maudgca

Hi Fran & Accurascale Team For the JSAs, I seem to remember those of us who'd ordered multiple things on the same order (in my case JSAs, KUAs and a 37) were recommended to contact you so you could split the order to send out the in stock item. Do we need to do the same with the KUAs? Regards Andrew

Hi There was an article about the incline in the Rail Express Modeller Yearbook a few years back (I looked at it the other night after this topic appeared). Apparently at one time there was a siding near the bottom to a brick works, which had it's own winding engine. Could the check rail be the remains of the points to the siding? The bank to the right looks to be fairly recently tipped rubble (no grass/weeds on it); filled in cutting? EDIT - Just found this photo thanks to Google:- http://www.cumbria-railways.co.uk/corkicklecharters02.html Presumably taken from the same bridge. Andrew

Hi A little late, but here's a still working 56113 with Jim at Blythe Bridge on Thursday, stopped at a non working signal opposite my house in rather frosty conditions! The photo isn't a patch on Jim's great pics though! Andrew

Hi I'm building a representation of this train as well (being as it wakes me up at 6.30am!). I've only got 5 TEAs at the moment, and no Colas locos, but when it was operated by EWS, 5 seemed to be the minimum number of wagons, and 9 the maximum. Colas always seem to run with 8. I've got 2 Bachmann, 2 Hornby and one Hornby chassis with a scratchbuilt barrel (I used the barrel for something else!). They're almost finished, I just need to put ladders on 2 of them (and couplings!). I think the reason for the two sizes of tank that Jim mentions is that some of the tanks were built for "Class B" products (e.g. heavy fuel oil I think), which are thicker liquids which flow better when warm, so they're loaded hot and the lagging was to keep the heat in to assist unloading. When they were converted to "Class A" (e.g. aviation fuel), the lagging was removed as these products flow better. Also, you can see on Jim's photo of the train leaving Crewe that there are two small circles on the back of the last tank, about 1/4 of the way up the barrel. I think these are blanking plates for where connections to internal steam heating coils were fitted, which were provided to heat the contents of the tank up so it could flow when being unloaded. Andrew PS - keep up the good work Jim!

Hi I picked up a 40 from Hattons the Saturday before last and following reports of iffy running on here I thought I'd better give it a test run this Saturday just gone. I took the decoder out first, just in case, and tested it on DC. It runs fine, except at one set of curved points which it didn't like, but not from a pick up point of view... it derailed and fell over on its side I then turned it upside down and tested each pickup by applying the controller output leads to each wheel. Only one wheel wasn't picking up, and looking closely there was a load of gunk around the pickup. I'll get round to cleaning it off eventually!! I might also look at fitting extra pickups, but me with soldering iron, there's a big risk I'll melt something With regard to the large sockets on the bogies, I think Howes do a whitemetal multi-working socket as used on the fronts of multi-fitted RfD 47s. I don't know how similar this is to the one on the 40 bogie, but might be worth a look? Andrew

Hi According to realtimetrains, today's Sinfins left Basford Hall at 06.35, 95 minutes late... and have now disappeared, there being no other times shown!! Most odd!! Andrew

Hi Sinfin is an area of Derby where the Rolls Royce aero engine factory is located. The "sinfins" are the nickname for the trains of TEA tank wagons (maximum 9 of them), loaded with aviation fuel, for jet engine testing as far as I know, that run Wednesday only (they leave in the evening) from Grangemouth oil refinery to Sinfin, as required (sometimes other days as well. In fact this year they've run every week day... but never more than 2 trains in a week). It used to be a DBS operated train, from Warrington (the tanks reaching Warrington by wagonload service), but now it's Colas operated. Andrew PS - I did go down to the station for them yesterday morning (at 06.30... yawn!), but I didn't post any photos because they weren't much different to the one's posted before... just a bit more cloud and one less tank!!

The Sinfin branch looks like my lawn did before I mowed it on Sunday (although I didn't find a 66 or TEAs in there) I did give a little wave when you tooted, but I was also trying to hold my camera steady so my photos weren't blurry!! Sounds like you had an interesting journey back through Stoke! There's a video on Youtube of a 56 with empty BDAs backing across that crossover (I assume it's the same one) before drawing forward into Shelton. Andrew

Hi OK, so I dragged myself out of bed at 06.00 and went down to the station. Jim (assuming there hasn't been a roster change) turned up at 06.37 with 66850 and 8 TEAs for Sinfin. Here he comes (the light grey building with green roof on the right is the former goods shed, the main station buildings once stood on the left, roughly between the end of the post & wire fence and the road, and the signal box was on the far side of the road and would have been visible over the end of the first tank) and there he goes (former goods yard on the left, former cattle dock (I think) and small Network Rail compound with radio mast lost in the trees on the right near to the road/rail access point sleepers in the 4 foot, Stallington level crossing ahead of the loco, the signal box for which was on the right, the crossing keeper's house (I think it was) on the left (both now gone. The house outlived the 'box by about 15 years). In the far distance is the overbridge carrying the A50, which is the bypass for the road through the village, across the level crossing in the first picture). You can just see on the second photo that the "Jet A1 Aviation Fuel" stickers (about half way up the barrel at the near end on the last tank) are starting to peel off around the edges. This is good, because it means that where I've accidentally pulled the corner off the homemade transfers that I'm currently applying to my rake of 5 TEAs is completely authentic Andrew

Oooh, Monday, that's different. B) If I'm awake in time, I'll check realtimetrains then venture out (weather permitting) I saw the 47 last week (and got a video), but only from my bathroom window. It was rather a surprise to hear something approaching at "tank time" that obviously wasn't a 66. Andrew

Hi I must drag myself down to Blythe Bridge station sometime soon for the Sinfin tanks, while it's still light at 06.30 (especially if there's a 47 or 56 on them... which is unlikely????) Andrew

Hi Two 60s through Blythe Bridge today . First, 60091 with loaded coal for Ratcliffe PS, then 60065 with empty coal from Ratcliffe PS. It might have been the same rake of wagons that'd swapped locos at Toton, but it'd gained a wagon if it was; 60091 had 22 HTAs, 60065 had 23. Andrew PS (OT) - 60065 was followed about 10 minutes later by 5 DRS 37s heading for Crewe!!

Hi Oh yes! Blythe Bridge is something of a 60 hotspot at the moment! 60010 passed through at 14.03 today with 6Z67 (Liverpool BT to Ratcliffe PS) then 60085 passed through at 15.57 with 6Z80 (Liverpool BT to Ratcliffe PS). 60010 & train should come back later, 60085 & train goes via Stafford (the Derby to Stoke line having closed for the night by then) First photo. 60085 pulling out of Caverswall loop with 6Z67, 23 loaded HTAs, 23rd April 2010, 14.00 (ish). I believe it's due to wait at Caverswall from 11.40 to 14.00! Second photo. 60010 waiting in the loop today (29th April 2010) with 6Z67. Taken from a public footpath which crosses the Stoke to Derby line at the Blythe Bridge end of Caverswall loops (just off the left of the photo above). Andrew PS - The 59 only seemed to work one train last week, to Ratcliffe on Monday (which I missed because I was at work) and back to Warrington on Wednesday (when it was dark )

Hi The Thursday only Warrington to Toton often (but not every week) has BP green TEAs with aviation fuel for Rolls Royce at Sinfin (Derby) and grey VTG TTAs and/or TUAs with loco fuel for Toton. Also on the odd occasion recently there's been a container flat or two to/from repair at Toton, and in the past few months both 37401 and 37425 have worked it (but not both together). Hope that helps Andrew