steamers to the scrap yard

[jamie92208]

I believe that the reason that the Barry Locos lasted so long was due to the fact that 16T mineral wagons could be cut up much more easily on a production line basis.  It was actually quite  a labour intensive job to cut up a steam loco and probably cost quite a bit in gas as the plate thicknesses were bigger than on wagons.

 

Jamie

[luckymucklebackit]

This is Campbells Yard in Airdrie, around 206 steam locomotives and a few diesels met their end here.  A train of 31 x 12T loaded mineral wagons loaded with scrap left the yard almost daily taking the metal to Clydesdale Steelworks.  I never witnessed the operation at work but in such a cramped yard it seems impossible that this was achieved, one locomotive, 42264 is on record as having arrived at the yard at 10:00am on the 16th August 1966 and was completely cut by 4:15pm!!

 

https://flic.kr/p/e1mNMg

 

Jim

[TravisM]

This is Campbells Yard in Airdrie, around 206 steam locomotives and a few diesels met their end here.  A train of 31 x 12T loaded mineral wagons loaded with scrap left the yard almost daily taking the metal to Clydesdale Steelworks.  I never witnessed the operation at work but in such a cramped yard it seems impossible that this was achieved, one locomotive, 42264 is on record as having arrived at the yard at 10:00am on the 16th August 1966 and was completely cut by 4:15pm!!

 

https://flic.kr/p/e1mNMg

 

Jim

 

Remember that the cutters were on "piece work", so the faster they worked and more loco's (or coaching stock or wagons) they cut, the more they got paid.

 

Julian Sprott

[Strathwood]

I know many will have their copies already, but for those who don't want to miss out check out Steam and the Scrapyards on our website, previews of the some of the pages to be seen there too.

 

Kevin Derrick

Strathwood Publishing

 

[bike2steam]

I believe that the reason that the Barry Locos lasted so long was due to the fact that 16T mineral wagons could be cut up much more easily on a production line basis.  It was actually quite  a labour intensive job to cut up a steam loco and probably cost quite a bit in gas as the plate thicknesses were bigger than on wagons.

 

Jamie

 

Or was it that Dai Woodham, seeing what was happening in the early stages of the Bluebell Railway, had the foresight to say to himself 'there's summat interesting going on here!'

[jamie92208]

Or was it that Dai Woodham, seeing what was happening in the early stages of the Bluebell Railway, had the foresight to say to himself 'there's summat interesting going on here!'

 

I think it's fairly well documented that it was the thousands of mineral wagons that could be cut up easily and cheaply on a production line basis that initially saved the locos as they were difficult and more expensive to cut.   However Dai was a hard headed businessman and certainly saw intact locos as a source of income later on.

 

Jamie

[ikks]

I know many will have their copies already, but for those who don't want to miss out check out Steam and the Scrapyards on our website, previews of the some of the pages to be seen there too.

 

Kevin Derrick

Strathwood Publishing

 

SAS SCRAPYARD-COVER.jpg

My volume of Steams Lament "The Standard Pacifics"  arrived here in OZ  early this week............Brilliant content,thank you so much.

Rgds......Mike

[Georgeconna]

Like this, for example.  Scrap locos being taken away from Weymouth - http://www.davidheyscollection.com/userimages/00001-k-robertson-last-trip-2.jpg

 

This thread has more photos of the same train - http://www.davidheyscollection.com/page30.htm

 

Why did they use so many trucks between the locos? I know it is for a barrier but why so many?

[bike2steam]

'Cause they were just probably going to the same fate, and it didn't matter.

 

'jamie92208', I know mate, but thought I'd just throw that in - after so long, times are quiet.

[Fat Controller]

Why did they use so many trucks between the locos? I know it is for a barrier but why so many?

Brake-force runners?

[jamie92208]

Brake-force runners?

 

Would the dead locos be through piped or is it just to spread the weight on bridges etc.

 

Jamie

[Fat Controller]

Would the dead locos be through piped or is it just to spread the weight on bridges etc.

 

Jamie

A lot of steam locos only had a steam brake on the loco itself, so something would be required to compensate for this absence of braking power.

If there was a concern about spreading the weight over bridges, then the wagons would be between the locos

[Steamport Southport]

'Cause they were just probably going to the same fate, and it didn't matter.

 

'jamie92208', I know mate, but thought I'd just throw that in - after so long, times are quiet.

 

They look like piped BR shock wagons and BR corrugated steel ended wagons to me. Can't see them going for scrap.

 

I would think they are just being used as a fitted head.

 

 

 

Jason

[luckymucklebackit]

Like I said before, the steam locomotives going to Campbells were at the back of a rake of 16T mineral wagons, these were the empty wagons that the cut-up bits of the locomotives would later leave the scrapyard.

 

Jim

[Marshall5]

I heard a tale, back in the early 70's (pre TOPS), of a certain scrapyard in Liverpool which had a habit of 'losing' B.R. 16T minerals.  Apparently when a rake of wagons came into the yard to collect general scrap one of the number would be quietly cut up, the remains placed in several of its brethren and covered in the legitimate scrap.  B.R. would then collect the loaded wagons and it seems no-one ever noticed. 

Ray.

