Morning Keith,
                     I was very interested to read Neil Phillips' piece on the restoration of D7017 and especially the picture of the three withdrawn 'Westerns' making their final journey from Laira to Swindon Works for scrapping.  On arrival at the works the three locos concerned, D1033 D1058 and D1070, were not taken into the scrapyard but instead went to some sidings at the back of the works where they joined D1056 and D1071.  Here, tarpaulins were secured over the cabs and these remained until final disposal took place.    I read once that following the end of BR's use of the 52's in early 1977 quarry owners Foster Yeoman were seriously considering taking on a small number of the class to work their trains from Merehead as even at that time they were unhappy with the performance of the diesel electric locos that had been brought in as replacements.  Whether BR would have retained ownership or sold them to FY I am not sure. At the same time Yeomans purchased D1010 Western Campaigner and it was delivered to Merehead where it remained until the D&EPG took over custodianship in 1986 and moved the loco to Didcot for restoration.   The five locos chosen (above) sadly didn't return to traffic and were disposed of as follows:

D1033 Western Trooper withdrawn 16.09.1976 (thin tyres) Moved to Swindon March 1977  Scrapped April 1979
D1056 Western Sultan withdrawn 15.12.1976 (failed ultrasonic axle test) Moved to Swindon ?? 1977 Scrapped June 1979
D1058 Western Nobleman withdrawn 21.01.1977(failed ultrasonic axle test) Moved to Swindon March 1977 Scrapped July 1979
D1070 Western Gauntlet withdrawn 30.12.1976 (engine defect & minor collision damage) Moved to Swindon March 1977  Scrapped May 1979
D1071 Western Renown withdrawn 07.12.1976 (broken cardan drive shaft)  Moved to Swindon  ?? 1977  Scrapped November 1978

Looking at the withdrawal dates of the above locos and the late scrapping does indeed suggest that there was a plan in hand for possible further use and it would be good if anyone is able to add to the limited information I have.  A picture on Smug Mug by 'WobbleWinterWanderings'  taken on 14th May 1977 shows Neil's Taunton trio at the back of Swindon Works, all securely sheeted. 

With best regards

Guy Vincent

Attached: Poor quality 'Instamatic' shot I took of D1058 on a works visit on 07th August 1978 showing tarpaulins.
        Many thanks Guy, any more information out there please.

Hello Keith,
The report on yesterday's 'Royal Oke' Okehampton to Paddington HST special paints a more negative picture than was actually the case. From David Tozer's perspective things must have look a little disastrous when he encountered the outward train at Crediton - as it did to those of us at Okehampton monitoring progress at the same time - but the subsequent trip was actually a brilliant success, attracting nothing but positive feedback from the participants. GWR did a fantastic job to recover the situation and get the passengers to London only 38 late, and thereafter everything went like clockwork. I've put a short report on our website at http://www.dartmoor-railway-sa.org/news and I wonder if you might like to publish the link.
kind regards
Jon Kelsey
Dartmoor Railway Supporters' Association
Jon, I am very pleased to publish your letter in full, so glad that it all went well in the end.  May there be more of these trips.

Another week, another anniversary! I was (am!) a big Hymek fan so when a group announced it was planning to preserve one I had to join. Nice to think my donations helped save it…..from memory it cost the DEG £3,510. The ‘en route’ shot (2nd one) looks a little dark but for various reasons I haven’t had time to try adjusting it, maybe you could have a go…….or just leave it out.
 
Being a member of the Diesel & Electric Group at the time (since renamed Diesel & Electric Preservation Group) I was invited to the West Somerset Railway to participate in Hymek D7017’s first passenger train working in preservation on 19th March 1977 – 40 years ago this Sunday. D7017 has now spent over three times longer in preservation than it did in BR service! It was also the first ex-BR diesel locomotive saved for preservation by a group. For reasons now not entirely clear I travelled from Swindon to Taunton via Reading, this took me past Didcot Railway Centre (on still almost-new HST set 253001) where I noted classmate and now shedmate D7018 standing outside the depot. Unfortunately the bright and sunny conditions which had greeted the ‘Western Tribute’ final special 3 weeks earlier had long gone, but at least the rain just about held off.
 
