List of Talyllyn Railway rolling stock

This is a list of past and present rolling stock used on the Talyllyn Railway (Welsh: Rheilffordd Talyllyn), a 2 ft 3 in (686 mm) narrow gauge preserved railway line running for 7.25 miles (11.67 km)^[1] from Tywyn on the Mid-Wales coast to Nant Gwernol near the village of Abergynolwyn. The line was opened in 1866 to carry slate from the quarries at Bryn Eglwys to Tywyn, and was the first narrow gauge railway in Britain authorised by Act of Parliament to carry passengers using steam haulage.^[2][3] Despite severe under-investment,^[4] the line remained open, and in 1951 it became the first railway in the world to be preserved as a heritage railway by volunteers.^[5][6]

When first opened, the railway owned two steam locomotives, Talyllyn and Dolgoch, and five carriages, including one brake van. There were no additions to the rolling stock until the line was taken over in 1951.^{[note 1]} Two ex-Corris Railway locomotives were then purchased from British Railways, and subsequent additions have brought the total up to six steam locomotives, four diesels and twenty-three carriages.

Locomotives

The railway has six steam locomotives for passenger trains and five diesel locomotives that usually haul only works trains. It is unusual for all steam locomotives to be operable at one time, as there is usually at least one locomotive undergoing overhaul.^[8]

Steam locomotives

Number	Name	Image	Whyte notation	Builder	Works number	Date built	Current status (as of May 2017)	Railway Series equivalent[9]
1	Talyllyn		0-4-2 ST[10]	Fletcher, Jennings & Co., Whitehaven[10]	42[10]	1864[10]	In service [11]	Skarloey
			One of two original locomotives, it was built as an 0-4-0 ST without a cab. By 1866, trailing wheels had been added to improve stability, and it had a cab installed at the same time.[10] It was named after the railway.
2	Dolgoch		0-4-0 WT[12]	Fletcher, Jennings & Co., Whitehaven[12]	63[12]	1866[12]	In service.	Rheneas
			The second original locomotive. Like Talyllyn, it was built without a cab, though one was subsequently added. It was named after the intermediate station and local waterfalls, though after the Boer War, it carried the name Pretoria for several years. In 2011 it received a new boiler, and returned to steam in time for the 60th anniversary celebrations of the preservation society on 14 May.
3	Sir Haydn		0-4-2 ST[13]	Hughes, Falcon Works, Loughborough[13]	323[13]	1878[13]	Undergoing major overhaul.	Sir Handel
			An ex-Corris Railway locomotive, purchased in 1951 and subsequently named after Sir Henry Haydn Jones, owner of the railway prior to preservation. Following the expiry of its 10-year boiler ticket in early 2012, the loco was stored out of use at the Corris Railway until April 2013, when it commenced a tour of various railway sites in England to help raise funds for its overhaul. In February 2015 it was moved back to the Talyllyn. In Autumn 2015 it was sent to the Vale of Rheidol Railway's new workshop in Aberystwyth for its overhaul to start. It is due to return in 2018, in time for its 140th birthday.
4	Edward Thomas		0-4-2 ST[14]	Kerr Stuart, Stoke-on-Trent[14]	4047[14]	1921[14]	In service [15]	Peter Sam
			The second ex-Corris Railway locomotive, also purchased in 1951 and subsequently named after the general manager of the line prior to preservation. It was fitted with a Giesl ejector between 1958 and 1969.[16] Received a new boiler in 2004.
6	Douglas		0-4-0 WT[17]	Andrew Barclay, Kilmarnock[17]	1431[17]	1918[17]	In service	Duncan
			A "Modified E Class", built for the depot railway serving RAF Calshot.[18] It was donated to the Talyllyn in 1953, regauged from 2 ft (610 mm) gauge and named after Douglas Abelson, who donated the locomotive.[19] Returned to service July 2013 as 'Douglas' in bright red and black border livery.
7	Tom Rolt		0-4-2 T[20]	Talyllyn Railway[20]	none given[20]	1991[20]	In service	Ivo Hugh
			This locomotive was built by the Talyllyn Railway using components from a Bord na Móna (Irish Peat Board) Andrew Barclay locomotive. It was originally intended to give it the jocular name Irish Pete. However, prior to completion, it was decided to name it in honour of L.T.C. Rolt, one of the founders of the Talyllyn Railway Preservation Society.

