Bogie overhauls booked at Basford Hall for FL Class 86s

Freightliner is about to start a bogie overhaul programme on its Class 86/6 fleet.

The work will be carried out at its Crewe Basford Hall facility, with 86632 the first to be treated. The in-house project could add as much as 20 years to the life of the locomotives, which date from 1965-1966.

A spare pair of bogies is currently being overhauled, after which the first ‘86’ will enter the programme. It is expected each locomotive will take about a month to complete, and FL has 16 in its active fleet (86604/605/607-610/612-614/ 622/627/628/632/637-639).

Spares have been removed from former Network Rail 86901 including a transformer now fitted to 86613 during an exam. The ‘86/9’ has been picked almost clean of components and will be scrapped – the third such locomotive bought by FL for parts, and which should provide replacement components for the next decade.

Andrew Jeffrey, Freightliner’s fleet manager, electric locomotives, told RAIL on March 12 that while obsolescence of parts is a concern for FL regarding the Class 86s, taking the work in-house meant the operator is able to better understand the locomotives and the spares.

The vacuum brake capability remains on the locomotives, which will be removed, while FL is also investigating the possibility of fitting LED lights to the ‘86s’.