hmrspaul

I was fortunate to see the 5 huge tomes of RCH drawings that BP had at their archive in Hemel Hempsted some 30 years ago. Wood bound and some imperial size possibly equivalent to A2. I have no idea what happened to them, but no one has come close to publishing or apparently archiving the RCH drawings. There were hundreds of them. As mentioned Tony Watts came closer than most but it is only a tiny proportion of what the RCH published. And it didn't 'die' in 1948. There are a whole series of 'how to write your wagons' in the early BR period and they are all RCH. I have a few copies, but there are a lot more at the Scottish museums. It is unfortunate but there is no clear publication on what the RCH actually did for wagons but it is very complex. And then there is the ignoring of the requirements. Wood frames for tank wagon was unacceptable after, what 1927, but these wagons are plated a decade later https://PaulBartlett.zenfolio.com/rofbishopton/e11c95b07 https://PaulBartlett.zenfolio.com/rofbishopton/e148fb70 We concluded they were hanging around the back of Chas Roberts and then were permitted for use with the WW2 shortages - but pure guess work. Paul

I have 5 photos of KX service suburbans near the end of their use such as https://PaulBartlett.zenfolio.com/brmark1/e35275217 Paul

Yes, see diag 1/435 in http://www.barrowmoremrg.co.uk/BRBDocuments/BRFreight2Issue.pdf I don't have photos, there were similar Coil F (not very similar) https://PaulBartlett.zenfolio.com/brcoilplate/e2f3fce97 Paul

Toton in 1978 there were two of them to photograph, including one of the early ones with Morton VB as the new model. https://PaulBartlett.zenfolio.com/brgunpowder/e2293db43 I can remember one of the LMS 2xxxxx series when passing Cricklewood in about 1980. Gunpowder vans weren't common and did have some places where they were more easily found, but they did tend to disperse remarkably widely. Paul

With the grain wagons having adverts, so pre 1973 when did Shrink wrapping palletised loads begin? Certainly no sign of it in my student days working at a Schweppes delivery warehouse. I remember going to an enormous young plant nursery in northern Italy in the late 1990s and they were shrink wrapping pallets and I'd never seen that before. I agree they do look good. Paul

Yes, the BR records have clear calls for the return of the fruit vans from general merchandise use by certain dates to their big collection yards such as Whitemoor for East Anglia. And never seen a banana van with side vents - side vents are what BR and LMS fruit vans have. What often gives away a fruit van is additional roof ventilators because some - such as the LNER fruit vans are difficult to distinguish when the specialised end venting is hidden. Paul

Paul Thanks. There is a better southern connection, two were on show at the Bluebell Railway seen in 1975, I believe they have been moved north since, but there are so many conserved chaldrons on the listings I'm not sure if they do still exist. https://PaulBartlett.zenfolio.com/bluebell/e1d3a9b37 Paul

Sorry I suspect I gave that photo to Mike King to use in a book, not to be spread around without copyright acknowledgement. Photographs are pointless if they don't have dates and places on them - not least if you interpret as you have done despite the clear NRM stencil. Paul Bartlett

Please look at the links I supplied. Paul

I remember reading some official BR minutes at the NRM about how many containers were 'lost' in Ireland and what could be done to get them returned more readily. Paul

BR had a single prototype in 1964 followed by production 1966-7 https://paulbartlett.zenfolio.com/brcartic4 https://paulbartlett.zenfolio.com/matcartic https://paulbartlett.zenfolio.com/silcockcarticpja https://paulbartlett.zenfolio.com/matcartic4 https://paulbartlett.zenfolio.com/tolemancartic4 And some ideas for how to load them https://paulbartlett.zenfolio.com/carramp Paul

This is now available. Lots of information on the prototype on the associated topic about the 4mm version. I have received a couple of examples as a "thank you" from Dapol. I am impressed. The finish is excellent (I'll take some credit for that as I spent a weekend when many of you were at Telford going over the artwork and correcting the minor mistakes on all 6 of the wagons). This extends to some of the alterations on these wagons after a few years of use and the number plate is fully readable and has the correct building details. All of the bolsters are, correctly, moveable and each bolster has 3 positions for the stanchions. The stanchions themselves have a very fine loop for chaining which is fully moveable. The 7 per side round chain loops on the solebar are also able to lift up as individual items. Underneath is well modelled as a metal casting giving weight with the twin vacuum cylinders with suitable linkages and a vacuum pipe running the length of the wagon. I haven't measured across the bogies but do accept they may be narrow, although they are finely moulded versions of the Ridemaster. The ends have the fall down vacuum pipe, an instanter coupling (correct) and the large headed Oleo buffers which are sprung. The large buffer head is a key to the use of these wagons. As mentioned on the 4mm topic early traffic was for 32ft bar from South Wales. It has been mentioned that the works couldn't even take a Bogie bolster C without damage so severe were the curves so this was a replacement of the GWR Macaw G and H (Bogie Bolster A) which were only slightly longer at 35ft over headstocks. The BBE is only the same length as the longest of BR Tubes, and shorter than some 4 wheel parcels stock. Cambridge Custom Transfers have packs for these Sheet BL57 - BR diagram 1/479 BOGIE BOLSTER E wagons; (as-built lettering style). Transfers for 10 wagons. https://www.cctrans.org.uk/products.htm A brief history of these wagons was published as Silsbury, Roger & Mann, Trevor., (1983a) The 30 ton Bogie Bolster E. Model Railway Constructor vol. 50 (part 587) pp 165 - 169. and in Bartlett et al 1985. Both include a drawing of the wagon, the MRC article also includes several conversions to Coils. Paul Bartlett https://paulbartlett.zenfolio.com/brbbe

