Many of you may over the years have seen the Ruston diesel locomotive in the back garden of Lynton station. The loco was bought by Bill Pryor and was the first loco to run on part of the L&B trackbed after the railway’s closure, albeit only a short section adjacent to Lynton Station.
The loco RH179880 a Class 22/28HP was supplied new to Southend-on-Sea Estates Co. Ltd, Thorpe Bay Brickworks, Essex, ex works on 17 September 1936. (With acknowledgements to https://sites.google.com/site/rustonregistercom/home for the information)
Sadly over the years the North Devon climate has taken its toll on the metalwork but now some supporters have donated funds towards its recovery and two volunteers with full workshop facilities have offered to restore it for parts and material cost only. We should point out that whilst this has been facilitated by Exmoor Associates it is being independently financed.
On the 13 July it was lifted over the station building onto a flatbed lorry as the first part of its journey to Norfolk where it is to be restored.
Part of its deterioration has been the “N” missing from the.“Ruston” nameplate so for the moment it is being affectionately referred to as “Rusto” which pre-restoration does seem appropriate.
8 thoughts on “The Loco Now Leaving Lynton Station….”
I am in Norfolk; I assume it will be going to either the Bure Valley or Yaxham Light Railway?
Ian,
Sorry you need to try again! You have more diesel locomotive specialists in your county than you know!
But they prefer anonymity whilst working on special projects.
The diesel arrived last Friday at 9am, work commenced yesterday morning and we received the first photo at 5.30pm last night which will follow shortly.
Great to catch up with you recently at Chelfham.
Mike
Great news, hope to see it running in the future on an extended railway?
I have fond memories of regularly driving this loco, then named “Brunell”, when it was at the Creekmoor Light Railway in Dorset in the early 1970s!
Ian Dinmore, I don’t think it is coming to the Bure Valley.
I made cast plates for Bill Pryor to go on this loco, back in about 1983.
Snapper was bought by Purbeck Mineral & Mining Museum and, after having been used in the construction of the museum, is now being rebuilt in the Engine Shed at Norden; the nameplates are in the engine shed.
This engine has possibly spent more time on the L & B trackbed than the last L & B engine LEW did? Not quite the fabled LEW returns from the jungles of Brazil, but part of the history – so a recovery is better than more rust and decay. My first view of this engine was before the fence at the south end of Lynton Station was installed. From memory, this was about 25 years ago; the engine looked in a sorry state then. I feel sure you will do a good job. Go for it!
I grew up in the last building at the eastern end of Station Road, Thorpe Bay in the nineteen-forties, next to the bridge across the LMS railway to the brickworks, and saw this loco in action there on several occasions, hauling skips of clay. I had always assumed that it was scrapped when the brickworks was abandoned; much later the entire area became new housing.