​Should I try to make this more relevant to Cornwall? OK, here goes….. Although D7017 has paid at least one visit to the Bodmin & Wenford Railway since preservation, it is known to have visited Cornwall on two occasions while in BR service – one day in autumn 1967 I discovered it parked in Truro’s bay platform (I was surprised, I’d expected either D7029 or D7088 – again!), and it powered the Kensington Olympia – St Austell Motorail service on 12th June 1971 (this was the closest Hymeks ever got to regular diagramming in Cornwall, for peak Summer Saturdays 1970 & 1971, with the loco stabled at St Blazey all day). Also, after being secured for preservation D7017 was towed to Taunton on 31st July 1975 via the Berks & Hants line by 25152 - as D7502 this Class 25 was used for crew training on the type between Penzance and Truro in January 1972 (as per my photo in ‘Truro – Gallery 2’). OK, I admit that’s a more tenuous link…..!
 
Best regards, Neil Phillips.  
      Many thanks Neil for a most interesting article and photographs.

Hi Keith I travelled back to Cornwall from Trowbridge today and took a few photos at Westbury during a 35 minute wait. A multi coloured selection of 158's plus a gathering of Colas Class 70s (70805/7 to the fore). Regards Martin Scane.                                 Many thanks Martin

Keith,

On a damp, dismal day in Devon the first train for many a year ran from Okehampton to London got off to a bad start.

On arrival at Exeter passengers then boarded a replacement HST set. The replacement set was working ECS from Laira to Paignton for a Paddington service. It was cancelled at Newton Abbot and then ran ECS to Exeter for the charter.

It got into difficulties around Bow and ground to a halt - not sure if it was on the outward or inward trip. Arrival  at Crediton was 18 late and it's departure was some 45 minutes late.  The rear power car 43194  had wheel flats so at Exeter the train was terminated. An ECS from Laira to Paignton (for a Paddington service) was terminated at Newton Abbot and instead ran ECS to Exeter. Here the luckless passengers changed trains to this one for Paddington. 

Dave

Two messages are combined above and tell the sad tale.  What hard luck for everybody concerned - our sympathies. One can only hope that the rest of their day was absolutely brilliant. Many thanks to David for the report.

Hi Keith
A couple from the week gone by.
Sadly one of the gloomiest March months I can remember. 
Cheers for now, Craig  Many thanks Craig - summer is coming - we hope!

New trains for Plymouth and Cornwall
The first of the new IEP bi-mode trains being built specifically for the more demanding route west of Newton Abbot has left the production line in Italy  en route to Britain.  Testing of the main batch of IEP (class 800) trains is already taking place mainly in the Reading-Didcot area though test runs have also been as far west as Plymouth.  These trains will begin public service between London and Bristol/Cardiff at the end of this year.  It is likely to be late next year or in 2019 before the new trains are seen regularly in Cornwall.      Many thanks for sending us this Derek

 Guy Vincent writes :-  SR 34046 'Braunton' (running as 34052 'Lord Dowding') passing Freshford on the Wilts-Somerset border with Steam Dreams 1Z24 0807 Southend-Bristol TM 'Cathedrals Express' on Saturday 11th.  34046 worked a similar train (from Ely) on 8th and is due to make a further appearance next Saturday (18th) on a Three Bridges-Bristol excursion.  

Some really interesting and useful features have been posted on the CRS website in the last few days, for example the news of the possible imminent return to traffic of 70803 at Laira which to the best of my knowledge has not been picked up elsewhere.* Nice to see it almost ready to run again, maybe with 70812 for company?   

* Many thanks to Nick Dyke for this information.

Best regards

Guy V, Frome