Yesterday, on Monday 16th May 2016 35006 P&O made her triumphant return to steam after over 30 years of painstaking restoration by volunteers at Toddington on the GWSR. Thanks to the generosity (and slight disorganisation 😉 ) of my co-bloggers (thanks again chaps!), I went along to the shareholders’ and supporters’ launch ceremony. When I…
Well, we thought the tour of Rolvenden report was over, but there were a couple of locomotives that somehow missed the roundup. The first is Class 33 (33052) D6570 Ashford. This locomotive was looking a little sorry for itself and needs some tlc to get back to running condition. D6570 is a member of a…
Tonight’s blog post is short but sweet! If you look at the writing on the frames of Army Brake Van ( SR Pattern) M 360327 on the K&ESR, you’ll notice that the writing is the wrong way round. Or in other words, the frames are upside down!
In my opinion, the Kent and East Sussex Railway (K&ESR) is the finest example of a preserved light railway, but now has a large facility that many “heavy” preserved lines would kill for – a massive carriage storage facility. The building was paid for by the Rother Valley Railway, who are working laying track towards Bodiam from Robertsbridge…
My tour of Rolvenden Works on the Kent and East Sussex Railway, had an added bonus that I wasn’t expecting – a look inside the substantial signal box. It is the line’s largest signal box and like everything (save the concrete water tower) on the site, was installed in preservation. The design is based on LB&SCR practice…
A tour of Rolvenden works gave an opportunity to get close to a rare Diesel-Electric locomotive, constructed for Ford’s Dagenham factory by the British Thompson Houston Company (BTH). Diesel-electric No. 40 is a Bo+Bo shunter, built along similar lines to American Switcher locomotive’s, hence it looking different to most equivalent machines in the UK. The American connection is natural enough…
Following from yesterdays blog post, we continue the report on the behind the scenes tour at Rolvenden works on the Kent and East Sussex Railway (K&ESR). The focus this time is on locomotives out of service, that include one that (like the two Terrier tanks) has a historical connection with the railway in pre-preservation days. Indeed, the…
I have to begin this blog post with a huge thank you to the staff and volunteers of the Kent and East Sussex Railway (K&ESR) and in particular Bradley Bottomley for sparing the time to show me around the railway’s facilities at Rolvenden. The tour was fascinating and everyone was very friendly.
It’s CanPac movie night tonight! We begin with the video above that shows heritage railway restoration skills in action, with the Watercress Line’s staff from the boiler shop riveting the bufferbeam and frame extensions of 3505 Canadian Pacific. The team seemingly made the work look easy and easily completed the work in a day. With this complete, the…
https://crowdfunding.justgiving.com/rebuild-the-brechin-brakevan The Caledonian Railway is an entirely volunteer run heritage railway based in Brechin, Angus, and like all heritage railway, every penny made through operating trains goes back into the upkeep of the railway. However, on Wednesday 6th April, 2016, between 10pm and 11pm, the beloved and highly popular LMS brakevan was subject to an…
Loco Yard 