Built by hand, Scotland’s newest steam train is finally rolling down the tracks

When it eventually comes together, the ambitious plan will see the first locomotive to be built in Scotland for 60 years, and right a wrong that saw the original Ben Alder unceremoniously scrapped despite a last gasp effort to save her.

But while locomotives were once churned out at a staggering rate by works such as Springburn in Glasgow, building a steam locomotive in Scotland in the 2020s is turning out to be a much slower, methodical process.

Indeed, it’s one which, two years since launching their project, so far consists of some small parts, a whistle and – if all goes to plan – some front wheels.

None of which particularly fazes Gavin Johnson, one of the team of engineers and enthusiasts hoping to bring Ben Alder back to life. Indeed, he insists the project – held up a little due to the pandemic and problems accessing archives and drawings vital to the project - is very much on the right tracks.

“We have managed to get some parts produced,” he says. “They are only small parts, but we hope it shows our intent and that we are serious.

“But we always were going on a slow route.”

The idea to build a steam train was inspired by similar new build projects in England, Wales and Northern Ireland – some more successful than others.

Most of the project team are volunteers at the Scottish Railway Preservation Society (SRPS), which runs the Bo’ness and Kinneil Railway, near Falkirk. They include engineers and enthusiasts who travel hundreds of miles at weekends and holidays to indulge in their steam hobby.

However, constructing the locomotive from scratch has involved hours of detailed research using archive plans from the original Ben Alder constructors – some of which have been difficult to access in Glasgow’s Mitchell Library.

The group then has to identify iron foundries able to take on the task on delivering high-spec components which can then be safely stored until other parts can be made.

It is, adds Gavin, like making and then constructing a giant and very bulky jigsaw, with gaps in the drawings, a pandemic to work around and around £1.5 million of funds to find in order to do it.

The result, however, would be the resumption of steam locomotive construction in Scotland after a break of six decades: The North British Locomotive Company ceased production in Glasgow in 1958, bringing to an end an era which had seen the city produce more locomotives than any other in Europe.

The Bo’ness based team was inspired to construct a version of Ben Alder after seeing the success of Tornado, the first new main line steam locomotive built in Britain since the 1950s.

Constructed at a cost of £7 million, the team behind Tornado has gone on to work on two further locomotives.

Mr Johnson added: “The normal route is to make or get the frames - effectively the chassis - built first and put everything else on them.

“But they are a heavy, bulky item, and some projects have stalled and ended up with large components moving around the country.

“We want to build up slowly, get the small items that we can store and transport easily and, once we get sufficient momentum going, build the frames.”

The original Ben Alder was built by Dubs and Co in Glasgow in 1898 for the Highland Railway. One of its ‘Ben Class’ locomotives, it was the second of its type to roll off the production line in 1898 and the last of its class to be withdrawn in 1953 as modernisation of the railways gained speed.

The little engine, 54398, was a workhorse of the Highland railways, with a regular route between Inverness and Perth.

But while it played a significant role in keeping the Highland rail traffic moving, it was built for function rather than glamour.

“Ben Alder’s design was pretty standard,” said Gavin, “all train companies built a similar looking engine.

“In the early 50s there was a drive for modernisation, and Ben Alder was on the list of engines that was to be preserved.

“Other engines had a bit of glamour to them, but Ben Alder ended up languishing in sheds until 1966 when time ran out and it was deemed not suitable for preservation.

“There were various attempts to preserve the engine - which technically could be preserved – and the money was available, but the decision was made to scrap her.

“It was considered to be a great crime of preservation that this engine came so close to surviving and final stay of execution was never granted.”

Some small parts have now been cast – including a front plate with Ben Alder’s number and an oval plate to fit on the rear of the engine made by Bo’ness foundry Ballantine’s. Larger components are much further down the line.

“It’s frustrating, as 60 years ago we could have just gone to Glasgow to a number of manufacturers who could have made everything for in one place,” adds Gavin.

“In the Springburn area there were three workshops capable of building steam engines. Not far away in Kilmarnock there was another, and there were foundries dotted around the country that are no longer there.

“We can’t just go to a hobby foundry. To get an item cast, we have to go to somewhere that will cast in correct material and in the correct way and where it will be machined by a specialist who will do it to our requirements.

“There are small independent companies around the UK that can make individual items. Then it’s like putting it all together.”

The project took a significant lunge forward earlier this month when a similar new build project in England offered a wooden dummy of their engine’s front wheels, which match those of the Ben Alder.

It will be used to produce a negative mould for liquid metal to be poured into to cast the wheels.

The group has also acquired an original Highland Railway whistle that fits the Ben Alder design.

“We have sufficient funds to be able to cast the wheels, but we now need a storage container where we can put all these bits together, one which we can move on the back of a lorry if we need to,” adds Gavinn.

That, plus the chance to access drawings and archives stored in Glasgow’s library to help complete the plans and the small matter of £1.5 million in funds, is almost all that’s stopping Ben Alder’s new dawn.

“There was such a push in the 50 and 60s to do away with dirty, smoking horrible engines,” adds Gavin.

“The reality is that they are dirty and that’s part of the fun for us, we like to get our hands dirty and greasy.”

To support the Ben Alder new build project, go to www.benaldernewbuild.com