Diesel locomotives

Number	Name	Image	Type	Builder	Date built	Power (hp)[21]	Wheel diameter[21]	Railway Series equivalent[9]
5	Midlander		4wDM[note 2]	Ruston & Hornsby	1941[22]	48	1 ft 6 in (0.46 m)	Rusty
			This locomotive was purchased in 1957 from Jee's quarries at Hartshill,[23] and contains parts that were cannibalised off an identical locomotive. It was named after the Midlands area group of the preservation society that donated the locomotive.
9	Alf		0-4-0DM[note 2]	Hunslet Engine Co.	1950	75	2 ft (0.61 m)	Fred
			This is an ex-National Coal Board locomotive, from Huncoat colliery in Lancashire.[24] It was named after Alf Robens, chairman of the National Coal Board.[25]
11	Trecwn		4wDH[note 2]	Baguley	1983-84[26]	99	610mm
			One of three Baguley diesels that were purchased from RNAD Trecwn in South Wales in 2008. These were originally bought by a consortium of volunteers, but have since been purchased from this group by the railway. This loco was originally numbered T 0006 00 NZ 32 (BD 3764)[26][27] and entered service on the Talyllyn in 2014.
12	St. Cadfan		4wDH[note 2]	Baguley	1983-84[26]	99	610mm
			The second of the three Baguley diesels that were purchased from RNAD Trecwn in South Wales in 2008.[note 3] This loco was originally numbered BD 3779[26][27] and named after St Cadfan's Church in Tywyn. As of September 2014, it is still being re-gauged at Alan Keef Ltd. and will enter service on the Talyllyn in due course.

Self-propelled engineering plant

Name	Image	Type	Builder	Date built
Toby		Permanent Way Trolley	John Bate	1955
		Small trolley used by engineers for transportation to worksites. Built from a second hand Austin 7 engine and gearbox, mounted on a custom-made chassis.[28]
-		Ballast tamper	Matisa[29]	1990
		Rail mounted track tamper. Parts of two ex-MOD standard gauge tampers were acquired in 1989 and one complete machine was assembled and commissioned on 26 June 1990.[30]
-		Flail Mower	Talyllyn Railway	1998
		Rail mounted self-propelled vehicle used to clear lineside vegetation.[31] Designed by John Bate (Chief Engineer 1963-1994) and built from chassis components from two Ruston & Hornsby locomotives, the framing and motor components of a Smalley excavator, the flail mechanism and cab from a McConnel flail mower and a new Perkins diesel power unit.[32]

Former locomotives

Number	Name	Image	Type	Builder	Date built	Power (hp)	Year with- drawn
5	"The Lawnmower"[33][note 4]		4wPM[note 2]	David Curwen	1952	20[34]	1953
			This lightweight locomotive was built by member David Curwen using a Model T Ford engine and transmission from L.T.C Rolt's narrowboat and the wheels from a Talyllyn Railway slate wagon. It worked the Fridays-only winter passenger service until 1953,[35][36] when it was taken out of use with a failed gearbox. It was dismantled in 1954,[33] and converted to flat wagon No. 19 (see below).[37] It is proposed to rebuild it as a memorial to David Curwen, using a replacement engine and bodywork.[35]
7	"Charley's Ant"		4-2-0	Talyllyn Railway	1954		c.1958
			A Mercury tractor that had been adapted to push standard gauge rolling stock by the addition of a buffer beam. It was further adapted in 1954 for use on the Talyllyn, and later converted to run on paraffin instead of petrol.[38] It was little used after 1958 and later scrapped. It was nicknamed after Charles Uren, the railway's chief engineer.[24]
8	Merseysider		4wDH[note 2]	Ruston & Hornsby	1964	50	2016
			This was originally built using parts from three 3 ft (914 mm) gauge locomotives from Park Gate steelworks in Rotherham, acquired in 1969.[24] The superstructure was replaced c. 2000. It has a Dowty hydrostatic transmission. The name was chosen by the donor of the locomotive.[39] This locomotive was sold in 2016.
10	Bryn Eglwys		4wDH[note 2]	Motor Rail	1985	110	2014
			This was originally a 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) gauge National Coal Board locomotive from Hem Heath colliery near Stoke-on-Trent.[40] It arrived on the Talyllyn September 1997,[41] and was re-painted into standard Talyllyn livery during summer 2005. The locomotive was named after the Bryn Eglwys slate quarries. The loco was sold to the North Gloucestershire Railway,[42] and left the railway in August 2014 when the first Baguley loco entered service.

