17A

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/275022771171?hash=item4008a273e3:g:DvAAAOSws3BhbuoF It's a case of, the seller thinks it's rare and there for will increase in value. Starting at the rock bottom price of £395. For £48.00 less you can buy something of the same shape direct from Hornby.

A paragraph that stood out to me on the Government news site, reads the following. "Local communities will work closely with GBR on designing services with local leaders given greater control over local ticketing, timetables and stations. The new model will encourage innovative bidders, such as community rail partnerships who want to bid for the GBR contract to operate their local branch lines." Could this translate into our heritage railways who have obtained class 142/3 or other mainline running stock over the last few years, to end up running extended services beyond their current limit. The likes of your Weardale, Wensleydale, Mid Norfolk, GCRN, KWVR. We'll see.....

Apologies for digging up an old thread, it would seem I wasn't the only one with a dead Hornby J15. Last November as well, hmmmm. Picking up this stunning little loco from Bure Valley Models, getting the loco home and straight onto the rolling road had no response. I thought I'd killed the loco with the journey in the back of a moped topbox. A quick call to Bure Valley Model, very helpful in testing the loco in the shop and offering a replacement due in about 2 weeks or so. Well being the practical guy that I am, I saw a challenge . So I took the loco back home being aware of the 7 day return policy. Fast forward 5 months on and one house move later I've now got round to taking the body and tender off the have a good looking inside, seeing what has been said back in November. I gave the J15 a B1 tender, nah didn't want to know about it. All of the wires from what I can see look okay, Looking at the motor nothing looks to be burnt out. For something so small it's putting up a good fight. If there were spares parts for the J15 I'd snap them up, but given the pick-ups are clean and I've a had both a B1 with a new valve gear and a 3F on the same rolling road as the J15. The photo I've uploaded is taken of the board where the DCC chip goes, this bit is upside down with the DCC chip on top in the tender. Second opinion, dose it look like there should be wires connecting to the metal plate, where I've drawn the arrows to?

Another Carlisle - Newcastle service. Sunday 11th April with 156440 about to enter Cowran cutting.

With having done the house move from North Norfolk to Cumbria. Oh boy is the landscape going to change. Here we see 156480 on Wednesday 17th March 2021 with a service bound for Newcastle, having raced through the site of How Mill station.

As I'm at a lose end with moving house at the moment and being it's grey and dull here in North Norfolk. I thought I'd share some more of my Grandad's railway photographs. While at the head a of RCTS railtour 5MT 75055 sits waits for the off. I'm not sure which station it's at. Answer on the back of a postcard please. GWR 4902 'ALDENHAM HALL' at Didcot GWR 7900 'SAINT PETER'S HALL' + 6144 Approching Drayton Green Halt, 16-02-58

Ah, what a good idea for a topic. In no perticular order. Oakworth: Has to be said if your looking for a station and goods yard that has stood the test of time and love all things Midland through and through. I could quite happily sit on the bench in all weathers watching the world go by. Weybourne: Having done many platform turns at Weybourne station, I do end up foregetting about many of the worlds probelms when volunteering at Weyboourne. Berwyn: Given it's location, there can't be many preserved station that hang over a viaduct while shosehorned between a Road and a river. Engineering at it's best.

It's a 3 car unit. The guts of the engine is a separate unit in it self, with a corridor to pass through.

An offering from the Eastern region. Friday 17th June, Greater Anglia class 755 leaving Wroxham bound for Sheringham. Seen from the footpath that runs alongside the Bure Valley Railway.

While on my all-line rover ticket last September. I had my digs for the night booked in Edale. So while walking along the footpath I could hear this East Midlands Railway service snaking through the valley floor, bound for Nottingham/ Norwich. 13th September 2019 Regards Ross

I've uploaded this photograph a few years ago on another thread. Tell you what I never get tired of looking at this photo, the subject being DMU 'Class 101' 51188/56352, owned by the National Railway Museum currently based on the North Norfolk Railway. With a service bound for Sheringham, running in between the golf course and A149. 30th September 2015. Regards Ross

Thank-you for the info. Thanks for the kind comment, it was difficult to keep ones balance while taking that photo with the heath covering the uneven ground. The end result shows the North Norfolk Coast with Weybourne peeking through, with 76084 charging up kelling heath bank with the 'Aspergers Flyer' headboard on the 19th August 2015.

A collection of photo's from my grandad's archives. The East Somerset Railway in 1987, with 9F '92203, Black Prince' on shed with LMS 3F '47493' running the service trains that day. While GWR '6634' in restoration* *Have yet to be steamed since withdrawn.

Derby station, with Class 150 keeping the HST company for a brief period, 1995 Derby station nearly 30 years ago 20th June 1990 with HST '43048' leaving Derby bound for a service to London. Regards Ross

Here are many, many photographs that use to belong to my grandad. I am sorting out and scanning while in in lockdown. First is Dean Goods '2449' at Builth Wells. Here we see Modified Hall 7914 'Lleweni Hall' Fresh from overhaul at Didcot 12th January 1957 And finally we come across GWR Bulldog 3705 'George A. Wills' Swindon Works on 27/08/36.

