Fairwell Earl of Merioneth: 8th of April

[JMORG]

http://www.festrail.co.uk/content/publi ... /557.shtml

Possible footplate ride win? Glad to see the FR acknowledging the Squares fans and predicting a large turnout!

Shame it requires so much work done. Hopefully a sympathetic rebuild will be possible in the future!
With the Earl gone before the start of the main session I imagine the FR is pumping everything into James Spooner to get it going asap

[Big Jim]

I think I might try to get up for that.
I do have a soft spot for the Square. It seems a shame that it is to be mothballed although I understand there is a group aiming to get it rebuilt.

[JMORG]

Yes indeed there are groups, one of which wants to use the second new boiler as a starting point. Apparently they're designed to fit the Earl.

[FWLR]

I don’t understand way do they have to replace it. Is it going to be the same type of loco?

[Big Jim]

I don’t understand why do they have to replace it. Is it going to be the same type of loco?

This is my thought.
I wonder if it is to do with image and a desire to have a 'traditional' looking engine rather than the more rough and ready design of the Square.

[JMORG]

I think the main issue is the quality of materials available at a price in the 70's. The tanks have perpetually leaked for years now and the cradle has apparently also suffered. The frame mods that were applied to Prince around the same time were found to be cracked after about 10 years of "light" use.
Unfortunately te FR was not as financially secure back then!

[TonyW]

I don’t understand way do they have to replace it.

The simple answer is: Because it is worn out. It was worn out ten years ago when I used to drive it, and can only have got worse since. JMORG's comments about poor materials and leaking tanks are spot-on (oh, the fun and games I've had trying to make rusty steel water-tight again), and once the cradle starts to give problems it really is game over.

Merddin's and The Earl's boiler are the same design and age, but Merddin's had massive longitudinal stays added about 15 years ago to make it more rigid and prevent cracking. I'd guess The Earl's boiler needs the same work ... but that boiler is 50 years old now, so a new one is probably a better investment.

I think it was Christmas 2004 that a large gang of us set about making two identical new sets of Fairlie tanks. One set went straight on to Merddin Emrys, and the other set were meant to go on the Earl "at its next overhaul", which would have made it look like Merddin. Due to it being needed in traffic earlier than expected this didn't happen and the leaky tanks stayed on, much to the annoyance of some who had contributed to the cost of the new tanks, and they were/are in storage.

The farewell event is taking place about 5 miles from where I type this. I think I'll give it a miss.

[FWLR]

Ok well explained, except way don’t they replace it with the same type of Loco, be a shame to lose the character of that loco altogether.

[JMORG]

The Earl is in a way similar to Mountaineer; not brilliant materials and construction methods and an acquired aesthetic.
Mountaineer is meant to be the next volunteer job after Welsh Pony. But like so many of the FR engines it's essentially redundant in day to day service. From what I understand Linda and Blanche are superior choices for the smaller "C" set. Lyd I've heard more mixed reviews due to not really being as suitable for the FR (wrong handed drive for the infrastructure).
I can imagine the Earl ending up in a similar boat to Mountaineer; be nice to get it going but the level of work required for the level of use makes it difficult to justify.