Edited September 26, 2018 by Marshall5

[Fat Controller]

I heard a tale, back in the early 70's (pre TOPS), of a certain scrapyard in Liverpool which had a habit of 'losing' B.R. 16T minerals.  Apparently when a rake of wagons came into the yard to collect general scrap one of the number would be quietly cut up, the remains placed in several of its brethren and covered in the legitimate scrap.  B.R. would then collect the loaded wagons and it seems no-one ever noticed. 

Ray.

Back in the summer of 1974, I worked at a British Steel plant in South Wales during the long vacation. One of the jobs I did was the daily reconciliation of BR wagons on site between a Telex (ask your parents..) from BR and those I could actually find. There were always discrepancies; some were due to the painted number not being the same as that on the wagon plate, but most were due to the electromagnet crane in the scrap bay, lifting the (badly corroded) body away from the chassis. Sometimes the details were sent to BR, more usually, I suspect, they weren't.

Years after vac-fitted services had finished, and even longer since TOPS went nationwide, there were still 16t minerals recorded, though nobody knew where they might be.

[br2975]

I heard a tale, back in the early 70's (pre TOPS), of a certain scrapyard in Liverpool which had a habit of 'losing' B.R. 16T minerals.  Apparently when a rake of wagons came into the yard to collect general scrap one of the number would be quietly cut up, the remains placed in several of its brethren and covered in the legitimate scrap.  B.R. would then collect the loaded wagons and it seems no-one ever noticed. 

Ray.

Why am I not surprised ?

[TheSignalEngineer]

I heard a tale, back in the early 70's (pre TOPS), of a certain scrapyard in Liverpool which had a habit of 'losing' B.R. 16T minerals.  Apparently when a rake of wagons came into the yard to collect general scrap one of the number would be quietly cut up, the remains placed in several of its brethren and covered in the legitimate scrap.  B.R. would then collect the loaded wagons and it seems no-one ever noticed. 

Ray.

The signalmen at Banbury South were convinced that there were never as many wagons came out of the scrap yard as were shunted in.

[rockershovel]

The signalmen at Banbury South were convinced that there were never as many wagons came out of the scrap yard as were shunted in.

Given that huge numbers of such wagons were also being scrapped, I doubt that the railway were unaware of this, or greatly cared...as long as a train went in, and a train came out, that’s probably as much as anyone cared..

[bike2steam]

Talking of which, how many others are old enough to remember the early/mid 60's with recently closed branch lines with miles and miles of stored condemned wagons, either of box vans or opens ???

Edited October 7, 2018 by bike2steam

[jamie92208]

Talking of which, how many others are old enough to remember the early/mid 60's with recently closed branch lines with miles and miles of stored condemned wagons, either of box vans or opens ???

The one I remember is the Glasson dock branch from Lancaster Castle.

 

Jamie

[TheSignalEngineer]

Given that huge numbers of such wagons were also being scrapped, I doubt that the railway were unaware of this, or greatly cared...as long as a train went in, and a train came out, that’s probably as much as anyone cared..

What they got for a wagon would hardly cover the cost of the paperwork to sell it unless it was by the hundred.

 

 

Talking of which, how many others are old enough to remember the early/mid 60's with recently closed branch lines with miles and miles of stored condemned wagons, either of box vans or opens ???

And earlier, although I don't remember this one personally as most of the track was removed when I was three years old.

http://www.warwickshirerailways.com/lms/mrsbr1187.htm

 

I do remember lots of old wagons on the canal branch at Lifford which was the original route of the Birmingham West Suburban line around 1960 and the old carriage sidings at Saltley being full of box vans in 1967.

 

When the TOPS system census was done on the Birmingham Division in the 1970s about 1100 wagons were found dumped in various locations. It led to the closure of the Norton Junction Yard, a.k.a Bescot Down Empties Sidings, as there were no spare wagons left to dump there.

 

.

[cctransuk]

Talking of which, how many others are old enough to remember the early/mid 60's with recently closed branch lines with miles and miles of stored condemned wagons, either of box vans or opens ???

 

The closed Rugby branch, from Wigston North Junction, was full of stored wagons for mile after mile before it was finally lifted.

 

Regards,

John Isherwood.

[Gibbo675]

I've just dug the book out. Quite a bit of info re 46243 "City of Lancaster". It states (page 11) that Dr. Peter Beet tried to buy 46243 from the yard, but BR had imposed a condition on the loco that it would not be passed on to any subsequent purchaser for working in preservation if Central Wagon & co wished to perpetuate a business relationship with BR This seems very odd and arrogant, but that was BR back then, overprotective of it's then new "British Rail" re branding .This is discussed further in the book.

 

I can't find the reference in the book - but I'm certain all entrants were scrapped - none preserved.

 

 

Brit15

Hi Brit 15,

 

Peter Beet told me that the one of the reasons for not purchasing 46243 was that it did not have a tender, granted he might have been having a joke about it.

 

After all, that was the man who one wrote to the BBC after seeing Gloria Estefan and the Miami Sound Machine on Top of the Pops to tell then that he was indeed Dr Beet ! He received a signed photograph for his troubles.

 

Gibbo.

[E3109]

I can just hear it now, the lyrics.

"Doctor can't you give me something, four-six-two-four-three, four-six-two-four-three"...

 

Wasn't even born when it got gasaxed but what a shame.