Class 745 105 thunders through Colchester bound for Ingatestone on Sunday 15th March 2020, Norwich station, Class 90 003 and Class 745 002. Could well have been my last journey on a class 90 on that weekend . Sunday 15th March 2020, In all it's charm, Gunton station. With Class 775 335 working the Sheringham to Norwich service, Sunday 15th March.

I personally think a GWR class 4575 would give a stadler flirt a run for it's money any day of the week. A small prairie tank wouldn't need a software update.

Two photos from my grandad's collection and one from me. I don't think my grandad told me about the rail strike of 1955. I am puzzled, as during a strike why services were still running? Regards Ross

Meanwhile back in my old stompping ground of the Derwent Valley line (Derby to Matlock line). It would seem the new/old class 156 are very welcome in that parish. Amusingly the latest news on the FDVL website is that they have caught wind of the, shall we say hick-ups of our new class 755. http://www.friendsdvl.btck.co.uk/News2020/NewsItem118 Regards Ross

New kid on the block, D5509 at Witham. My grandad has written on the back of the photo. 'Brush diesel awaiting to depart from Witham with a train for Colchester, Ipswich. Sun 10th August 1958. Strange to think that D5509 is only 3 months old in this photo. http://brdatabase.info/locoqry.php?action=locodata&type=D&id=5509&loco=5509

Hold the phone, isn't the 7:40 one of the new Norwich to London Liverpool Street services in 90 minutes...…

Had my first proper trip on the flirts today. By and large a very pleasing experience, what struck me which has been said before is the acceleration, by gum do they take off. Having a quick nose around it seems that T-keys/ carriage keys aren't all that welcome on the new class 755, saying that looking at emergency stop handle requires a T-key to reset the system. Still good to see the last strong hold of Class 156 415 going for a bit longer, I'll try to make an trip on a class 156 within East Anglia before they all go.

I say …. if all else fails on the Norwich to Shez line, then we should have a whip round to invest in 7 & 1/4'' gauge track. We'll need to bring all stations to ground level and at Whitlingham we'll have a new station called 'Whitlingham International'. Of course we'll need permission from his lordship, looking at prices for speed limit sign and Upper Quadrant Home Signal Arm at £3.50 on ebay. Not only will we be saving money we'll be far more environmentally friendly and just to boot it'll be a community railway project. I'll get started at Gunton ……

93) Midland Railway No 118. Wirksworth station, 7th September 1961. The Wirksworth branch was used quite a bit for railway publicity. Even the Midland Pullman made it to Wirksworth.

Good heavens, I never finished off my 7th day all line rail rover experience. Better late than never. Sunday 15th September. I have in the past been caught out travelling by train on Sundays. Sadly, there hasn't been any other choice and covering the amount of ground from Penzance back to Gunton could be anything than straight forward. The plan to catch the ex-09:30 from Penzance, check times once at Exeter maybe head for London or stick with the XC to Derby. In the end I'd had done London once this week and that is enough. Having made base camp on the XC and the added bonus of an unreserved seat to Morpeth I'd make haste for Derby. For my trusty steed to arrive on time into Derby and then change for the Nottingham service would require a shy of a miracle, as the ex-09:30 arrived into Derby at 15:39 and the ex-12:45 Cardiff - Nottingham departed Derby at 15:39, nothing like cutting it fine. When I have been caught out travelling on Sundays. Llwyngwril to Ambergate is one journey I remember, because the volcano in Iceland had grounded all flights. On getting into Machynlleth it's announced a freight trains had de-railed outside Wolverhampton, my connection at Birmingham is off the cards. However, another announcement came over saying this service will be heading for Crewe. To coin the phrase 'I want to go to Birmingham, but ended up in Crewe'. I couldn't tell you how happy I was to see a dog box / flying brick in the bay platform at Crewe for Derby, as this was the first time, I'd been to Crewe at all. Getting safely back into Ambergate my parents none the wiser. Making a connection at any station, any time of the week can be very unforgiving by a sheer miracle luck might be on your side. Coming back to my all line rail rover experience I find myself arriving into Derby where it was make or break, how on earth did my 6 hour and 9 minute journey managed to get into Derby early I'll never know. By and large I was a little over half way once at Derby for my train back to Gunton. When arriving into Nottingham I came up with a theory if I could say ahead of the Norwich train otherwise, I'd be waiting in Nottingham for roughly 45 minutes. So, jumped on the Skegness service to Grantham then try and catch to Peterborough and so on and so on, getting far as Grantham missed the Peterborough train, well now I have to wait for the Norwich train. Well 30 minutes later enter center stage right ex 13:52 Liverpool Lime Street, strange to think when I was between Bristol Parkway and Cheltenham Spa earlier that afternoon my Norwich train had just set off. I could sit back and relax now that I was on the home straight to a point. Upon arrival back into Norwich my connection to Gunton wasn't for another hour, so I caught the train to Sheringham which didn't call at the intermediate stations but I squeezed out a little more of my rail rover ticket. Finally getting back into Gunton station at 22:05 having left Penzance at 09:30 that morning. I think I can say I've had my fill on train travel to last me a few months. All in all, thank-you for taking your time to read my story