could rely on a shed full of supporting drivers who are "willing to lend the lads a hand".
Gone are the days when you could raid an ex-BR store chucking out old steam era fittings, tools or spares..
Gone is Barry scrapyard for spares, 46447/80100 probably represents the last ex Barry steam locomotives in exBR condition with most of it's original bits still sitting awaiting to be restored.
Gone are the days of cheap restorations because "all the complete ones" all the "good condition at withdrawal" ones are all done and running.

Whats left for any eager 20 something is:
1. A scrap loco devoid of most fittings, being sold for historical rather than scrap value
2. A loco which will need expensive remanufacture, or expensive purchase of it's missing bits
3. A need to source a workshop and it's fittings without access to "old steam era kit being binned by BR".
4. A much smaller and older gene pool of knowledge, which may or may not be "ex BR" in which to call on for help, grunt work or just plain "how did they do that".
5. An engine which hasn't been restored sooner because in all likely hood a major component has a major defect, which was so cost prohibitive "back then" that its place in the queue fell to the back, and it was slowly stripped instead.

its a different world and its much harder than those dreamy days of the 60s.
Sadly it doesn't transpose to modern traction either.. this is much more bespoke, complex, electrical, computational rather than simple mechanics and physics.

 

If they scale down their dreams there are quite a few neglected industrial locos which are relatively complete, though with less potential for use and none of the glamour raising the cash for even a set of boiler tubes is still going to be a struggle

Sent from my HTC One mini using Tapatalk

 

I for one would rather do such a project!

 

Absolutely 100%...

how many teenagers bought an ex-BR tender engine straight of BR and set about making it work...

seeing those dreamy videos of a bunch of kids with an 0-4-0 or something like is much more realistic.. in the 60s and today, indeed it is why there are so many more industrials preserved than ex-BR locos.. it's an achievable dream, which can become a stepping stone to greater things.

Sure it's less glamourous, but most kids today (well in my day) started with an old ford escort, souped it up and later moved onto decent cars... we didn't start with an old Ferarri (not saying that's a decent car mind).

 

Being in a small team of young people tinkering with an 040 certainly appeals, a very eavieveavle thing, in fact something I'd strongly recommend Mr Reeder to do, buying an 040 and restoring it would be brilliant foundation work for something bigger in the future.