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mikemeg

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  1. The First Green Locomotive Following on from the posting of the 'First Steam Shed Sunday' but actually on the same day, a Sunday in early October of 1958, after we had left Dairycoates shed and were on our way home, the gates of the level crossing on Hessle Road, in Hull, closed. We hauled our bikes up the steps of the footbridge which adjoined the crossing to watch whatever had caused the gates to close. Down the incline from 'tin pan alley' the nickname of the main line girder bridge which passed Dairycoates shed, came a passenger train hauled by a lined green locomotive. As it approached the footbridge, we could see the number 45562 and then see that it carried a nameplate 'Alberta'. So this was the first of many encounters with Leeds Holbeck (55A) Jubilees; this one bringing in a Liverpool to Hull Sunday train. Later 45562 became one of the last Jubilees to remain in service but succumbed to the cutters torch in the late 1960's. So imagine my amazement when, on August 13th, 2020, going to Scarborough Station to photograph the Scarborough Spa Express, I saw a pristine, gleaming 45562 'Alberta'. Of course, this was one of the preserved Jubilees (Galatea?), temporarily carrying the number and name 45562 'Alberta' but what a coincidence. When we originally saw these locos, they were almost always filthy and increasingly looking very down at heel. This one looked as if it had come ex-works that same day, so immaculately was it turned out. The loco left Scarborough at its appointed 5.00pm and took out fourteen BR Mk 1 and Mk 2 coaches unaided, and without a vestige of a slip. A lady, standing next to me overlooking the station platform, who I had never seen before, turned and simply said 'Oh that is just beautiful'. And so it was!! The first two photos are of 45562 in Scarborough. The last photo shows the view from that Hessle Road footbridge, this as an unnamed Patriot - 45517 - approaches the level crossing on a football supporters special. I don't have a date for this photo but probably late 1950's; the tender totem is the later BR one but the coaches appear to be ex-LMS. Cheers Mike
  2. Hessle Haven In reply to the previous question, I am still working on it. I have to confess that I did stop work on the layout when I began doing test builds of etched locomotive kits around 2015 but the layout is still the 'test bed' for the locos and I still photograph them on it. The third section, which is by far the most complex part of the model, and is the section shown in some of my earlier photos of the 'real thing' in an earlier post - Reflections on the thread - is now work in progress but with twelve turnouts, two diamond crossings and a single slip - not to mention a row of railway cottages, another bridge, a gas works and a small shipyard and the muddy water of the haven itself - it is still 'some way off completion'. While the majority of the layout is based on actual track plans of Hessle Haven, I am going to have to add a motive power depot to house the forty (and growing) locos so far built or converted. Dairycoates is out of the question so, ideally, I need an ex North Eastern straight shed to model though Selby's square 'roundhouses' are tempting. So thanks for the question and, though this is not a model making thread, here's a couple of photos of a few of the tank locos on the railway, one of the models on test and, of course, that bridge. As it is a model of a part of the railway of East Yorkshire perhaps I'll get away with this on Rob's thread!! Regards Mike
  3. Signals over the years Looking through the myriad photographs on this thread, as well as the ever changing nature of the motive power and rolling stock, there were aspects of the railway scene, in East Yorkshire, which changed much more slowly and which were 'constants' for very much longer. Nowhere was this truer than with the great signal gantries and bridges, made for the North Eastern Railway by McKenzie and Holland of Worcester. Those delicate lattice structures supporting the North Eastern's penchant for signalling every conceivable movement, made these structures an integral part of the railway scene for the best part of a century. For essentially functional pieces of equipment, these structures were incredibly elegant things and did much to enhance the 'look' of the railway. Almost the last of these great structures, which became iconic, was the Falsgrave signal bridge, which, in modified form now stands at one end of Grosmont Station on the NYMR. Some years ago, I began to scratch build models of some of these incredible structures but where to find drawings. The answer to this was nowhere! Oh there were diagrams, outlines on track plans, etc. but nowhere could I find 4mm scale drawings. So I produced some, in fact quite a few. Using photographs and armed with certain key dimensions and using a 'home made' piece of 3D analytic software I was able to get pretty close (within 1/2 of one percent) of the key dimensions. So a few photographs of some of the drawings thus produced (and their prototypes), which are all hand drawn, and one of the resulting models. They are Falsgrave, Barlby West and Hull West Parade. The model is, of course, a signal bridge which stood at Hessle Haven, though I have also modelled some of the Scarborough installations. Cheers Mike