Visiting locomotives

As of 2015 there have only been two visiting locomotives capable of running on the Talyllyn Railway's unusual gauge. These are Motor Rail Simplex diesel No. 5 Alan Meaden and Winson Engineering and Drayton Designs No. 7 Tattoo class design^[43] similar to the Talyllyn's No. 4. Both these are locomotives from the Corris Railway.

In July 2015 a gala was held to mark the railway's 150th anniversary, and two 1 ft 11 ¹⁄₂ in (597 mm) gauge locomotives visited the railway: George England and Co. locomotive Prince from the Ffestiniog Railway and Hunslet Engine Company Russell from the Welsh Highland Heritage Railway, both in Porthmadog. Two lengths of temporary track were laid at Tywyn Wharf to allow the locomotives to operate over a short distance.

Number	Name	Image	Type	Builder	Date built
5	Alan Meaden		4w DM[note 2]	Motor Rail Simplex	1965
			A former 2 ft (610 mm) gauge diesel from Staveley Lime Products, Hindlow, Derbyshire, named in honour of the Corris Society's founder. It visited the Talyllyn in 1983 and 1990.[44]
7	(unnamed)		0-4-2 ST	Winson Engineering and Drayton Designs	2005
			Built for the Corris Railway, based on the Kerr Stuart "Tattoo" class design of Corris No. 4. It visited the Talyllyn in 2011.[45]
2	Prince		0-4-0 TT[note 5]	George England and Co.	1864[46][note 6]
			Prince was built in 1863 for the Ffestiniog Railway and is the oldest FR locomotive still in operating condition. It has spent all of its working life on the FR, but in 2015 ran on a short length of 1 ft 11 1⁄2 in (597 mm) gauge track laid at Tywyn Wharf station as part of the TR's 150th. anniversary celebrations.
(unnumbered)	Russell		2-6-2 T	Hunslet Engine Co.	1906
			Built in 1906 for the NWNGR, Russell later ran on the Welsh Highland Railway. After the WHR closed in 1937 it moved to the Brymbo Ironworks railway and then in 1946 to Fayle's Tramway in Dorset. It was rescued for preservation in 1954 and between 1955, and 1965 Russell was on display as a static exhibit outside the Narrow Gauge Railway Museum at Tywyn. Since 1965 the locomotive has belonged the WHHR. It visited Tywyn again in 2015 as part of the TR's 150th. anniversary celebrations.

Carriages

The Talyllyn railway has a total of 23 carriages. The first five are the original carriages built for the railway, though they were not provided with numbers until preservation in 1951. After that time, the remaining carriages were built by the railway or acquired from elsewhere.^[48] With the exception of ex-Corris carriage No. 17, all the bogie coaches were built for the railway after preservation; the smaller four wheeled coaches are generally older.

All the stock is third class only, unless otherwise stated. Where two figures are given for the number of seats, the larger figure is the maximum number of passengers than can be carried in a heavily loaded train.

Four wheeled carriages

Number	Image	Builder	Date built	Seats[48]	Notes
1[49]		Brown, Marshalls	1866	18	This was originally a first class carriage; it is now third class.[50]
2[51]		Brown, Marshalls	1866	18
3[52]		Brown, Marshalls	1866	18	This was the first carriage to be delivered,[53] and is 1 foot (30 cm) shorter than Nos. 1 and 2. Originally third class, it was later changed to composite (first and third class), but is now third class again.[50]
4[54]		Lancaster Wagon	1867	18	In the 1950s, this carriage was known as "Limping Lulu" to railway staff due to the poor state of the frames, which were replaced in 1958.[55]
5[56]		Brown, Marshalls	1866	none	This was the original guard's van. It was out of use between 1946 and April 1949 while its wheels were repaired at the Britannia Foundry in Porthmadog.[57]
6[58]		Falcon Works	1885	none	This guard's van was originally from the Corris Railway.
7[59]		Believed de Winton. Rebuilt by the Talyllyn Railway.	c. 1900.	13	This was ex-Penrhyn Quarry Railway open carriage 'H'. It operated on the Talyllyn until 1961, and was later used as a tea van at Abergynolwyn, then as a generator wagon. During 1985 and 1986 it was completely rebuilt as a wheelchair saloon with guards compartment.[60]
8[61]		Penrhyn Quarry Railway. Rebuilt by the Talyllyn railway.	c. 1900.	24	This is an open-sided carriage that was originally Penrhyn Quarry Railway open carriage 'P'. It operated on the Talyllyn until 1964, when it was rebuilt from scratch in its current state.
11[62]		Penrhyn Quarry Railway. Converted by the Talyllyn Railway	Unknown. Converted in 1955.	24	Open sided
12[63]		Talyllyn Railway	1956	24	Open sided.
13[64]		Talyllyn Railway	1957	24	Open sided.
14[65]		Midland R.C.&W.	1892	12	First class. Ex-Glyn Valley Tramway.
15[66]		Midland R.C.&W.	1902	12	First class. Ex-Glyn Valley Tramway.

