Dragon Miniature Railway

47338 "Flying Dragon" was the fourth 47 constructed by Brian, in 1997, shortly before the move to Wyevale. She is based on the ubiquitous 2850hp Class 47 built by Brush during the 60�s and 70�s for BR as a powerful general-purpose diesel locomotive. Flying Dragon is powered by a very reliable electric-start 9hp Loncin engine, replaceing her original Honda unit, and drive is through an Eaton hydraulic gearbox. She is the first loco of choice for the railway; consequently she sees a very high mileage every year � in excess of 5000 trips every year. Due to her reliability and simplicity, she is also the first loco that drivers are trained on.

No. 2 "David" was the work of another volunteer at Brookside during the late 80�s, Mr. Norman Pendlebury. She worked at Brookside alongside "Andrew" and D1015 until Norman left in the late 90�s. David layed out of use at Brookside until 2004 when she moved to the DMR. A cab extension was carried out, but problems with her hydraulic drive unit kept her out of active service. However, during 2006, a second-hand hydraulic unit from 47338 was fitted, and "David" was brought back into revenue-earning service. She is regularly to be seen with the covered coaches in tow; the combination of a dry cab for the driver and covered coaches for passengers make her ideal for use when the weather isn�t good. She has a very powerful headlight, which makes night-running easy with "David" around.

David's original 5hp Briggs and Stratton engine was replaced in early 2008 with a 9hp Loncin unit identical to that fitted to 47338. This has made David a much more versatile locomotive and will see more use over coming years.