Trivia
Did you know that...
...the last BR-operated engine to steam into Penzance was N°34002 Salisbury?
...the last 'spamcan' to work Southern metals west of Exeter was Wadebridge with a brake van tour to Meldon Quarry on 11th December 1964 (until Tangmere visited Okehampton on 4th October 2003)?
...the last normal steam working to arrive at Exeter was rebuilt WC Nº34032 Camelford with the 1:00 p.m. Waterloo-Exeter, returning with the 7:45 p.m. "perishables" to Nine Elms, on 29th November 1965?
...after they were rebuilt by BR the locomotives were too heavy to work the "Withered Arm" lines north of Meldon Junc.?
...the steam operated firebox doors, popular with West Country drivers, were replaced because Nine Elms drivers didn't like them?
Time for some fun? Have a go at some WADEBRIDGE jigsaws:-
Links
The Bluebell Railway, the Premier Southern line's website.
The Bodmin & Wenford Railway website.
Full Service History
Steam Locomotives, like all things mechanical, require regular servicing and, as with servicing a car, not all services are equal! The Southern Railway classified "repairs", as locomotive services are known, by letters and BR(S) classified by name but basically it all boiled down to the same thing. It is interesting to note that the scheduled servicing interval for a Bulleid Light Pacific was 100,000 miles but in many instances Wadebridge would cover in excess of 200,000 miles. The information below is from Wadebridge's record cards, unfortunately some of it is now a little indistinct.
SOUTHERN RAILWAY Card | |||||||||
Engine arived | Work commenced | Mileage since last Gen. Rep. |
Class of Repr. |
Boiler No. |
Tender No. |
Extension of mileage |
Date to Work |
Repd. at |
|
New Engine | 1269 | 3268 | 1.9.45 | B | |||||
12.46 | 7.12.46 | 10.12.46 | 67,674 | C | '' | '' | 11.1.47 | E | |
Tender changed at Exmouth Jct. | 3266 | 31.7.47 | Ex J. | ||||||
12.47 | 9.12.47 | 13.12.47 | 103,671 | A | 1272 | '' | 31.1.48 | E | |
1.3.49 | 43,655 | D (BTN) | '' | '' | 25.3.49 | E | |||
10.49 | 28.9.49 | 30.9.49 | 63,814 | L/Inter | '' | '' | 28.10.49 | E | |
4.51 | 11.4.51 | 11.4.51 | 136,057 | Gen | 1375 | '' | 25.5.51 | E | |
6.53 | 25.6.53 | 25.6.53 | 90,425 | L/Inter | '' | '' | 8.8.53 | E | |
8.54 | 9.8.54 | 9.8.54 | 134,243 | Non Class | '' | '' | Pressure 250lbs psi |
14.8.54 | E |
3.55 | 17.3.55 | 17.3.55 | 159,411 | L/Inter | '' | '' | 16.4.55 | E | |
5.56 | 18.5.56 | 18.5.56 | 211,967 | Gen | 1369 | '' | 23.6.56 | E | |
5.57 | 11.5.57 | 11.5.57 | 57,541 | L/Inter | '' | '' | 1.6.57 | E | |
8.57 | 13.8.57 | 13.8.57 | 16,925 | H/Inter | '' | '' | 6.9.57 | E | |
2.59 | 6.2.59 | 6.2.59 | 149,665 | L/Inter | '' | '' | 7.3.59 | E | |
8.60 | 22.8.60 | 22.8.60 | 224,755 | L/Inter | '' | '' | 17.9.60 | E |
BRITISH RAILWAYS SOUTHERN REGION Card | ||||||
DATE OUT OF TRAFFIC |
DATE INTO TRAFFIC |
SHOP OR SHED AT WHICH REPAIRED |
BOILER NO. |
TENDER NO. |
MILEAGE SINCE LAST REPAIR |
CLASS |
16.11.61 | 30.11.61 | EASTLEIGH | 1369 | 3266 | 264,188 | NON-CLASS |
30.4.62 | 12.5.62 | EASTLEIGH 2326 | '' | '' | 276,737 | L/CASUAL |
25.10.62 | 8.12.62 | EASTLEIGH 2331 | 1364 | '' | 289,698 | GENERAL |
29.1.63 | 6.2.63 | EASTLEIGH | '' | '' | 780 | RETURN |
WITHDRAWN 17.10.65 |
Interesting reading, isn't it? As time goes by the intervals between repairs get longer and longer. What went wrong in 1962/3 that she was back in the repair shop after just 780 miles?
The Southern Railway card starts with beautiful copper-plate writing and the same hand is in evidence until 1957 after which the writing deteriorates until the final entry, with no mileage or anything else beside it, is not much more than a quick scribble.
