Holiday Pics: Viking

According to Wikipedia, This engine was built by Schöma of Germany in 1958 and purchased by the railway in 1992 replacing the time-expired railcars. During 2010, it finally wore out and has been stored in the engine shed. Diesel No.21 was bought to replace it.

Now, there are suggestions that the loco could be repaired and go back in to service, but as this would a be more than a little embarrassing to the railway management, any contract to sell the loco seems to include a clause saying it mustn't be restored to working order. Not sure how you would enforce this but it would certainly be appreciated that if you buy the loco and do fix it, please make a meal of the job. Do not make things better with nothing more than a can of WD40, a couple of spanners and 2 minutes of effort.

 

To be fair, the new diesel should be faster (No.17 wasn't really up to line speed) and as a bogie vehicle a lot kinder to the track and driving crew. Once up and running properly, rescuing trains or taking our file suppression equipment will be greatly improved. For all the fuss, it is the tool a line like this needs.

 

Personally, I've always liked Viking. It's a well balanced design with a purposeful look. Nice colour too.

Of course, if you want a real Viking, how about this pair enjoying a game of chess in Ramsey?