Following the lifting of Covid limitations, our volunteers have been busy with maintenance requirements on our operational set at Swanwick Junction on the Midland Railway – Butterley. Two successful weekends of operation have built our confidence but we do need to carry out some mainline testing to ensure everything is working as we expect following maintenance works. Keep your eyes peeled for more information on this soon.
With the long days and some of our volunteers generously using their work leave, we have commenced the massive effort necessary to revert 43044 to Valenta power. All of the inside equipment needing to be removed now has been, with the VP185 and Brush cooler successfully removed by hired crane and transported to storage. We have encountered some unexpected issues and members have received an email with more information on these! This will require some additional activities to be carried out but we are continuing with our plan to fit the Valenta. Needless to say, none of these activities are expected to be cheap and if you are interested in helping out, please click here!
Looking ahead to other events, the weekend of August 20/21 will see us join our friends at NHR in Ruddington to display some of their rolling stock and allowing visitors to see the parts you often don’t get to see. 125 Group are proudly supporting this event, with 43044 on display. Visitors will able to see inside the cab, along with seeing what a bodyshell looks like when the major equipment is out – an opportunity that doesn’t arise often! As part of this weekend, we will be naming 43044 at 2PM on Sunday 21st.
We look forward to seeing you on the 20th or 21st for a unique perspective on HST preservation as we continue the journey to restoring a HST to Valenta power!