Other relevant dates:
31 January 1948 - S prefix added to number
25 March 1949 - Renumbered 34007
25 May 1951 - Wedge shaped cab added and repainted in BR Standard Green
17 September 1960 - AWS and speedometer fitted
8 December 1962 - Anti-glare screen added. Tender 3266 cut down
Tales abound about Bulleid pacifics catching fire, and of them "spraying" the track with oil. Read what Dave Mitchell has to say on these topics!
The Company
Originally made up of many small shareholders who contributed by buying shares, there is now one large shareholder, The Watercress Line Heritage Railway Trust Ltd (a registered charity and company limited by guarantee), in addition to all the small shareholders. The day to day running of the company is in the hands of nine directors with considerable business and engineering expertise.
Membership of the Bullied Owners Association also allows us access to a wide pool of further knowledge.
Wadebridge (34007) Locomotive Ltd.
Registered address: The Railway Station, Alresford, Hampshire, SO24 9JG.
Registered in England : Registration number 1673483
VAT number GB 591 2250 52
Email:
Telephone: 01962 733810
DIRECTORS | |
Chairman: | Stephen Evans |
Company Secretary: | Peter Greenwood |
J Barrett | |
Steve Crowther Gregory Watson David Ford Colin Roberts John Barrett Dave Williams |
|
Accountants: | Cochrane & Co Accountants Ltd, 38 Kings Road, Lee-on-the-Solent, Hampshire, PO12 9NU |
How to Find Us
Whilst the Wadebridge company and the railways operating WADEBRIDGE are pleased to welcome interest from shareholders and other visitors, please note that the locomotive is in a working railway environment where special safety rules apply.
WADEBRIDGE is a resident loco the Mid-Hants Railway and is currently being overhauled. It is not possible to visit the locomotive at the current time.
Visit the Wadebridge page on the Mid-Hants Railway website.
Dave Mitchell was the Engineering Director of Wadebridge (34007) Locomotive Ltd and was responsible for overseeing the restoration of Wadebridge from scrap condition to full operation. He works for Southern Locomotives at Swanage, knows an awful lot about Bulleids and is a self-styled "Bulleid Fundamentalist"!
"As a Bullied Fundamentalist I do try to be pragmatic about what Bullied was trying to achieve when he designed his locomotives. I write the following to explain the real reason why the lagging on the boilers of the Bullied Pacifics became soaked with oil and subsequently caught fire. This will, I hope, dispel all the mythical rubbish that has been written about the oil baths fitted to Bulleid's pacifics. A few years ago, when in conversation with the late Harry Frith senior, he explained to me the root cause of all the trouble. Harry had finished up at Eastleigh works as Chief Erecting Shop Foreman, where these locos were repaired, and therefore was well qualified on the subject.
The driving axleboxes are lubricated from missionary trays located in the cab via trimmings which are feeding oil all the time that the trimmings are in. Consequently, when the loco is standing (e.g. in a station or inbetween duties etc.) oil would run out of the axleboxes, most of which ended up in the wheel pockets of the BFB wheels - bear in mind that there are four feeds per axlebox. On starting away the oil was flung up under the casing and into the lagging. With time it also attracted brake block and ballast dust etc., thereby providing the fuel!
The source of ignition was a heavy brake application, which threw up sparks and ignited the gasses from the sump breathers which, in turn, set fire to the lagging. A regular supply of the oxygen that is so essential for good combustion was drawn up under the casing, aided and abetted by the loco's forward movement.
What was done to prevent it? The material the brake blocks were made of was changed to a different grade of cast iron which reduced the sparking and the boiler had belly lagging sheets fitted to the underside which encapsulted the lagging. The first ten Merchant Navies were fitted with splashers, but these, presumably to save weight, were discarded for all the other locos. Steam cleaning was introduced (pictures exist of this being carried out) and the problem was drastically reduced by these preventitive measures. You don't read so much about the fires that occurred on the class 47s, which were prone to catch fire for similar reasons!
Yes, the oil baths did crack, but you must remember that the 40 gallons of oil contained therein when the loco was on the move was being pumped via an oil gallery and ejected through spray pipes over the motion. The excess oil ran down the sides of the oil bath, some did, obviously, exude from the cracks, but not in the copious quantities that you read about. The significant loss of oil would have occurred through the breathers, as gassing would be constant.
One final point, if you were to use a Ferrarri to get to work instead of your Fiesta, say, then would you not expect to use more fuel? They might have hauled one or two coaches one way, but often as not they came back with 10 or 12. I find it hard to believe how petty and small minded people can be with regard to these locos, but maybe fame attracts controversy and jealousy? Yes, the problems that were encountered were unique, but what of it? The Bullieds were exceptional locomotives.
It also must be noted what Bullied was trying to achieve in the short space of time he had in the post of CME. All things considered I think he and his team did very well with the resources they had, coping with his original ideas and methods of working."