Mixed-gauge fun
Ten again at Statfold
12 June 2010
Another visit to the Statfold Barn Railway -
and, like the previous visit, there were to be
ten locomotives in steam on the mixed gauge 2'
/ 2' 6" line. Nine would be residents, the tenth
was "Edward Sholto", the recently-restored
Hunslet quarry locomotive. The full line-up
would be, in no particular order:
•
Trangkil No. 4 - "old-build" Hunslet 3902 of 1971
•
"Statfold" - new-build Hunslet 3903 of 2005
•
"Jack Lane" - new-build Hunslet 3904 of 2006
•
"Harrogate" Peckett 2050 of 1944
•
Sragi No.1 - Krauss 4045 of 1899
•
Sragi No 14 "Max" - O&K 10750 of 1923
•
Pakis Baru 1 - O&K 614 of 1900
•
Pakis Baru 5 - O&K 1473 of 1905
•
"Saccharine" - Fowler 13355 of 1914
•
"Edward Sholto" - Hunslet 996 of 1909
"Saccharine" is a relative newcomer to the Statfold fleet. Built
for sugar plantation work (obviously?) in South Africa, it spent
some time at the Alford Valley Railway in Aberdeenshire, before
moving to Northumberland for the proposed Green Dragon
Geoff’s Rail Diaries
Railway (which seems to have come to nothing),
finally to Statfold for rebuilding into the fine and
unusual locomotive we saw in action today.
There was a little unexpected entertainment
fairly early on - the first train I saw out, a little
after 10am, was hauled by "Max", steam blowing
merrily from the safety valves. Unfortunately,
Max disgraced himself - the valve didn't close,
and he expired at the far end of the line, to be rescued, with his
train, by Mallett "Pakis Baru 5" - which made a fine sight on the
short bank at the northern end of the field railway.
Other amusements included a pair of Hunslet diesels (one built
in South Africa) on the garden railway; IRS president Roy
Etherington demonstrating his compressed-air powered
locomotive "Issinsyd"; 2' gauge pump-trolley action; the 2' gauge
Land Rover (!) (Shouldn't it now be described as a Rail Rover?).
Little more needs to be said. Statfold is great fun - I took many
photographs (and sometimes just watched, or rode the trains) -
here's a selection.
Links:
Industrial Railway Society
Statfold Barn Railway
