Hunslet 102

Haha pH, I know, but I really enjoy the nostalgia and the memories it jogs for those contributing. Very enlightening and informative for me also, for instance, despite living in Scotland for over 30 years, I never knew Paisley had another station other than Gilmour Street!

Thanks Kevin, would be interested to view a timetable if you found them!

Nice one Matt! Cadder yard, something I have been doing research on since starting this thread as I live very close to it! Check out Cadder yard on the Railscot site, might bring some memories back for you! At least I can have some freight trip workings on a mainly passenger layout!

That sounds like a train spotter’s paradise and a modeller’s paradise for such varied stock! Probably more in the reach of a club layout than an individual modeller!

Yep, get that entirely Legend. Gilmour St must have had some varied amount of trains with both electric and non electric lines passing through the station!

Yes I really like these units, maybe because I was brought up on a diet of railcars (dmu’s) on NIR! Ironically, they are very similar to the BUT units that ran on NIR at the same time, below are a couple of shots of a typical NIR 3 car set, cut and shut with an MTK full driving end. I think the similarity is what has hooked me!

Thanks GordonC for highlighting Silverfox and thanks giz for supplying the link. Thanks again Legend for your input, it would appear from the link that giz put up that they have listed the DMUs again with the body sides and cab ends available. Probably the route I will choose with suitable donor coaches, although I throughly enjoyed looking at Signaller69s posts. Cutting and shutting a 6 car set is some task, although I intend to follow his instructions for the Thompson buffet coach to try and recreate it. I will keep you informed of progress, although don’t hold your breath for anything quick!

Hi all, again! I have been very intrigued by the Swindon DMU’s that operated the Glasgow to Edinburgh service up to 1971. I assume no one has ever produced an RTR version of these units, but has there been anything produced either past or present representing these units from suppliers? If nothing were readily available, would there be suitable donor coaches that could be converted to represent these units?

Thanks for your great response Legend! Like you, I also like a bargain and value for money, maybe 30+ years living in Scotland has helped! So many options to choose from, but definitely no mixing. Bachmann coaches would be a luxury, but canny purchasing could result in some good bargains. I have Lima coaches repainted into NIR livery which are smooth runners, so I think they would be my option for the bulk of the fleet. The Hornby 101 dmu seems to be the one to go for, thanks. Do you have a layout thread on here displaying your blue/grey models?

Sounds good Kieran, you are certainly pushing the boundaries

Indeed Robert, you are only confined by your own imagination! The possibilities of what if’s could be endless! I think there is an interesting comparison between the 70s Belfast Great Victoria Street and Glasgow Queen Street. NIR bought the Hunslet’s in 1970 for the Enterprise service to Dublin, with them topping and tailing between the two major cities. A year later, BR introduced a revised service between Glasgow and Edinburgh with Class 27s topping and tailing. Both sets replaced railcars (dmu’s) on their respective services! Hunslet’s in corporate blue with FYE, 27s in NIR maroon…….hmmm Railway modelling should be fun whatever we do!

Great video Kieran, the big D looks great. I like the bogie Guinness wagons at the rear of the train. 171 with the teak coaches on the Enterprise is something special, awesome

Hi all So once being advised that the 26 and 27 shared the same chassis, I switched the non brass wheels from my 26 to the 27, but the same problem still happens! Is there anything else I should check, although I am not familiar with dismantling an enclosed Heljan chassis, before I go down the route of a replacement chassis, which I would assume would be the cheapest alternative rather than outsourcing the locomotive for repair if unable to find the fault Any help, advise, tips, greatly appreciated.

Thanks Legend. Your advice on the prototypes and the models available has been a great help and inspiration

Thanks Colin, great photos! I remember seeing that coach in one of Jim Edgar’s markle dvds just outside Lisburn. Never saw it in that guise in the flesh. So an NIR coach behind a class 27 or a BR coach behind a Hunslet not beyond the realms of possibility!

Nice video Kieran, the coaches look great. Also like your GNR blue locomotive with teak coaches in the background.

Thanks Colin. Haha, don’t think that that hadn’t crossed my mind! In fact, for the period in question in the early 70s, before NIR settled on the purchase of the 3 Hunslet locomotives for the Enterprise service, they trialled a class 25 and class 27 along with the Hunslet! The MK2 stock that entered service on the Enterprise, originally came over in blue/grey, before being repainted maroon/blue!!

Thanks Kieran. Hopefully I will be able to include something Scottish, to at least keep the family happy! I intend to use Grosvenor freight yard as Bishopbriggs oil depot, which was still in use when I moved to the area in 91. I remember watching class 37s at work in it until it closed a few years later. Not sure if class 47s worked the depot, but did see them occasionally on freight trains on the line.

Hi all Well still not much new modelling has happened since my last post, Belfast Great Victoria Street station is still in rebuild mode! However, there is an addition to the modelling scene! Those that follow the thread will know the back story to GVSt and Adelaide, but before my Irish modelling, my first train set was a BR blue Hymek freightliner set. I have always retained my interest in the BR blue era and having lived in Glasgow for over 30 years now beside the main Glasgow to Edinburgh line and travelled to Queen Street station many times, the compactness of the station always intrigued me. Long story short, I got great information from guys on this forum in the modelling questions section on the locomotives and rolling stock that ran in the early 70s. So, my plan is that GVSt will double as a fictitious station known as Glasgow Great Queen Street! It will give me the opportunity to run either my Irish themed or BR blue themed era’s from the 70s! Sorry for the ramble, but to kick things off, below are a couple of shots of a Class 27 at the head of a Glasgow-Edinburgh train, passing a Class 40 heading to Glasgow from Aberdeen!

I assume the class 26 and class 27 share the same Heljan chassis?

Thanks for the advice, worth a try, nothing to lose!

Thanks Matt I will check the wheels on the loco and take it from there. Hopefully if that is the issue then a new set of wheels will resolve the problem!

Hi all Looking for some advice. I have a year 2006 Heljan class 27 loco with power issues, dc control. I have had it on a rolling road and put power to all 8 wheels in every permutation and they all turn fine. Put the loco on the track and it stutters to start on full power before kicking in and off it goes. Power is a gaugemaster twin controller. Reduce the power to about half full power and it merrily continues, but reduce it any further towards zero and it comes to a halt, then same again as above. Brass strip to all wheels, which are clean,is touching and red and black wires to each power bogie are soldered in place. Directional lighting is also working. Track is clean and I have also tested it on an independent piece of straight track not attached to the layout with the same problem. Any advice greatly appreciated.

I have a Heljan class 27 that has no couplings at either end. Looking for a coupling type that would be compatible with a standard Bachmann mk2 coach coupling?

Thanks Darius, I remember when they brought those tickets out in place of the tokens. Many a one on our school bus got more use from a ticket than they should have!