Bogie carriages

Number	Image	Builder	Date built	Seats[48]	Notes
9[67]		W.G. Allen & Tisdales	1954	30/40
10[68]		W.G. Allen & Tisdales	1954	18/24	Contains guards compartment.
16[69]		Kerr Stuart & TR	1961	18/24	Contains guards compartment.
17[70]		Metropolitan C.&W.	1898	22	Ex-Corris Railway No. 8 and GWR No. 4992. Served as a greenhouse/summerhouse in Gobowen from 1930 to 1958 before being restored by the Talyllyn Railway.
18[71]		Talyllyn Railway	1965	36/48
19[72]		Talyllyn Railway & Tisdales	1969	12 1st class, 24/32 3rd class	Composite carriage
20[73]		Talyllyn Railway & Tisdales	1970	32/41	Wheelchair saloon.
21[74]		Talyllyn Railway & Tisdales	1971	32/41	Wheelchair saloon. Rebuilt in 2012 and returned to service in July 2013.
22[75]		Talyllyn Railway & Tisdales	1972	24/32	Contains guards compartment.
23[76]		Talyllyn Railway & Tisdales	1975	36/48

Goods wagons

The Talyllyn Railway was primarily constructed for conveying slate. Prior to the beginning of the 20th century, the railway owned over 115 wagons,^[77] mainly slate wagons, but also a number of other general and special purpose goods wagons. Some of these survived into the preservation era, and since then a large number of additional wagons have been purchased and built. The following table lists the main types of wagon currently in use:

Number[37]	Image	Body type[37]	Origin	Notes
1		No. 1 Open end door	Corris Railway	A 2 long tons (2.0 metric tons) coal wagon, acquired in 1951 from the Corris Railway.[78]
4		No. 1 Open side door	Corris Railway	A 1 long ton (1.0 metric ton) coal wagon, acquired in 1951 from the Corris Railway.[78]
5, 8, 11, 13, 15, 17		No. 2 Open end door	Talyllyn Railway
6, 7, 9		Underframe only	Talyllyn Railway
16		No. 2 Open side door	Corris Railway
19		Flat wagon		This was converted from the original locomotive No. 5.[37]
20, 21, 22, 23, 24		Ballast hopper	Winchburgh Shale Oilworks	Four of the five hoppers were acquired from Winchburgh in 1961; the fifth was built by the Talyllyn in 1983.[79]
28		No. 1 Covered van	Ministry of Defence	Acquired from Trecwn Royal Naval Armaments Depot in 2007.[80]
29		Tool van
30, 31, 33		Bolster wagon	Ffestiniog Railway	Open frame wagons used in pairs to carry timber.[78]
32, 34, 35		Flat wagon	Ffestiniog Railway	3 long tons (3.0 metric tons) wagon, acquired in 1956, regauged from 1 ft 11 1⁄2 in (597 mm) gauge.[78]
36		No. 1 Flat wagon with crane	Bowaters Railway	Acquired in 1971 and known as the Boflat.[81] This was fitted with a crane in January 2009.[82]
37		No. 2 Flat wagon with crane	Bowaters Railway
40, 41, 42, 43, 50, 52, 53, 54, 55		Tipper wagon	Cefn Coch quarry	A set of 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) gauge wagons obtained in 1975.[83]
60, 61, 62		Flat wagon	Ministry of Defence
70		Bogie brake van	Ministry of Defence	Known as Boadicea, and repainted into green livery in January 2013.[84]
71, 72		Bogie flat wagon	Ministry of Defence
101, 136, 164, 178		Slate wagons	Talyllyn Railway	Three 2-bar and one 3-bar wooden slate wagons, owned by the Narrow Gauge Railway Museum.
117		Incline open	Talyllyn Railway	Original general purpose wagon, built with sheet iron sides and designed to prevent spillages while hauled on the Abergynolwyn village incline,[85] owned by the Narrow Gauge Railway Museum.
146		No. 2 Covered van	Talyllyn Railway	Original van, owned by the Narrow Gauge Railway Museum.
N		Mail Waggon[note 7]	Corris Railway	Owned by the Narrow Gauge Railway Museum.

