MODIFIED HALL CLASS 4-6-0 No. 7903 FOREMARKE HALL
Trading as 7903 Ltd
Company Registration Number 05674378 VAT Registration Number 863153526
Update on 7903 October 2026
Please see the picture which shows 7903’s boiler on a well waggon. Here it has undergone significant work by the Restoration team in preparation for full NDT testing and magnetic particulate of Welds. The Superheater Header which is a very key component of the boiler system is now all cleaned all the critical steam faces have been given some TLC and is ready to go to Tyseley and is ready for refitting to the Overhauled boiler.
On the 13th August the NDT and Magnetic particle tests of the boiler structure were carried out and found very little that we did not already know. The boiler is in effect now cleared by the Insurance Inspection Engineer for us to proceed with the agreed list of repairs, including retubing the boiler ready for the Hydraulic test. I sent Tysley Locomotive Works the revised work schedule requesting updated prices. We now have the updated price and it is now £177.3k, that is One hundred and seventy seven thousand three hundred pounds. Hopefully in the next month or so the boiler will be shipped to TLW for repair work to commence. The boiler is all now finished preparation by us so our main attention is now the frames. The brake gear is already stripped off to undergo cleaning, inspection and repainting. Interestingly one of the brake Stretchers is stamped 4900 which was the very first Hall class
The cab roof is already back from the contractors having had some roof skin removal of rust and some deflection in its shape. New Steel has been welded in and blended in to become an invisible repair. Just as an aside I always wondered why the back third of the roof was detachable. It was only while talking with another Volunteer having parted the two roof sections did the penny drop. The back third was detachable so as when the engine went into Swindon works for Overhaul, they removed the back third to give access for the overhead crane to be able to drop two chains down and lift the rear of the engine by its strongest point the rear dragbox. The front of the engine is easily lifted as there is easy access to the front buffer beam.
We have already removed the timber cab floor so as we can inspect and probably repair the floor substructure from rust and corrosion. It will also give us access to the pipework under the floor for inspection and possibly some minor modification. Then when our slot comes for the Lifting Jacks we can get the wheelsets removed ready to send to the South Devon Railway for the new tyres to be fitted. So, the Overhaul progresses at a good rate.
We are looking at Ashpan design as the days of having hopper door on the bottom are gone. They are prone to distortion and then leak cinders etc. This is what then sets fire to the embankments etc. We have a design at the GWSR that has evolved from another railway and works very well. This design includes as does our already an Ashpan sprinkler to keep the ashpan wet so as no ash can catch fire or escape. This summer all heritage railways lost a great deal of steam operation due to risk of lineside fires. We, 7903 LTD nor the other loco’s and of course the GWSR itself cannot afford to lose paying customers due to fire risk so we must make the engines as resilient as possible. Contd. next page