  4. The photo of the Class 20 above. Amazing to realise that the locomotive was then probably fifty five years old. The footbridge, which is a North Eastern Railway cast example, is at least one hundred years old and the station roof, under which the train is passing, is probably more than one hundred and fifty years old. Our railway heritage illustrated in one photograph. Cheers Mike
  5. XH558 Re the last photo of Avro Vulcan XH558 at Beverley in the above posting, here are a couple of other photographs of this same machine. These were taken, by me, at Scarborough during June of 2015, on Armed Forces Day and yes, this is the actual Avro Vulcan XH558 during its final season of flying displays. Its last flight was during October 2015 after which it became a static display. In the tradition of bombers carrying names - B17's Memphis Belle, Sally B, etc - this aircraft carried and carries the name Spirit of Great Britain, though not the exotic artwork of the B17's, B29's or some of the wartime Halifaxes and Lancasters. This was the last of the 134 Vulcans, built for the RAF, to remain in flying condition though for many of its last flying years it was operated by a preservation group. The photos were taken on a Canon EOS 1100 SLR with a telephoto lens, using a shutter speed of 1/5000th of a second. An awesomely beautiful aeroplane! Cheers Mike
  6. Thanks Richard, The above 'opus' is now finished and illustrated with photos so that it meets the criterion of the thread's title. I have to say, writing and illustrating this was a very pleasant task and rekindled all sorts of memories. Regards Mike
  7. The First 'Steam Shed Sunday' Thanks to Rob for the very kind words, though you might live to regret inviting me to post on here more regularly. As part of our initiation to the railway and its trains, way back in 1958, we discovered that there were places which, for spotters or railway enthusiasts, were the holy of holies. Often these places bore names which really didn't signify as railway places; Dairycoates, surely something to do with cows and agriculture; Botanic Gardens, again redolent of manicured, orderly places where plants and trees are cultivated; Springhead, perhaps the source of a small stream or river. Alexandra Dock, a place full of water and ships, surely. No, these were the great sheds and some not so great, where the locomotives lived and from which they worked. Very soon, normally on a Sunday, we would venture into these places to find that they were enormous, covering a huge area. They were great cathedrals of places, dedicated not to some deity but to the upkeep and functioning of the steam locomotive. So, on a bright, sunny, early October Sunday three young lads, I being the youngest, rode down Brighton Street, in Hull, past some allotments and wood yards and parked our bikes in a bike shed alongside the goods lines which skirted Dairycoates loco shed. We walked over the footbridge and into this place. And almost immediately the realisation that this was a very special place and a host of impressions formed in my mind, impressions, pictures, memories which have stayed with me throughout my life. There was a stillness about the place, nothing was moving. There was an air of dilapidation, with a row of offices which had once adjoined a much larger building and now stood in isolation. But the overriding memory was of straight lines of locomotives, again on tracks which must have once been covered, most being Austerity's perhaps a dozen of them. In the near distance, in front of a huge building, was a turntable with tracks radiating around it, on each of which was a tank locomotive or an 'interloping' diesel shunter. So that's how they did it; they used turntables to determine where the locos would rest! Alongside the row of Austerities, was another building, this one lacking a complete roof and again, packed with locomotives. More Austerities, K3's, J25's and J39's. But these would be mere hors d'ouvres for the main course!! We moved on into the main hall of this place and here the impressions flooded into the mind. The stygian gloom of this soot encrusted place, even on a sunny afternoon, was palpable. There was almost no noise in this place save for the barely audible sound of steam hissing, water dripping and the sound of pigeons flying and cooing up in the roof beams of this enormous building. Great shafts of sunlight punctuated the gloom, where glass panels in the roof were broken or missing. These shafts of sunlight, almost tangible, struck the floor, illuminating pools of water and oil which would reflect the colours of the rainbow. Some shafts of the light from the roof would illuminate parts of a locomotive, occasionally gleaming off newly applied paint and lining. But everywhere stillness! Tomorrow this place would echo to the sounds of a working railway, hustle and bustle; today was their 'day off' and the locomotives rested in silence. The two turntables, within the main building, contained largely the home based