Western Region Diesel Hydraulic Locomotives in Preservation

AUTHOR: Fred Kerr

PUBLISHER: Pen & Sword Transport

ISBN: 978-1-39900-493-0

PRICE: £25.00

WEBSITE: www.pen-andsword.co.uk

THE WESTERN Region dieselhydraulic locomotives have long held a fascination for many enthusiasts, and remain popular despite the various designs being phased out by BR by the late 1970s.

This new Pen & Sword book looks at the four Western Region dieselhydraulic designs that have survived into preservation: the Class 14, Class 35 ‘Hymek’, Class 42 ‘Warship’ and the Class 52 ‘Western’.

Although a healthy number of Class 14s survive in preservation – largely thanks to a second working life in the steel and coal sector into the late 1980s – the other three designs are fewer in number, with four ‘Hymeks’, two ‘Warships’ and seven ‘Westerns’. The author, former Heritage

Railway contributor Fred Kerr, is a photographer who has travelled extensively throughout the UK, building up an impressive collection of images of both the preservation sector and the main line.

With only one dieselhydraulic locomotive registered for main line running – D1015 Western Champion – this is the only locomotive that is featured on main line charters away from the more sedate surroundings of a heritage line.

As the title implies, the book takes you around the country looking at the surviving diesel-hydraulics on a number of different heritage lines. Each section starts with a brief history of the locomotive design and then details every surviving locomotives, often with photographs taken of them throughout their time in preservation. The 124-page hardback A4-format book is well-designed and presented, and printed on decent quality gloss paper. The reproduction of the photos is generally very good and the majority of the pictures are of a high standard.

If you are a fan of the dieselhydraulic designs, then this photobook is bound to be of interest. AMC