Narrow Gauge Railway Museum rolling stock

The Narrow Gauge Railway Museum is a purpose-built museum dedicated to narrow gauge railways situated on the Tywyn Wharf station. It owns several wagons formerly in use on the railway (listed above), as well as rolling stock and other artefacts from other narrow gauge railways around the world. The wagons are still used occasionally on the Talyllyn.

Liveries

The standard livery for locomotives on the Talyllyn is deep bronze green,^[87] lined in black and yellow, although since the 1980s there has been a policy of varying some of the liveries for a period of time.

The liveries carried by the steam locomotives as of 2015 are as follows:-

• No. 1: Indian Red.^[88] This is believed to be the livery applied to Nos. 1 and 2 when first built.^[89]
• No. 2: Indian Red.^[88]
• No. 3: Corris Red.^[13]
• No. 4: Standard Talyllyn green with standard lining.^[14]
• No. 6: Gloss red with black borders, sometimes masquerading as Duncan from the fictional Skarloey Railway.^[17]
• No. 7: Standard Talyllyn green with non standard lining.^[20]

The vintage rolling stock and the carriages built for the line after preservation are cherry red, lined with deep bronze green. Additionally, the railway has preserved rolling stock from other railways. These retain their original liveries.

The Corris coach (Talyllyn No. 17) and brake van (Talyllyn No. 6) are brown lined with gold leaf and the two Glyn Valley Tramway coaches (Talyllyn Nos. 14 and 15) are green lined with white.^[87]

In fiction

Most of the locomotives have an equivalent counterpart on the fictional Skarloey Railway, a railway that forms part of The Railway Series of books by Rev. W Awdry and his son Christopher. The Rev. W Awdry visited the Talyllyn Railway on a family holiday in the early days of preservation and became involved as a volunteer soon afterwards.^[90]

Notes

References

Bibliography

• Bate, John (2001). The Chronicles of Pendre Sidings. RailRomances. ISBN 1-900622-05-X. 
• Boyd, James I.C. (1970). Narrow Gauge Railways in Mid Wales (2nd ed.). Oakwood Press. ISBN 0-85361-024-X. 
• Boyd, James I.C. (1988). The Tal-y-llyn Railway. Wild Swan Publications Ltd. ISBN 0-906867-46-0. 
• Cox, David (1983). Welsh Narrow Gauge in the 1980s. Battenhall Books. ISBN 0-9508577-0-X. 
• Fuller, Martin (2014). Talyllyn & Corris Steam Locomotives. Volume 1: Pre-preservation and Manufacturers. Sara Eade. ISBN 978-0-9565652-5-9. 
• Hatherhill, Ann and Gordon (2004). Narrow Gauge & Industrial Album. RCL Publications. ISBN 0-9538763-5-7. 
• Mitchell, David J.; Eyres, Terry (2005). The Talyllyn Railway. Past and Present Publishing Ltd. ISBN 1-85895-125-9. 
• Morland, R. J. (2005). The Talyllyn Railway in Colour. R. J. Morland. ISBN 0-9549893-0-9. 
• Potter, David (1990). The Talyllyn Railway. David St John Thomas. ISBN 0-946537-50-X. 
• Ransom, P.J.G (1996). Narrow Gauge Steam: Its origins and world-wide development. Oxford Publishing Co. ISBN 0-86093-533-7. 
• Rolt, L.T.C., ed. (1965). Talyllyn Century. David & Charles. 
• Thomas, Cliff (2002). The Narrow Gauge in Britain and Ireland. Atlantic Publishing. ISBN 1-902827-05-8. 

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Steam locomotives of the Talyllyn Railway or Diesel locomotives of the Talyllyn Railway or Carriages of the Talyllyn Railway or Wagons of the Talyllyn Railway.

• Talyllyn Railway website
• Narrow Gauge Railway Museum