The task of building Betton Grange, like that of restoring an engine from Barry scrapyard, was a formidable one. Few of the visitors to Britain’s preserved railways appreciate that the highly polished locomotive at the front of their train had to be completely rebuilt from complete dereliction. Fewer still will realise that somewhere between 15 and 25 years will have elapsed between rescue and first steaming!

Think about the challenge of building Betton Grange. One hundred and fourteen tons of locomotive must be built, to a sixty five year old design, from a century old concept. The country had to be scoured for what original parts could be found, and the rest must be skillfully (and expensively) recreated. Many man-years of hard manual labour together with much precision engineering was required.
Betton Grange was completed in April 2024 after more than 20 years of hard work by volunteers and supporters.