complement of B1's, J25's, J39's, K3's, 4MT's and even more Austerities. Outside the shed was yet another turntable, though much later we would read that prior to its rebuilding in 1955/56, this shed actually contained six turntables, all within the one building. Around this turntable stood the 'foreign' loco's resting before returning to their base from whence they came. What traffic brought K3's from Woodford Halse, Black 5's and a Crab from Manchester, a Standard Class 5 from Huddersfield, O1 and O4 locomotives from Frodingham and the sheds in the Yorkshire, Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire coal fields? Questions we would all answer over the coming years. After tramping across seemingly unending expanses of ash, to the coaling plant to 'cop' yet another line of silent, cold locomotives, we took our leave of this place. We had seen just short of one hundred locomotives, including some of the original 350 hp diesel shunters. Unbeknown to us then - though we would very soon be forced to correct that lack of knowledge - in our youthful ignorance, we had also 'run the gauntlet' of the shed foreman and his Sunday staff. So, that was the first Steam Shed Sunday of what would become several hundred visits to this shed and a host of others across England, Scotland and Wales over the next six years. Each memorable for a variety of reasons but none more memorable than that very first one, now over sixty five years ago. Of course, what we hadn't seen any of were lined green locomotives - Dairycoates was principally a freight shed at this time - and that discovery would have to wait for another day. As a final note, some of the photos I have used here are not contemporaneous with 1958 but they are illustrative of the narrative and they are all I have. So, with the kind agreement of the owner of this thread, perhaps in a week or two I'll describe, and of course illustrate, that 'first green loco' day and, perhaps, one or two more. Mike
  8. Reflections on the thread I have just rediscovered this thread and what a joy! Like many of my generation, I first discovered and then spent many happy days watching the railway and its trains in the late 1950's early 1960's. A railway still dominated by steam, though by 1962/63 diesels of various types, were rapidly displacing our beloved steam locomotives. During those years, apart from the changes in motive power, the overall character of the railway had changed little from its pre-nationalisation and, in some cases, pre grouping appearance. It was a wonderful anachronism in a very fast changing world. Of all the places, where we watched trains, none featured more often or with greater affection, than Hessle Haven, standing on the road bridge to Hessle Shipyard. Thanks to my old mate Mick Nicholson, who provided a raft of information (photos, drawings, etc.) I was able to build a model of this place, a model which I am still building. I collected literally dozens of photos of this place and many other places along the line from Hull to Doncaster and Selby but these two just encapsulated all that we loved of the railway of that time (the dmu might be exempted from that sentiment!!). The track layouts with the track formations and ballasting immaculately maintained, the huge semaphore signal gantries and bridges, the signal boxes and, perhaps most memorably, the lingering sight and smell of steam locomotives; that incredible smell of oily, soot laden steam. I'm sure that these photos must be posted elsewhere on this thread but allow me to post, once again, a couple of photos of a place - that bridge over the railway - and a world now long gone; a world we were fortunate enough to have seen and to have been part of and a world whose passing we shall always miss - The Steam Railway. Cheers Mike
  9. Mick, You've certainly done justice to that kit and that build. Echoing some comments, made above, the finish on that model is lovely and really does highlight the LNER lined apple green livery perfectly. Kings Cross shed, in the 1920's and 30's must have been quite something to behold with all of that lined apple green, kept immaculately clean! Regards Mike
  10. Thanks Richard, I spent very little time on the Southern as a train spotting lad but two days in 1960 stand out. The first spent on Clapham Junction station seeing not only southern region steam but also the electric multiple units. The second day was a summer Sunday 'bunk' around Nine Elms shed seeing not only the Southern Bulleid Pacifics but also some of the last King Arthurs and many other southern 4-6-0's as well as a host of other classes. Days long lost in the mists of time but which are still vivid in the memory. Regards Mike
  11. On some of my photos I have tried to recapture the feel of the steam railway as we knew it when we were kids. This one reminds me of those 'steam shed Sundays' when the long lines of locos were mostly cold and at rest. So this photo is simply entitled 'over the fence' and features another of those ex North Eastern large tank locomotives as well as some A6's. Cheers Mike
