Christleton Junction - 1986 - Gateway to North Wales

[GordonC]

13 hours ago, 61656 said:

I’ve been trying to find out more about trip workings, specifically how the ‘target’ numbers were allocated and what they meant. Target 92 seems to be the code for the trip freight from Llandudno Junction to Holyhead. The Junction was the end of the Speedlink service from Warrington and linked it in with the rest of the Network. 
 

I think by 86 most of the smaller freight destinations in the Chester area had gone, so I may need to add a couple of local workings to justify an additional couple of trip workings each day. It would be nice to justify a couple of wagons that aren’t tanks, opens and vans. Suggestions?
 

 

 

How about diversions that way from WCML engineering works? ... you could get all kinds of things passing by in that case

[61656]

4 hours ago, GordonC said:

 

How about diversions that way from WCML engineering works? ... you could get all kinds of things passing by in that case

I originally intended to have several WCML diversions and timetabled moves (Christleton being a loop off the West Coast rather than Chester’s triangle makes this possible), however the timetable is already rammed and I would need a lot more fiddle yard space. I’m just looking for an extra couple of wagon load destinations really. 

[61656]

6 hours ago, Wummyock said:

How about a wagon repair depot somewhere nearby? You can then run anything and everything? Return trip working every day with number of wagons decided by a 12 sided dice maybe for some variety?

 

A wagon repair certainly has its appeal. If possible I’d like a real location and freight type. I like to stay accurate with some flexibility, if that makes sense. Probably time to restudy the excellent Penmorfa website!

[mallaig1983]

I’m guessing the Octel workings were tripped from Llandudno Jc to Amlwch rather than being it’s own service? 
Industry at Mostyn or Deeside could be considered. I doubt airbus at Broughton has ever had anything delivered/shipped out by rail but if it did it would have been in vans. 

[Banger Blue]

Wasn’t there a wagon repair facility somewhere along the N. Wales Coast? I’m sure I’ve seen it mentioned by @big jim who had some family connection to it, if I remember correctly.

Edited April 12 by Banger Blue

[big jim]

2 hours ago, Banger Blue said:

Wasn’t there a wagon repair facility somewhere along the N. Wales Coast? I’m sure I’ve seen it mentioned by @big jim who had some family connection to it, if I remember correctly.

C C Crumps in connahs quay, my stepdads place 

 

all sorts of things went in and out of there, octel tanks, 100t TEA wagons, those tiger rail things that revolution have just made, 400 Rudd wagons were made there so some unweathered ex works examples could be used, I’ve got a photo somewhere in my photobucket of one of the trippers running through flint behind a class 25 but I’ll have to find it 

 

 

Edited April 12 by big jim

[BenW]

I've got a part-finished Rudd available for this flow if required.  Built the kit to get through the backlog of unbuilt wagons (to OO) but can't see how I'll justify running it through an EM version of Trawsfynydd in 1952!

[mallaig1983]

11 hours ago, BenW said:

I've got a part-finished Rudd available for this flow if required.  Built the kit to get through the backlog of unbuilt wagons (to OO) but can't see how I'll justify running it through an EM version of Trawsfynydd in 1952!

As a resident of said location I would be interested in following your thread if you have one?

[61656]

The fleet of dirty freight trains and locos is steadily growing… all kadee fitted at the ends. 
 

 

From left to right:

 

31 on the nuclear flask train

25 on most of the Speedlink set (I have various wagons that can be swapped in and out)

20’s on tanks

47/0 on a ballast shark - the rest of the ballast wagons will hook up to the shark for now…

85 on steel

56 on HAAs

 

Finally on the right is the last ones to do… 45/0 and freightliner flats. The wagons themselves should be straightforward, but I’m undecided on what to do about the containers. Most are the wrong colours for my period, and re-liverying them all seems like a big job at the moment. I may just spray them red or white and give them a bit of a weather… most boxes seem to be fairly plain in 86. 

[61656]

45022 is a favourite Peak of mine, although I thought it had been withdrawn in 1985. My platform 5 shows it still in service in January 87 and I’ve managed to track down a couple of photos of it from 86. It was in a really shocking state by then! It lost its nameplates early in the 80’s, but I decided a little bit of rule 1 wouldn’t hurt. 
 

The freightliner flats are pleasing if tedious to weather, not least as I wanted them all to be able to run unloaded. I decided the best thing for the containers was to give then a quick but relatively heavy weather to tone down the toy like brightness of their colours. Many of the boxes on the Holyhead route seem to have been in a similar condition to peak 22 in the mid eighties. 
 

And with that, the freight fleet is ready…
 

 

[61656]

On 16/04/2024 at 13:04, BenW said:

I've got a part-finished Rudd available for this flow if required.  Built the kit to get through the backlog of unbuilt wagons (to OO) but can't see how I'll justify running it through an EM version of Trawsfynydd in 1952!

A Rudd has the same issue as my MTA’s… they weren’t built until 1989. I built a Parkside kit of some ancient ballast wagon only to find out it was from the 90’s too. 

[61656]

Most of the parcels stock is done too. Large logo 47 455 waits time with the Euston to Holyhead vans. 
 

This is one of the few places you can take a photograph without highlighting how much work is required on the platforms!