Prototype flies in to photograph and negatives sale

NEGATIVES of a prototype high-powered diesel that BR evaluated over three years on both passenger and freight trains but did not follow up with any orders are to feature in an online auction being held by railway photographs, slides and negatives specialist Justaclockago from February 21-27.

The 110mph locomotive was built by Brush Traction of Loughborough in 1967 and handed over to BR at Marylebone station in January 1968. It was named Kestrel and numbered HS4000, representing Hawker Siddeley – the owner of Brush – and the horsepower rating.

Its evaluation included working King’s Cross-Newcastle expresses, in which it managed to beat Deltic schedules and heavy high-speed freight, including a coal train of in excess of 2000 tons, but BR ended the trials in March 1971 and the Co-Co diesel was handed back to Brush, who sold it to the Soviet Union for £127,000. It is believed to have been scrapped in 1993. Rather longer in service than this one-off were the Class 52 ‘Western’ diesel-hydraulics, and the auction includes a selection of negatives taken by John Vaughan. There is also a large collection of Barry scrapyard black-and-white photographs, overseas steam by Chris Gammell, black-and -white prints from the Richard Casserley collection, and a large collection of RC Riley slides of heritage railways. A collection of negatives featuring the Advanced Passenger Train and its APT-E prototype, taken by the late David Grant, an engineer on the project, will also be going under the hammer, as will a selection of standard 8 cine films of BR steam in the 1960s.

➜ Hornby O gauge and the LMS dominated the upper reaches of a Vectis model train and railwayana live online sale on January 21, with top honours going to a three-rail electric Princess Royal No. 6201 Princess Elizabeth at £620 and a passenger set comprising clockwork Class 4P 4-4-0 Compound No. 1185, two coaches and track dating from 1935 (£600).

Another Hornby model of the same locomotive from 1939, this being an electric version, fetched £560, a realisation that was pipped by a Scale 7 LNER D16 class 4-4-0, No. 62614 made by Laurie Griffin Miniatures of Somerset (£600). Prices exclude buyer’s premium of 25% (inc VAT).