English Electric class 50 - 50026 starts up at Old Oak Common

On Thursday 9th April 50026 was started outside the factory at the now closed Old Oak Common for the first time since being withdrawn from service 18 years earlier . At around 2.40 minutes the loco shuts down with low coolant as the last of the remaining air is cleared through the system. The header tank is then topped up and the loco is re started and run for several minutes.
Stuff still to do but a big, big step in the restoration of the loco..........
Farewell Old Oak Common

[@exb.r.buckeyeman845]

As a Shunter at Pz, we dealt with every Class 50. These Locos regularly covered 1000 miles in 24 hrs. Penzance to Padd, Padd to Swansea, Swansea to Birmingham, then back to Padd, then the last train to Penzance, arriving around 23.30.

[@rickstarb]

Fanatastic to see a 50 coming back to life - and on my brithday too!

[@Haymarket40]

The 50s in large-logo livery are one of the best looking loco classes ever along with the Westerns too.

[@rebeltruckeruk]

Having seen the state of this first hand when you bought it, I never thought for one minute you would actually pull this off. Hats off to you....its gonna be the danglies when its finished.

[@MrGlenLane]

Bloody good show! I love 50's, always have. I have some sketchy memories of seeing them on the lines, but they're not so vivid as I'm only 25. I do love that sound though and I'd love to see one in the flesh, as it were. Good work on this folks, keep 'er lit!

[@GreatWestern175]

Bloody hell 18 years! Certainly incredible to see this 50 beauty back to life after so long out of the air!

[@bjoe385]

0:21 some sick beats.

[@hv53kma]

A bit of an effort to start it, but well worth it. What a piece of work, well done - great to see it on youtube.

[@cov73]

Great to see 26 running again.Cant wait for it to go back on the mainline.

[@50018Resolution]

Quality! I've waited 18 years to see this moment! Well done to all involved!

[@glitch1971]

Well done to all involved, you should be proud. Looking forward to seeing it out and about.

[@47606odin]

well done though chaps. first class restoration job. it is a shame more preserved locos are not able to receive this level of restoration, especially those in the national collection

[@formidable38]

Fantastic news, well done Mr S and all the other guys involved!

[@AdrianWilsonBridders1234]

5 stars to this Love the 50's

[@choirboyfromhell1]

My favorite class of diesel in the UK. Remember fondly them blasting out of Woking in quadraphonic!

[@heyrodders]

great footage and very interesting... cheers ;-)

[@steamwally]

Fantastic! Great sound too!

[@northumbriarail]

Well done! Great to see her running again. Looking forward to a mainline railtour one day?

[@nobby3265]

I love this BR large logo. What you'll get nowadays is a plain bland white livery on most rolling stocks.

[@Bevoin1970]

On the upside, we have massive warehouses everywhere literally, and more supermarkets than you can shake a stick at in every town in the land...... England has now become one bloody big distribution & supermarket mecca. I echo your sentiments friend.

[@GRIDMASTER6]

All the plugs open for the first turnover to allow the fuel through into the cylinders.One plug was not in enough on B6 on the second start as you can hear on the video clip.

[@DugmerJunction]

Nice Video! if you like class 50's you should take a look at British Railways - Class 50 on facebook where you can upload your own videos and share your own pictures.... in the future we can also look at providing upto date news on the last remain class members, lets build a class 50 community

[@AdrianWilsonBridders1234]

I want to see these at Exeter St Davids and Penzance again

[@wattass7]

@PESTinUK totally agree there was nothing better looking and awsome sounding than the deltic i wish they were still growling up and down the mainline i saw 55022 on the 31st and it was a case of ye dont know what youve got untill its gone get all the diesels back espesiallythe DELTIC

[@floridajake58]

An old beast wakes back up

[@nxea321446]

great vid mate 5* all the way

[@railandmodel]

Awesome, well done lads.That's a thought, wonder if Zontar Deltic was in that 50 with his radweld?? :-) cheers & 5*

[@berwickspotter]

pure class

[@tpvalley]

the smoke is a cunning design, it was to make the steam engine drivers feel more at home.........yes I am joking before anyone corrects me.

[@Trainbuff2008]

(Responding to comments left at the Bottom) Thats why i no longer spot trains they all look the same in that dull EWS livery nothing really worth waiting for at the trackside now. Cant wait to have a closer look at a 50 they were all getting withdrawn when i was old enough to go riding around on the network.

[@KenBrownekb71000duke]

Great top see this classic EE design started up again but your vid is now almost 3 years old! How is the project coming on now? Thanks for sharing it btw! Ken

[@AndreiTupolev]

heh , one in the eye for Mayor Ken/Boris's Low Emission Zone PC nonsense.

[@47606odin]

of course it is smoky, it is english electric!

[@CHESEABUN]

The sleeping giant awakes!

[@choirboyfromhell1]

My guess would the crankcase breather.

[@milehighclassics]

0910 from waterloo oh my youth

[@DinDjarinNT]

That engine sounds like radial.

[@choirboyfromhell1]

Now you all have our wonderful GE junkers over there..Class 70's, talk about ugly to the bone.

[@nigelterry9299]

choirboyfromhell1 they say beauty is only skin deep but ugly goes to the bone!!! EE, a British company destroyed by the British Government....

[@pmonkeygeezer6212]

choirboyfromhell1 Terrible pollution. Cut this for scrap now!

[@tr673]

I suppose if your engine died randomly before you knew the cause, 2:55 would be most people's reaction...

[@31144]

Get that bung in,lol.who was on the governor arm ?

[@cascao31]

Hi there. I'm sorry for asking but is there a V16 engine. I've read somewhere that the 1800 class from Portugal that have withdrawn in 1999, had a v16 engine. Greetings from Portugal and I'm sorry but I don't speak English too good.

[@shelbyfulcher2361]

Paulo Simao its the English electric 16csvt engine. Gauge was different between the Portuguese locos.

[@Sackbladder]

@jango1968 I believe it's closer to a 40.

[@blacktiger955i]

Mostly due to successive Government's disinterest in the railways.

[@imaghostbuster36]

do u have any vids of the engine running with out hissing sound now its sorted??

[@FM60260]

Is that the battery box smoking underneath?

[@nathan83699]

at 1:47 it alpears that the traction motor is smoking?

[@craigybus1]

50s would have looked much better if they'd had the same cabs as DP2 & the Deltics :)