  12. As many of my earlier photos have been lost from within the thread, a couple more pictures of two more of my A6's. 69796 started life as a Little Engines kit, however I eventually used only the boiler/smokebox casting and some of the smaller castings. The rest of the body was scratch built. The chassis is one of Arthur's A6 kit chassis. This loco was the last survivor of the class, being withdrawn in1953. 69795 was the original test build of Arthur's A6 kit and was built as it appeared in mid 1950 with a saturated boiler and still carrying the original blowdown valve and valve linkage. I took this photo using only natural light, so the sunlight and shadows are real. So the photo of a model of a loco, in the very late evening of its life, somehow gives it a very nostalgic feel! Cheers Mike
  13. Over the last few months, as well as completing a number of models, I have also been trying to catch up on a few repair or rebuilding jobs. Now anyone who has followed this thread will know that I have a very great affection for the large tank locomotives of the old North Eastern, none more so than the rebuilt class W tanks which became the LNER and BR Class A6. The ten members of this class were originally built as 4-6-0's, specifically for the Scarborough to Whitby line. After rebuilding to 4-6-2's to accommodate an enlarged bunker, they were largely superceded by the more powerful A8's, during LNER days, causing most of the A6's to be dispersed to Starbeck and Hull Botanic Gardens sheds. By the last days of the LNER - Dec. 1947 - the nine surviving members of this class were almost all different with some retaining their Westinghouse pumps, some having different pattern boilers, some were superheated, others saturated, differently profiled smokebox doors, etc. So after a little rectification work and before the final parts are replaced, here's one in near pristine condition after what would have been its final general overhaul and repaint. This is the third of the four A6's which I have built and is modelled on 69791, allocated to Hull Botanic Gardens shed c mid 1950. For me, tank locomotives didn't get much better than these. Cheers Mike
  14. Thanks John. I know my own thread has become somewhat 'eclectic', with all sorts of excursions and personal recollections and, like you, I feel it has benefitted from that. Looking at the photos of these locos, I was reminded of an Easter Sunday 'bunk' around Tyne Dock shed in 1962. Eleven of the sixteen Q7's were on shed that day, along with the last three N10's, and lots of Q6's and 9F's. They were 'some great days', those bunks around the locomotive sheds; great cathedrals of places dedicated to the steam locomotive! So, one more photo of that 'national treasure' taken at Shildon and now resplendent in LNER livery. Cheers Mike
  15. And just as a reminder of what these majestic machines actually looked like, a couple of photos of the real things, one taken during its service life and one when the locomotive had passed into preservation working a passenger train in September 1963. Just look at the pristine external condition of both locos, though by the time of the second photo (September, 1963) 63460 had become a cherished 'national treasure'. Cheers Mike
  16. The photo of the Q7, which I posted earlier, was actually taken four or five years ago. Further work was stopped awaiting the development of the representation of the 'mechanical assemblies' between the mainframes. Anyway, it has now been removed from the 'airtight tin' to, once more, see the light of day. So, though by no means complete, here's a new photo of a model of the zenith of the development of the North Eastern Railway's 0-8-0 heavy freight locomotives. Apologies to John for using his thread but the query was raised here; so best to answer it here. Cheers Mike
  17. I'll re-check but I'm pretty sure that the only remaining issue with the development of this kit was the representation of the motion work (crankshaft and Stephensons valve gears) on the driven axle. So with the provision of a diagram for the driven axle arrangement - allowing those who so wish to furnish some/all of this - then the kit would be saleable. That said, a full set of instructions and some castings may also need to be completed. Cheers Mike
  18. Just for the record, two test builds were done on the D20. The first used the original mainframes as first fitted to the D20s. The second used the deeper Worsdell mainframes which were fitted to some locomotives, though not all. There were many other detail differences between the two models - smokebox door profile, piping around the smokebox etc. The first build was based on 62372 which was a Selby locomotive for many years. The second was based on 62396 which was the last survivor of the class and the only one ever to carry the later British Railways logo on its tender. This loco was based at Hull Botanic Gardens for many years though I believe it may have finished its days in the North East. It was a long while ago that these were done but it is a lovely kit of a very archetypical Victorian prototype. Cheers Mike
