Sponsor No. 35011’s boiler lift – for £10 an inch
THE General Steam Navigation Locomotive Restoration Society has launched an appeal to raise funds for the lifting of the boiler of Bulleid Merchant Navy Pacific No. 35011 General Steam Navigation for the first time since BR days.
Supporters are being asked to sponsor an inch or more, for as little as £10 – with their names entered into a prize draw.
The society was formed in 2015 with the aim of restoring 1944-built No. 35011 to its original as-built condition, complete with air smooth casing and Bulleid’s unique chaindriven valve gear. Retro-converting a Merchant Navy has long been debated since the days of Barry scrapyard, with 11 of the 30 members of the class surviving the cutter’s torch.
First shedded at Nine Elms, it began work on services to Bournemouth and Salisbury, often on named expresses. In February 1954, it was transferred to Bournemouth where it regularly headed the ‘Royal Wessex.’ It later returned to Nine Elms, before being shedded at Exmouth Junction, during which time it was sent to Eastleigh Works for rebuilding.
Having returned to Bournemouth in early 1960, in January 1966 it headed an enthusiasts’ special over part of the Somerset & Dorset main line, from which its class was officially banned.
Withdrawn a month later, in arrived at Barry scrapyard in June that year, with most of its running gear missing and critically, no crank axle.
One of the last locomotives to be saved from Dai Woodham’s scrapyard, it was originally designed for the abortive Brighton Locomotive Works project at Preston Park.
In April 2019, the 4-6-2 moved to its new base at Blunsdon on the Swindon & Cricklade Railway. Because of the missing components, the cost of restoring it to either rebuilt or original condition are fairly similar.
The plan is to remove the locomotive boiler this summer for the first time since it was withdrawn to allow thorough restoration of the frames and wheelsets to achieve a complete rolling chassis within the next five years.
The approximate cost of the crane hire will be £1500, which also equates to approximately the distance in up-and-down travel of 150ins of the boiler by the time it has been raised to clear the chassis and lowered again.
Supporters can, of course, sponsor several inches if they wish. As a further incentive each ‘inch or more’ sponsored will be entered into a free draw to win prizes including a Graham Farish N Gauge Merchant Navy Pacific, other model locomotives, a year’s free membership of the society and General Steam Navigation merchandise.
A lucky ‘inch sponsor’ will be drawn at random at pivotal points during the boiler lift, such as the moment the first inch has been lifted, point of maximum lift, being clear of the chassis and then lowered to its new location. The more inches sponsored increases the winning chances.
➜ To sponsor an inch or more, visit www.justgiving.com/ crowdfunding/35011boilerlift