IT IS 50 years since Roger Marsh built the original minimum gauge railways Type ‘F’ 0-4-2T Tinkerbell and the 7¼in-gauge Moors Valley Railway in Dorset will be holding a special celebratory event over the weekend of September 22-23.
Tinkerbell was a landmark design being a sit-in narrow gauge steam loco for the 7¼in gauge. It was not until November 1975 a batch of five such locos were ordered, and completed in 1978. Gurkha,
Sir Robert, Susan Jane and Adam went to private lines while Talos was delivered to the original Echills Wood Railway in Warwickshire in the July.
A large number of similar locos have since been completed by many different builders, some similar in appearance, while others have used the same basic design and layout, but have been modified with some completed as tender locos, and even Fairlies.
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Tinkerbell was bought by Jim Haylock in April 1978 and is now MVR No. 4, with Talos being MVR No. 3. Most of the extensive MVR fleet, although of greatly differing appearance, has been based on the Tinkerbell design.
It is hoped all five original 1978 locos will be present at the September event and joined by at least 15 other visitors, working passenger and freight trains.
Other MVR enthusiast events are the railway open weekend on March 17-18; visiting locos weekend May 5-6; and the grand summer gala on
June 10-11.
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