Brecon Mountain Railway No. 4

[Dave Crow]

I surf the Welsh web sites to look at the progress on their lines.  While reading the Brecon Mountain's locomotives page, I noticed the description of No. 4:

"No.4 'Forney Type' Locomotive
This again is a new locomotive which we are building from the original Baldwin USA drawings of No 10 Ex Sandy River Railroad in Maine.

The original loco was scrapped in 1936 when that railway closed. It is a 2-4-4 T Forney type.

Work is well advanced and it is expected to start construction of the boiler in early 2014."

How similar was Sandy River #10 to WW&F #7?

Hmmm...

[Bruce Mohn]

Hi Dave:

SR&RL 10 had 36 inch drivers as compared to the 33 inch drivers on WW&F 7, also Walshaerts valve gear as compared to the Stephenson valve gear on WW&F 7, larger boiler diameter, steel cab, outside bearing pilot truck, different tender truck...  Basically SR&RL 10 was built to be a speedster and was the most modern passenger loco on any of the two footers in the US.  WW&F 7 was closer to the beginning of 2-4-4ts.

If you were thinking that the WW&F might be able to obtain some castings from the Brecon Mountain and so speed up the production of 11, this wouldn't be the way to go.

Bruce

[Dave Crow]

Bruce, thanks for the clarification.  Never hurts to wonder...

Dave

[Wayne Laepple]

Here's the link to the latest iteration of the Brecon Mountain Railway's web site. Lots of interesting stuff to see. I understand they will open another couple of miles of line sometime this year, up to the summit at Torpantau.

http://www.breconmountainrailway.co.uk/homepage

[Bernie Perch]

Has anyone investigated what a casting would cost over in the UK and what it would cost to ship it over here.  If it was a rough casting and an internal flaw was found how would it be remediated?  If it was machined over there, what would it add to the cost? 

Wayne and I went to a commercial foundry over here and had the castings made for #11's bell bracket, and the cost for the final castings was over $800.  Granted it would have been cheaper at that local foundry in Maine where the railroad has castings made, but they couldn't handle any of the big castings we need for #11.  There is a big difference in philosophy and cost between volunteer work and commercial work.

Bernie

[Thor Windbergs]

Hello a lucky friend from California, got to visit this month and really filled in all the blanks. I know I will visit it is only when, in not to far off future they will have more 2ft Baldwins operating than anywhere else in the world...and in Brazil the can't restore what they have and everyone is building new ones...so sad.
Thor

Von: "Thomas R. Schultz" <schultzestate@gmail.com>
Datum: 2 Aug 2014 17:28:01 GMT+2
Betreff: A Visit to Brecon Mountain Railway, Pant, Wales, UK
On Tuesday, July 15, 2014, we visited Brecon Mountain Railway, which operates from Pant near Merthyr Tydfil along the full length of the Pontsticill Reservoir to Torpantau, Wales, United Kingdom.  This 2-foot gauge railway is laid on the roadbed of a former standard gauge railway. An interesting railway museum exists a mile or so north of Pant at Pontsticill.

Power for our train was Brecon Mountain Railway 2, 4-6-2 (BLW 61269 / 1930), 2-foot gauge, ex-Eastern Province Cement Co., Port Elizabeth, South Africa.  This Baldwin locomotive is one of only a handful of serviceable US-built steam locomotives operating in the United Kingdom.

Also serviceable at Brecon Mountain Railway are the following locomotives:

• "Graf Schwerin-Löwitz" 0-6-2 (Jung 1261 / 1908), 60 cm gauge, ex-Mecklenburg Pommersche Schmalspurbahn, Germany
• "Sybil" 0-4-0 (Hunslet 827 / 1903), 2-foot gauge, ex-Pen-Yr-Orsedd Slate Quarry, Nantlle near Caernarfon, North Wales, United Kingdom
• "Pendyffryn" 0-4-0 (De Winton & Co., Caernarfon, Wales ? / 1897), 2-foot gauge, ex-Pen-Yr-Orsedd Slate Quarry, Nantlle near Caernarfon, North Wales, United Kingdom
• "Redstone" 0-4-0 (Mr. Redstone / Penmaenmawr Granite Quarry [no works number] / 1903), 2-foot gauge

Under repair is: Brecon Mountain Railway 1, 2-6-0 (BLW 15511 / 1897), 1' 11-3/4" gauge, ex-Mogyana Railway, Brazil

Incredibly, Brecon Mountain Railway is constructing two new steam locomotives, both being built using original Baldwin drawings of Sandy River & Rangeley Lakes locomotives:

• Brecon Mountain Railway 3, 2-6-2; based on Sandy River & Rangeley Lakes 23, 2-6-2 (BLW 40733 / 1913), 2-foot gauge, original locomotive scrapped in 1936.
• Brecon Mountain Railway 4, 2-4-4, Forney; based on Sandy River & Rangeley Lakes 10, 2-4-4 (42231 / 1916), 2-foot gauge, original locomotive scrapped in 1936.

Brecon Mountain Railway: http://www.breconmountainrailway.co.uk/
Von: "Thomas R. Schultz" <schultzestate@gmail.com>
Datum: 11 Aug 2014 11:39:56 GMT+2
Betreff: Brecon Mountain Railway: Update
On Monday, August 11, 2014 2:19 AM, Brecon Mountain Railway <enquiries@breconmountainrailway.co.uk> wrote:

Hi
I am pleased you enjoyed your visit here.
We are making good progress with the Sandy River locomotives and have started building the new boilers for two of them.
The machining of the second cylinder for No.10 is nearly finished and then its a pair of cylinders to machine for No.23.
 
Best wishes
Michael Hills
Brecon Mountain Railway
T: 01685 722988
www.breconmountainrailway.co.uk