One of the lesser-spotted members of the Moseley Railway Trust loco at Apedale is the petrol Orenstein and Koppel - known to one and all as the Baby due to its diminutive size. This loco was part of the Cadeby collection, having been rescued from a scrapyard in the 1970s after an eagle eyed enthusiast spotted the bonnet top sticking up through a pile of scrap. It is an OK type MM, which seems to have been supplied for the UK market only. There is a body of opinion which holds that the locos were supplied by OK from Germany as kits, and then assembled by OK's UK agent, William Jones. Certainly, the bolt-together construction of the loco (other than the main frame) does lend some credibility to this theory. After a sad enforced change of ownership in 2011, work started on the re-restoration of the loco. It hadn't run for about ten years. The engine was seized, but fortunately not seriously. Almost no mechanical restoration was needed - a testament to the work done by the previous owner. Some platework was beyond salvation, but the main work was a good clean and rub-down, treatment of odd bits of corrosion, and a full re-paint and smarten-up. The Owner is said to be very taken with the red frames, and is now looking at the RL1B diesel OK in a "hmmmm....that would look nice" sort of way. To mark the 50th anniversary of the Cadeby Light Railway, the Baby OK will visit
Abbey Pumping Station on 6th April. Hopefully, they will recognise that the loco needs to be put in the middle of shed, because (as every one knows)
no-body puts Baby in the corner. For more Dirty Dancing, get in touch
here.
