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Bristol Barrow Road - ' The Devonian '


barrowroad

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It's been a while since I posted anything on this blog however I have been very busy on the layout during the past year completing several small buildings in and around the shed yard and cladding the Barrow Road viaduct with Wills Coarse Stone sheet and making all the scenery along the front of the layout.

My latest completed project is the conversion of 11 Bachmann mk1 coaches to P4 using Bill Bedford sprung bogies with MJT frames; Masokits gangway connectors plus other detailing.

Here is a video of Barrow Road Jubilee 45577 Bengal passing the shed with the southbound Devonian with the 11 converted coaches. In the foreground is the new scenery.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WOevUys7E28

Edited by barrowroad

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Indeed superb running Robin. I'm intrigued with the combination of MJT frames and BB bogies.

 

All the best,

 

John

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Robin, looks really good. How does the Bachmann Jubilee cope with 11 coaches? I like the Devonian headboard.

 

David

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David,  The total coach weight is 1513g after I removed the Bachmann metal weight which weighed 33g per coach. Bengal can manage the gradient on the two curved end boards at the speed on the video but much higher speed can induce a little bit of wheel spin.

 

Robin

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Absolutely brilliant, I saw Bellerophon 45694 of Holbeck on the northbound train at Derby in Dec'58/Jan'59. It crossed with the southbound Palatine, which was headed by 70004 that day. We were there to see my great aunt Mary off to her home near London, she gave me half-a-crown which rapidly turned into my first ABC. Sorry to ramble on but the superb quality of your modelling really does bring it all back:good:.

Rgds......Mike

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1 hour ago, ikks said:

Absolutely brilliant, I saw Bellerophon 45694 of Holbeck on the northbound train at Derby in Dec'58/Jan'59. It crossed with the southbound Palatine, which was headed by 70004 that day. We were there to see my great aunt Mary off to her home near London, she gave me half-a-crown which rapidly turned into my first ABC. Sorry to ramble on but the superb quality of your modelling really does bring it all back:good:.

Rgds......Mike


Which would have been unusual at the time. The northbound Devonian was a Barrow Road (82E) turn and the southbound a Holbeck (55A) job.

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Thank you for your kind comments chaps.

Ian you are quite correct that the northbound was a turn for Barrow Road to provide the engine and crew but that does not mean they would not return a Holbeck engine on the turn.

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That is just do evocative and to see the progress around the shed yard as well; thank you.

I am going to be very cheeky now. In 1960 or 61 (need to check), a down weekday Devonian was diverted off the WRML (so probably '60) and went down through Yeovil & through Seaton Junction (my layout) behind a 63XX (probably added at Taunton but that is unknown). I can't identify your train make up but it might have been Choc and Cream Mk1s back then as shown in some pics I have? Could you possibly reveal the usual weekday make up of the stock please Robin and when it went maroon? Do PM if you would rather and have the time.

Back in those days, Bristol was like Heaven for a Plymuff lad where we could only imagine what had hauled trains from the Midlands & North before being replaced at TM. Now My 63XX can take 8 or 9 Mk1s, but 11 is not going to happen! I di hope it may be more like 8 for a weekday service west of Bristol? 

Take care and thanks again.

Phil R.

 

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Phil,  I have used information for the train makeup from a book by XPress  Publishing 'Operation Midland' which gives details of all Midland coach formations and train times for 1955.

The Devonian is shown as operating Monday to Friday with two trains in operation one Mon;Weds;Fri, and the other Tues; Thurs and vici versa. In 1955 both trains are made up from BR & LMS stock but I believe this changed when the regional boundaries changed in 1958. My guess would be the chocolate and cream western region stock would originate from around this date. There is photographic evidence to back this.

Turning to the 1955 train make up:

Set 33 - Brake third corridor [LMS]; Third Corridor; Third Corridor; Composite Corridor; Brake Third Corridor.   The destination for these five is shown as Paignton

Set 35 - Brake Third Corridor; Third Open; Restaurant Car [LMS]; Composite Corridor; Third Corridor; Brake Third Corridor. The train split at Newton Abbot and these six went through to Plymouth.

The other train consisted of sets 36 and 34 [ similar make up].

All the other stock consisted of BR Mk1 coaching stock.

 

I am aware there are differences in the train make up for post 1955 - ie 10 coaches rather than 11 and different catering vehicles, whilst others have argued that the catering vehicles went to Paignton rather than Plymouth. I have seen no direct evidence to support this either way and have based my train on the above data right or wrong.  As someone said 'Rule One' it's my layout:-)

 

Hope this helps  

 

Robin

 

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Thanks very much Robin. Very helpful indeed. Lovely recreating Trains as near as possible to true isn't it! 

I reckon my little 63xx might just manage the 10 but I will double check my Trains Illustrated where it was reported. being December in might have been fewer Coaches?

I use the XPress publications and have the Operation Cornwall (1957) version too for my GWR/BR (WR)  info (even though it changed a bit by 1960. Living in Plymouth until 1966 and having started 'spotting in 1958, this book was a must.  I will have a poke in that and see what the 1957 arrival make up was for the Devonian at Plymouth.

I must mention that in a couple of my SR volumes there is some 'interesting fiction' in places. Otherwise they are brilliant for my layout for 1961 along with my other info for 60 to 64/5.

Rule one is 11th Commandment.

At BTM in summer (August?)1963 I did see DH Jubs (both Barrow Road IIRC) on a northbound working; sadly I don't know what the train was but it was around early/mid afternoon I should think. Somewhere I have a rotten photo from miles away and the Train moving away from the camera as it was so long.

Sincerely

Phil

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It would appear from my 1961/2 BR (WR) Timetable that The Devonian only seems to have gone to Paignton! It was one of the Blue Timetables for important named Expresses at the front of the TT. No wonder I couldn't find any mention of a Bradford to Plymouth in my 1957 XPress Volume! However, I am  still remembering that in 1960ish there was a Plymouth Bradford and return. We down there used to wonder about these long distance trains to 'far away places'.

Thus the RC would have only gone to Paignton as suggested, unless the Through Coaches (TC), as noted in the Timetable, were only one set and the others did travel further west? It doesn't really show that in the TT though, but does give times to Plymouth on the same column! I am a bit confused but that isn't unusual.

Thanks again,

Phil

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Thank you for the steam memories link Phil, I've not seem that before although I did find your RMweb question during a web search.

Robin

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On 20/07/2021 at 17:21, barrowroad said:

Thank you for the steam memories link Phil, I've not seem that before although I did find your RMweb question during a web search.

Robin

Id forgotten that original post as I forget many!

P

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