Build date 1954 Gauge 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) | Serial number 1681 Configuration 0-8-0T | |
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Builder Uzinele de Fier și Domeniile din Reșița S.A. |
Welshpool and Llanfair Light Railway (W&LLR) steam locomotive number 19 was built in 1954 by Uzinele de Fier și Domeniile din Reșița S.A. (English: Iron Works in Reșița and Domenille limited company) based in Reșița (Romania). It was imported to the UK in 2007 having been restored to working condition at Remarul 16 Februarie Locomotive Works in Cluj-Napoca, Romania. Prior to restoration the locomotive had been stored at Crișcior.
The locomotive (and its sister W&LLR 18) are articulated using the Klien-Lindner system. Articulation allows the locomotives to negotiate much tighter curves than their equivalent rigid frame 0-8-0 locomotive could. In Romania the locomotives operated on the 760 mm (2 ft 5 15⁄16 in) network. The W&LLR 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) is 2 mm wider.
The locomotive originally saw service on the Romanian Forest Railways, hauling timber. It was later sold to FC Turda, a cement works.
Numbered as FC Turda 764.425 and painted in a black livery, the locomotive was regularly used to haul trains on the W&LLR. During 2011 the locomotive was taken out of service for an extensive overhaul. The overhaul was completed in time for the 2012 gala but unfortunately the locomotive suffered a serious failure in summer 2013 and is now stored awaiting a decision on its future.
W&LLR number 18
The W&LLR also possess Reşiţa 1679 (CFF 764.423). This loco was acquired from the defunct Ystwith Railway, who had previously imported it from Romania. It is currently held as a source of spares for No. 19.