APOLLO

We won't need motorways soon as only unaffordable (for the majority) EV's become the mandated norm. I don't know where we are heading, but it won't be nice for most folk. 15 minute cities, Own nothing and be happy !!!!!!!!! Brit15

Most world railways are not profitable, but we need them, especially going forward to 2050 & "net zero" Brit15

Being a Wiganer I've never heard that one !!!!! George also won the Isle of Man TT race once !! What a Hero !!!!!!!!!! Brit15

A few more around Springs Branch from around the same time if you don't mind. Brit 33 "Charlie Dick" backs onto the coaling plant. I once could rhyme off every Brit name - had to look 33 up in my Summer 1960 combined volume !! And received some of Wigan's finest coal dust !! Invader on the Branch !! Banger Blue cometh - southbound test train !!!! Oliver heads north A thingy and a mickey mouse Northbound Brit, Southbound Brush 4. The big building to the left was the locomen's overnight lodging. An ideal location for a sound nights sleep !! Lots of steam - is that a Brush 4 far left, your new house is nearly ready !! Right hand locos had interesting front number styles This is what we 14 year olds got up to back then !!!!! Brit15

I think there were few (if any) nationally "approved" locomotive nicknames for steam, diesel or electric locomotives. Here around Wigan (& Springs Branch) since I started spotting (mid 60's on the WCML) Black 5's & 8's was commonly used. Black 5's were also called Mickeys, 2-6-0 Tender locos Mickey Mouse. Jub (Jubilee), Dub Dee (WD), Mickey, Jinty, etc. All standards were known as standards, except 9F's were "Nine Two'ers" and Brits were, of course, our magnificent Britannias !! Nowt much else as the Semis, Princesses, Citys and Pats (Patriots) had all gone just before. On the diesel scene we had mainly Big D's (EE Type 4) a Peak now and again and ever more and more "Brush 4's", shunters, all types, just shunter and every DMU was a bug box, never even took their numbers !! "Sulzers" (Type 2's) were rarely seen until the rat infestation of Springs Branch started in late 1967 when 8F closed to steam. All these shots off the same roll of 35mm, Taylors Lane, Springs Branch Wigan around 1966/7. A common hour or so's trainspotting. (Can I have another roll of film please Dad ?) Southbound on the Up Fast - Brush 4 on oil tanks. Passed by northbound Big D on a parcels. New diesel depot nears completion. Those signals were noisy !! Turn around and a Black 5 slogs up the bank at Fir Tree House Jcn, on coal empties and is about to cross over the WCML Sign of things to come - A rare rat shoves a brake van up the bank, Ince Moss Jcn and the Liverpool line in the background. Signalman was quick with the levers !! A black 8 (or 5 ?) heads on the Manchester bound fast line past Crompton Sidings box (shed inlet roads to left). Probably off towards the leigh area collieries. Unidentified Brit northbound under the Lancashire Union line. (No show without Punch !!!) Up top the far signals were on the Manchester line and the near ones for trains coming off the Whelley Loop (WCML Wigan loop). Complicated area indeed. A black un on shed line, wonder what's due on the Down Fast ? No, not a Streak or a Spam Can, Why, a mucky owd Black 5 on parcels of course !!!! Up on top again, a nine two'er with steam a plenty rolls down towards Ince Moss with a Long Meg to Widnes Anhydrite train. A last "long drag" up to Garswood in a minute or so, then an easy last leg for the fireman down to Widnes. A mucky but vibrant place back then, action 24/7. We have lost so, so much, but I suppose we are lucky in that 8F is now a swish new EMU stabling point. Brit15

The 70's stereo was at the other end of the layout, along with a home made nixie tube digital clock !! Those were the (young, daft and happy) days !!!!!! Brit15

https://www.railwaymagazine.co.uk/10687/the-big-bird-that-flew-too-far-2/ Brit15

Lets hope she doesn't ride a WCRC train !!!! Brit15

This may upset some - On my OO (and O) layouts - all peco track i use rough sanding blocks to both clean and roughen up the surface, especially on inclines. I find locos run and certainly haul better with little or no slipping. Some of my track is 40 years old and has had this treatment occasionally. No problems. I also use a touch of contact cleaner also (Servisol or WD40 spray). Brit15

First OO layout, around 1973, under construction 3 Codar controllers, the bees knees at the time, slide controls with regulator & simulator (acceleration / brake). I still have them, one controlls the colour light signals brightness and the other 12V layout lighting. I later went to ECM's, and when they died I now use Gaugemasters - they're superb. Brit15

That Spam Can sounds like a Springs Branch Dub Dee with all that clanking. "Summats not reet wi' it" !! Brit15

Who needs tanks, guns, artillery, aircraft carriers etc these days. ? The Houthi rebels are causing havoc with home made missiles and drones costing a few thousand dollars. The yanks are downing these with 2 million dollar+ missiles. War has changed, it's digital now and remote controlled. We need to change our game, Quickly. Brit15

Iain.D - Why not leave them "as is" ? Nothing in real life is perfect, many (most) railway stock in the real world had such dents, dings etc. A lot has been written regards kit / hand built V RTR stock. Perhaps RTR stuff is too perfect out of the box, hence the weathering "craze". Does anyone add dents and dings to their RTR before weathering ? Probably not many (and certainly not me), but if adherance to prototype is the aim, then perhaps, in some cases, one should. http://www.westportterminal.de/H0-USA/Diamond_Valley/07-12-25_IMG_2744_1200.jpg I remember buying a Bachmann green standard class 5 loco from Hattons for around £50. I was going to "Patricroft" it, (mucky, rusty, no front plate etc) but out of the box the model looked so superb - I kept it as is. I do have some weathered, (O & OO) stuff, some factory weathered, some done by me, but most as is out of the box. Not for everyone I agree. Tony (and others), all your scratch & kit built stuff, expertly painted (and many lightly weathered are superb). At exhibitions such stock stands out from out of the box RTR. Reason - (to me) - the slight "imperfections" - just like the real thing !!!!! As to Ellis Clark, a firm I have bought quite a bit of N American O gauge from, a very good firm to deal with. Brit15