  19. Re the wheels for the D20. As stated above, these locos had 6' 10" driving wheels. Most loco wheels were allowed to wear by up to 2.5 " off their diameter before being re-tyred. So 6' 8" wheels would suit (well worn but still allowable) perfectly well. The bogie wheels, on the prototype, were 4' 0" (16 mm) so for OO or EM 3' 9" 12 spoke (15mm) is the largest which can be accommodated; on P4, 3' 11" (15.66 mm) can be accommodated. I believe the tender wheels for the D20's were also 4' 0" in order to achieve level symmetry between the loco and tender running plates. So the actual choice of tender wheel diameter should be allied to the driving wheel diameter i.e. 3' 9" (15 mm) should maintain the running plate symmetry. Hope this helps. Cheers Mike
  20. Re Arthur's Q7 kit, I did do a test build of this using the early pre-production etches. The overall loco superstructure and the 4125 gallon tender etches were completed. What remained to be developed/finalised, as has been referenced here, was the profusion of 'mechanical assemblies' between the mainframes. The Q7 was a three cylinder loco hence there was one set of driving motion and three sets of Stephensons valve gear sitting between the mainframes. Initially Arthur considered providing various etches for these assemblies but later decided on castings for this provision. The final developments of this kit were actually interrupted by Arthur's deciding to produce a kit for the F8 which, though intended as a relative 'quickie', took longer than expected to reach production. Given the 'issues' with the 4125 gallon tender on the LRM B16 kit, I have just actually completed Arthur's kit for this 4125 gallon tender, including using the Bradwell castings and detailing the tender front. I am now looking at what will be needed to complete the loco itself, perhaps as a small tribute to Arthur and his work. It has been my great pleasure to work for him and with him these past years and his contribution to our hobby has been enormous. Cheers Mike
  21. Richard, The two larger holes, in the tank tops, are to accommodate the tank filler castings. The small holes at the tops of the sides of the tank are to accept the front handrail support brackets which are bent up and then fitted into these holes. The bracket inside the cab is there to accommodate the screw reverser, which fits inside that curved attachment. Hope this helps. Cheers Mike
  22. Hi 'Marsh Lane', Your original iron, the one with the collapsed tip; was it a variable or fixed temperature and what was the temperature range. I once had a precision gold variable temperature (180C - 400C) range digital soldering set, which was inadvertently left on in its stand for nearly 24 hours. When I came to use it the whole tip had oxidised and almost completely burnt away. My current iron - a similar digitally controlled variable temperature thing - has an automatic switch off facility after a time interval of inactivity, which can be set - now set to 15 minutes. This system was bought new for less than £40, with temperatures 180C - 480C, 60 watt rating and five different bits; so not expensive. Cheers Mike
  23. Someone asked me, via a PM, how the pressure gauge above the backhead was made. The simple answer is that it wasn't actually made. Many white metal casting sprues are linked by a 1/8" diameter whitemetal cast 'rod', which is normally chucked away. Being an inveterate hoarder and a founder member of the 'Perhaps I'll keep that bit of scrap as it might just come in useful.' club, I cut a 1.5 mm thick piece of this 1/8" circular section 'scrap' rod for the pressure gauge. Painted white it fits the bill, though painting the graduated pressures and pointer(s) on the face of the gauge; fraid not!! Cheers Mike
  24. Hi John, It is probably also worth mentioning that the tender rear, on all of those GS tenders (3500 and 4200 gallon) had an overlapped piece at the top of the tender rear if they used the overlapped piece on the sides. The position of the bottom edge of this piece exactly matched the bottom edge of the much deeper overlapped piece on the sides of the tender. Also, the tops and fronts of the sides and rear plates were edged with elliptical section beading. Many years ago I scratch built a batch of three LNER 3500 gallon tenders entirely from plasticard - including the beading but excluding the springs and axleboxes which are Bradwell castings - one of which is still unattached to a loco. I will photo it from the rear at three quarter view so you can see the arrangement. On this, the overlay is .010" plasticard (a scale 3/4") which is probably too thick and should have been .005" (a scale 3/8"). Cheers Mike
  25. John, You seem to have reached the same conclusion as I did viz These rebuilt tenders didn't enhance the look of the D20's at all; the very reverse being the case; they detracted from their look. The coupling of these locos to their original 3940 gallon NER tenders produced a very aesthetically pleasing combination, so I left it at that. By the end of their lives, there were a number of variations to the locomotives themselves with some having the original mainframes, others having the Worsdell frames and then the various smokebox doors carried, etc. so I left it at that. Two examples with enough visual differences but with many similarities but with both of them retaining the pre-grouping elegance of these 4-4-0's. Regards Mike
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