Jonathan Jones Pratt, Chair of the West Somerset Railway, has posted an update about Great Western Railway steam locomotive 4936 Kinlet Hall.

With the WSR having begun its 2023 season, Jonathan has been able to focus on getting the loco back into service, and last week visited the team that is working on it. He reports that a plan has been agreed with Tyseley Locomotive Works and the budget signed off to complete the final stages of the engine overhaul. The scope of overhaul cost is almost twice the expected figure.

Progress has been make on the boiler, with work completed on the copper stays and permission being given for work on the tubes. The next step is work on the chassis to facilitate a complete rolling chassis, for which new boxes have been machined, and then to allow the boiler to be dropped into the frames for trail fitting.

Jonathan hopes that the work will be completed by March next year, at which time test runs will be carried out. The engine, which was built in June 1929 at Swindon Works, will return to mainline specification and the plan will be to return it to The West Somerset Railway by rail rather than by lorry.

Jonathan concluded, “I know a lot think it’s taken a long time to do. Yes it has, but the truth is the whole project is funded by my own pockets, we have a small team, and with everything else that goes on I can’t do it all. Kinlet is in my heart and a loco that I class as a family engine to us. There’s one thing for sure and that is when she does come out there won’t be much that hasn’t either been checked or sorted, she will be a very good engine.”