Very rare movement from works, or if there has been a total failure of the relatively rare air braked diesels of those times. Not known in traffic use - unless someone knows different. They couldn't be braked by steam locos of that period. The brake vans were for propelling moves, to accompany hazardous loads etc. There were plenty of brake vans around, many nicely maintained, for another 20 years or more. Paul

Have you an identity for the match? Paul

This is 03063 apparently after withdrawl. It is said to be on the North Norfolk Railway. https://PaulBartlett.zenfolio.com/diesel03-04/e3085c01b Paul

Yes they did, We photographed a couple but some years later in 1983. I'll leave it to others to let you know which locos and runners were in use during your period. Both were the chassis from demountable tank wagons for Crosfields TDB749402 https://PaulBartlett.zenfolio.com/brdemountable/e32058387 and more photos use with 03-073 https://PaulBartlett.zenfolio.com/diesel03-04/e27d08546 TDB749411 https://PaulBartlett.zenfolio.com/brdemountable/e2e0c027b I suspect this isn't a runner, it wasn't with a loco and doesn't say it is a runner. What the TMD used it for I don't know. If there was another 03 present I don't appear to have photographed it. I didn't waste much film on locos everyone else did that. As can be seen both were different brake riggings. I did climb up and take a couple of general views, probably from the tank wagon we were measuring. https://PaulBartlett.zenfolio.com/brerner/e52cb7c30 https://PaulBartlett.zenfolio.com/brerner/e88c244e I had no idea I'd be living in York a dozen years later! Paul PS looking up BRDatabase suggests this was a York loco in your period but moved to Hull in 1972 and no mention of it returning. The loco is recorded as conserved at Crewe Heritage centre

Bachmann used the photos I took of the Northern Belle BG, the day before, as the basis for a model. Admittedly I've never seen said model. https://PaulBartlett.zenfolio.com/brnpccs/e109f98b and the rest. Useful detail of reason for existence given on the flicr site. 20303 https://PaulBartlett.zenfolio.com/brclass20/e5657671 20305 https://PaulBartlett.zenfolio.com/brclass20/e6a064e6 Paul

https://PaulBartlett.zenfolio.com/hsa Paul

Caroline spent the weekend in the, so called, Parcels sidings at York. I've now sorted my photos into their own collection, although only a very few show one side - each time I've seen it in York station itself it has been the same way around! Nice to get a few top shots as well. https://paulbartlett.zenfolio.com/caroline 77 photos and 8 videos. The way it was received at a passenger platform before withdrawl, running around and pushing back into the sidings could easily be reproduced on many model railways - no need for a huge station just platforms with a bay and run round. Paul

Series of photos of Weltrol MC starts here https://PaulBartlett.zenfolio.com/brweltrolmc/e2ca851b7 Paul

Nice, and interesting that it got another coat of paint. Also interesting to see the end dropped down. Paul

Good luck with that. You are misleading modellers - I stress modellers. This loco carries a huge 37558 which is the main number a modeller would see. If it stops a modeller might notice there are small 424s on each end - not even 37424; it has also been renamed since late BR days. It is conventional to refer to the appearance of heritage locos with the identity carried at the time - several steam locos running around have been renamed - such as one of the Jubilees on the Scarborough steamers. Paul

Yes a genuinely "odd wagon" https://PaulBartlett.zenfolio.com/brprototypeoba Paul

OK so the weather was looking fine for the big engineers train I wanted to photo. Caroline was working from Hull to York but wasn't being reported on RTT until it was about half an hour into the journey and running half an hour early, So very quickly got out and caught Caroline hauled by 37588 (old 424) and then shunted back into Holgate sidings, then run around and pushed back into the parcels sidings (where it resides overnight). Shows what can be done with a simple set up of one coach and loco. The best place to see the videos and photos at the moment is https://paulbartlett.zenfolio.com/recentlyadded but they are also posted properly under "Class 37" and "DB975000-099". Paul - and the engineers train, I got drowned, it roared through topped and tailed by Freightliner heavyhaul 66s and the phots are useless! British summer!

Funnily enough John at the Ebor club on Tuesday evening pointed out that the book tractive effort of many of the A2s was above 40,000lbf which is slightly higher than the 9F. Also their 6ft 2in wheels was suitable for a mixed traffic loco. Surprised me. A2 60500 – 60539 4-6-2 LNER Thompson & Peppercorn – Preserved British Steam Locomotives {URL didn't work] The ER/NER had so many Pacifics that they used them regularly on the fast freights; I have a clear memory of the A4 Bittern laid by in the lowlands of Scotland on a freight before being done up for the Aberdeen passenger services. Paul