Class 31/1 No. D5862, TOPS No. 31327 was out-shopped from Brush Works in Loughborough on, or very close to, 25 October 1962 and was the last of a total of 263 locomotives in the class constructed by Brush.  During its career, the locomotive was re-engined (as was the majority of the class) after engine block failures with the original Mirrlees engines, they were subsequently fitted with English Electric engines producing 1470 bhp.

D5862 spent the majority of its working life on the East Coast Main Line and its branch lines, and was also used on suburban services out of Kings Cross.  When the locomotive finished passenger working duties, its steam-heating boiler was stripped out, and the locomotive then took up BR Parcels Train service.  D5862 was based at Stratford for most of its mainline career.padding: 5px 30px; float: right;

During its time with BR, D5862 has carried a number of liveries, including BR Green (its current livery in preservation), BR Blue and Railfreight Grey.

The locomotive was withdrawn from service sometime in 1996, and later offered for sale by EWSR after privatisation of the UK rail industry.  The locomotive was purchased by its current owner, George Littlejohn, from EWS in autumn 2001.

31327 then had an eventful journey to the Bo'ness and Kinneil Railway, as leaving Upperby yard the Heanor Heavy Haulage trailer suffered a brake failure - blocking the road in the middle of rush hour!  The locomotive successfully moved the following day, arriving at Bo'ness in late October 2001.

Much work was done on the locomotive over the winter of 2001, including repair to smashed windows after vandalism at Upperby yard.  The English Electric engine was overhauled starting from May 2002, along with replacing batteries, bodywork and a repaint into BR Railfreight Grey.  31327 was ready just in time to haul its first service train from Bo'ness to Birkhill and return - albeit with the paint still wet!  31327 remained at Bo'ness through early 2003, and moved to the Strwthspey Railway on 16 July 2003.

Since arrival at the Strathspey Railway, 31327 has performed the primary duty of hauling the Royal Scotsman luxury train, which visits Boat of Garten through the summer season.  Additionally, the locomotive performs 'thunderbird' services, and is also used at times of high fire-risk during the summer if it would be unsafe to use steam traction.

A dedicated team of volunteers, including John Greig, Jim Summers, Reg Stanley, Doug Scott, Colin Vaughn, Mike Massey, Steve Robinson and others repainted 31327 from her Railfreight Grey livery to BR Green with two horizontal white bands and small yellow warning panels, reinstating her identity as D5862.  Murray Duncan then applied the BR Logo transfers to the locomotive sides.

As always, there is always work to be carried out, currently Jim Summers is carrying out internal work on the two driving cabs in preparation for an internal repaint - and there is the ongoing maintenance required to keep everything in good running order.  If you are interested in assisting with work on D5862, or any other diesel locomotive on the Strathspey Railway, please Contact Us for more details.