CHEFFINS TO AUCTION FRED’S ENGINE
Once again Cheffins demonstrates its pre-eminence with instructions to sell the late Fred Dibnah's famous Aveling and Porter steam engine, reports Bill King.
As the UK's leading steam engine auctioneers, it's appropriate that Cheffins has been instructed to auction one of the most famous models. Fred Dibnah's fame was international and he brought alive much of the current popular interest in vintage engines through his tv series.
Engine No. 7823 was built in 1912 and was thought to have been commissioned by the War Department. Subsequently it was owned by the Devonshire County Council. Fred Dibnah purchased it in 1979 and spent nearly 25 years restoring it, completing it just before his death in 2004.
The engine was last used to pull Fred's coffin at his funeral in his home town of Bolton. It will be auctioned at the 24th July Cambridge Vintage Sale at Sutton on the instructions of the beneficiaries and executors of Fred Dibnah's estate. The guide price is £120,000 - £140,000.
