The Isle of Wight Steam Railway has launched an urgent appeal for its flagship locomotive, Calbourne.
Calbourne was the first locomotive acquired by the IWSR back in 1967 and is the last locomotive of its class to survive.
The locomotive, which was built in 1891, is popular with crews and visitors but now needs new steel tyres, which will be provided thanks to a specialist engineering team in Devon.
The metal is sourced from South Africa, and the process of fitting new tyres to a locomotive is a complex and lengthy task.
Making the new tyres take virtually a day of work each, using traditional machinery and then engineers use a gas-powered hearth to heat the tyre until it has expanded enough for the wheel centre to be lowered into the middle. In cooling, the tyre then shrinks around the wheel and is then secured using rivets or rings.
The IWSR needs £36,000 for the project and more information on how to donate can be found on the IWSR website.
“We are urgently appealing for £36,000 to fund this project, ensuring our flagship locomotive, Calbourne, can return to service as soon as possible. Calbourne is our flagship locomotive that started the current railway. We're keen to get her back into service pleasing our 130,000 visitors as quickly as we can.”
Chairman Peter Taylor
The wheels are already on their way west. I saw them on a lorry last Friday, heading North through Brockenhurst