It's criminally insane to sell land / property purchased for the Manchester (and Golborne link) lines. As we march forward to 2050 etc (net zero) the line will be needed at some point. The route must be kept and mothballed. Property and farmland etc bought can be rented / leased, always with the proviso of future railway construction. But our Governments of all colours only see ££££, mostly for themselves and their mates. What a mess we are in. Brit15

Many years ago the west feared The Cossacks, brave and fearless fighters. The Cossacks are mostly eastern Ukranians. The Russians have bitten off more than they can chew. Brit15

Wobbly wheels ? -- Russians have huge balls of steel !!! http://pigeonsnest.co.uk/stuff/yarmolchuk/monorail.html Brit15

When I worked for The North Western Gas Board at Longford works in Warrington back in the mid 70's there was a grey telephone in the entrance lodge. Pick up the receiver and only a ticking sound could be heard. It was connected to the UK "early warning system" so I understood, 4 minutes (or so) warning. What was funny was that nobody, boss included, had a clue what to do if ever that phone rang, and the lodge was unmanned overnight. !!! (It did occasionally the lodge man told us, just a verbal "test only" message). Happy days !! Brit15

I'll be off to here. It's a secret place, (well signposted) so it's easy to find in an emergency !! £15.80 entrance fee, A bargain !!! https://www.hackgreen.co.uk/ Brit15

The Northern Powerhouse will get these. Brit15

Just announced - New HS2 stock. Non tilting, third class only, no toilets, 3+2 seating. Whaw don't they look swish !!!!! Brit15

Gawd it goes from bad to worse. No tilting, shorter trains, no first class, no doubt knifeboard seats AND no doubt a premium to be charged for the high speed bit from just north of Birmingham. I bet the drivers plan a strike for the opening day also !!! Forget the "problems" around Wigan, the "problems" lie ellsewhere, in London, by the side of the Thames. What a fiasco. Anyway this is the flyunder still existing at Standish Jcn. They can't cancel our dreams (yet) !!! Brit15

Interesting videos. You learn something every day, the Douglas viaduct exists (there were two of them and one crossed the other !! Brit15

The problem is not really the M6, it's getting to it from around Lowton to Orrell and getting back to the WCML at Standish. Very hilly and many new houses. The Whelley line is a no brainer, route exists, not many problems etc. No tunnels are required. (And it's not in my backyard either !!!!!!). Brit15

Lovley day and just back from a walk with the Mrs to Haigh Hall, a local country park. We walked over the Whelley line twice on two separate bridges. The route here is now an overgrown badly (zero) maintained footpath, but intact and not built on. Many other bridges and the (I think) Douglas viaduct are gone, but they were probably unsuitable anyway. I've just "flown over" the Whelley Loop (and GC line to Lowton) on Google Maps and it's still mostly there, but a lot of housing built over the years is alongside. I notice that a significant portion is now labelled (on Google) "National Cycle Route 55". Problem ? I don't know. I can't see any significant build on the whole route. It is not very curvy and would not cause any significant problems for non tilting high speed trains. North of Preston though is, as discussed, another matter. This is the ONLY practical route around Wigan - to the east. The curvy and very hilly west route is allready taken by the M6 motorway, lots of new build etc around Orrell & Standish. Going southeast to get to Lowton (or the WCML) would be difficult also. (bottom RH side of map) The map below shows the railways to the south of Wigan. The original Golborne Link came in bottom centre over the GC line around Culcheth / Lowton then swung left to join the WCML at Bamfurlong. To use the Whelley loop it would continue up the GC and join the Whelley loop at Hindley & Platt Bridge (a connection once existed here), and continue north via Amberswood & Whelley. Route still exists. East and North via the old Whelley line. Can't see many problems (other than houses alongside) at Standish Jcn either. The photos in the previous post above show the original 4 track that was apparently electrified. Easy to reinstate to 4 tracks from Standish Jcn, the overhead spans are allready in !! That's the route sorted. All we need now is a few quid !!!!!!!! Brit15

I forgot to add, Weaver Junction to Golborne through Warrington has two twin track bottlenecks also. A few miles Weaver Jcn to Walton Jcn, mostly rural but the M56 motorway to go under. Then it's 4 track over the Mersey & Manchester Ship Canal and on through Warrington to Winwick Jcn. Winwick Jcn to Golborne Jcn (The existing one, a connection to the Liverpool & Manchester line) is around 2 miles of twin track through a longish rock cutting with once again new housing etc alongside. There's a severe curve at Golborne Jcn (south of the proposed Golborne link flying Jcn) that even forces Pendolinos to slow a bit. A difficult area to rebuild hence ££££££. Then it's straight, fast 4 track from here to Wigan NW. I doubt any of the above happening. Andy Burnham is only interested in London Manchester / Trans Pennine services, not the Scottish expresses through Warrington & Wigan etc. Poor old Liverpool gets nowt !! Also I understand the new trains will be non tilting. Good luck with those north of Preston !! Brit15