Marcus' Model Railway Journey

Class 24 D5054 ‘Phil Southern'

From Thursday, 6th to Saturday, 8th June a wide selection of locomotives will be operating over the normal limits of passenger services between Minehead and Bishops Lydeard, but some services will continue past Bishops Lydeard to the very southern end of the line where it meets the West of England Main Line at Norton Fitzwarren.

That stretch of line is very rarely used by West Somerset Railway passenger trains.

On all three days, an intensive timetable will be operating so that visitors can hop from train to train to make the most of travelling behind some of the best heritage diesel traction available.

50033 Glorious

At Williton, the Diesel and Electric Preservation Group will welcome visitors at its depot in return for a donation that will go towards maintaining and restoring the group's fleet of vintage locomotives.

As well as No. D5054 Phil Southern, a notable visitor will be Class 50 No. 50033 Glorious, courtesy of the Class 50 Alliance which is normally to be found at the Severn Valley Railway.

As its name suggests, Glorious looks splendid in its BR large-logo livery.

It is now 30 years since Glorious last visited the West Somerset Railway, as on the 5th June 1993 it joined two other Class 50s to haul Pathfinder's ‘Bishops Triple' rail tour to York.

On that day, Glorious only worked the tour to and from Bishops Lydeard, so this will be the first time it has visited Minehead.

D7017 inside Williton depot
The full lineup of locomotives for the Gala includes:

• Class 03 No. D2133
• Class 09 No. D4107
• Class 14 ;Teddy Bear' No. D9526
• Class 20 No. 20142 Sir John Betjeman (visiting locomotive)
• Class 20 No.20189 (visiting locomotive)
• Class 24 No. D5054 Phil Southern (visiting locomotive)
• Class 33 ‘Crompton' No. D6566
• Class 33 ‘Crompton' No. D6575
• Class 35 ‘Hymek' No. D7017
• Class 46 ‘Peak' No. D182 (46045) (visiting locomotive)
• Class 50 ‘Hoover' No. 50033 Glorious (visiting locomotive)

Tickets for the Summer Diesel Festival are available to pre-book at a discounted rate from the railway's website.

25 April 2024
View attachment 1166 A parcel of track ordered for the project has arrived

These items are excellent on a DC track as you can have engines on the same track in a locomotive shed with just the one moving.

25 April 2024

First ‘modified’ Class 66 locomotive enters service​

66551 on its first service

Some of DB Cargo's Class 66 locomotives are being modified with different gear ratios that will enable them to haul heavier loads.

Class 66 No. 66551 after modifications
The modifications will result in the locomotives having a 14% increase in their tractive effort.

DB Cargo's current plans are for ten locomotives to be modified by re-gearing so that its older and less reliable fleet of Class 60s can be eliminated and which will maximise the efficiency of its fleet.

Modifications will be carried out during routine maintenance when locomotive bogies are due for overhaul.

At the same time, new LED headlights and wheel sets, supplied by DB's wagon maintenance facility at Stoke-on-Trent, will be fitted.

To indicate locomotives that have been modified, they will be renumbered in a 666xx series.

DB Cargo Class 60 – the type to be phased out by the modified Class 66s

DB Cargo's maintenance and engineering teams at Toton TMD in Nottinghamshire will carry out the modifications and repaint each locomotive at the same time.

The first modified Class 66 has been renumbered from 66221 to 66651 and was released back into active service earlier this week at Peak Forest in Derbyshire when it hauled a train of premium-grade limestone from Tarmac's quarry at Tunstead near Buxton, to Tata Chemicals Europe's Lostock works near Northwich in Cheshire.

In 2022, DB Cargo operated a ‘jumbo' freight train on a proving run to demonstrate how it could increase capacity, improve customer service, and improve efficiency.

'We are delighted to see 66651 operating in anger for the first time. Our colleagues at Toton have done an excellent job of planning and delivering the necessary modifications, with the second locomotive now in transition.'

Jon Harman, DB Cargo UK Head of Asset Management and Maintenance