Hunterston to ravenscraig

[Legend]

I think the service was pretty intensive. I remember standing on platform at Paisley Gilmour Street and the vibrations as one of these double headed 37 trains went through. Seemed quite common occurrence . I think they also used to go round the Canal line as the stretch gfrom Paisley to Glasgow on the main lines through Gilmour St were very intensively used by train from Glasgow Central to Ardrossan , Ayr, Largs, Gourock and Wemyss Bay . Must have been difficult fitting these freights in amongst a pretty intense suburban service .

 

Great pics , by the way. The Glasgow of my youth. Was always fascinated by the myriad of lines round Shields Junction. It wasn't until finally got a copy of Glasgows Railways that I figured it out

Edited October 11, 2017 by Legend

[MarshLane]

Thanks Jim,

Superb that’s my late evening viewing sorted out tonight!!!

 

Rich

[ardbealach]

That sounds like a picture that appears in "An Illustrated History of Glasgow's Railways" by Smith and Anderson. It's taken over the back of the platforms at Shields Road and shows 90616 and 90199 curving round from General Terminus to head towards Gushetfaulds.

 

I thought Polmadie's Stanier 8Fs were meant for use on the ore trains, but I've never seen a picture of any of them on that service. In fact, I can't remember seeing any picture at all of them actually in service from Polmadie. If anyone can point me to one, I'd be delighted. (I do know of pictures of them at Polmadie and Parkhead after their first withdrawal.)

 

Edit - found a picture of an 8F at Polmadie! - http://railphotoprints.zenfolio.com/p869087844/h227092F#h227092f

Catching up with these posts - as a lad I can recall the Ravenscraig iron ore trains were hauled by Polmadie 66A WD 2-8-0's and 2-10-0's always double headed. And the three Polmadie LMS 2-8-0s 48773 / 48774 and 48775 were also regulars on these turns.  Out via Carmyle from General Terminus in Glasgow centre and up the Coatbridge line and back to General Terminus via the West Coast Main line through Uddingston.  Return journeys empties had the locomotives running tender first.  They used to rattle my school room windows on the return journeys as they wasted little time to get back home.

 

I recall the trains were made up of 28 wagons with a brake van at each end.  Of course I never took photos of them.  Like most things in the 1960's they were going to be there for ever.     

[caradoc]

Having worked in Mossend TOPS office for two years I should really know a bit more, but I too didn't pay much attention to what was commonplace then ! To the best of my recollection, the ore sets were semi-permanent rakes of 21, identified for TOPS purposes by the last two digits of the outer vehicles, eg 797/803. The coal sets I would think were more varied.

[MarshLane]

Having worked in Mossend TOPS office for two years I should really know a bit more, but I too didn't pay much attention to what was commonplace then ! To the best of my recollection, the ore sets were semi-permanent rakes of 21, identified for TOPS purposes by the last two digits of the outer vehicles, eg 797/803. The coal sets I would think were more varied.

 

 

Thanks Caradoc,

Wow bet Mossend TOPS was a fascinating place to work back in the day.  Given the semi-permanent rotary couplings, I expect the sets didn't get changed around very often, unlike the HAAs, which I'm guessing would have had cripples knocked out and the sets made back up as and when.  Does anyone know how many PTA iron-ore sets there actually were in traffic?  I know Scunthorpe uses three sets - the sets swapped at each end, to minimise loco down time, so I'm guessing the same would have happened with the Hunterston - Ravenscraig workings, but I don't know how many sets they actually used.  

 

The LTSV website (http://www.ltsv.com/w_profile_003.php) says 123 wagons were built for the Hunterston workings, so I'm assuming five rakes with some spares?

 

Rich

[GordonC]

Thanks Caradoc,

Wow bet Mossend TOPS was a fascinating place to work back in the day.  Given the semi-permanent rotary couplings, I expect the sets didn't get changed around very often, unlike the HAAs, which I'm guessing would have had cripples knocked out and the sets made back up as and when.  Does anyone know how many PTA iron-ore sets there actually were in traffic?  I know Scunthorpe uses three sets - the sets swapped at each end, to minimise loco down time, so I'm guessing the same would have happened with the Hunterston - Ravenscraig workings, but I don't know how many sets they actually used.  

 

The LTSV website (http://www.ltsv.com/w_profile_003.php) says 123 wagons were built for the Hunterston workings, so I'm assuming five rakes with some spares?

 

Rich

 

were they not also sometimes used on the Limestone trains from Shap to Ravenscraig? not sure of time period or how frequently it was, but sure I've seen photos of them used on those, even electric hauled, and that would have been shorter rakes than the Iron Ore trains from Hunterston

[luckymucklebackit]

were they not also sometimes used on the Limestone trains from Shap to Ravenscraig? not sure of time period or how frequently it was, but sure I've seen photos of them used on those, even electric hauled, and that would have been shorter rakes than the Iron Ore trains from Hunterston

 

Yes - See Dave-F's post here

 

http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/85326-dave-fs-photos-ongoing-more-added-11th-october/?p=2017556

 

There was also a flow down the ECML in 1992/93 taking the remaining stocks of Iron Ore from the closed Ravenscraig site to South Wales, the roundabout route being due to route restrictions.

 

Jim

[edin_bry2x]

Yes - See Dave-F's post here

 

http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/85326-dave-fs-photos-ongoing-more-added-11th-october/?p=2017556

 

There was also a flow down the ECML in 1992/93 taking the remaining stocks of Iron Ore from the closed Ravenscraig site to South Wales, the roundabout route being due to route restrictions.

 

Jim

Also Limestone from Thrislington-Mossend late 80s up the ECML presumably for Ravenscraig using an ML Class 37 and about 7 or 8 PTAs

 

Bry

[david12345]

Johnstone was my local station in the late 80s and there were double headed 37 coal or ore train at least twice an hour each direction. Thrown into the mix 20s and 26s on engineer trains and 47s on the Stranraer trains it was a great time.

[caradoc]

By chance, browsing through an old magazine (Rail 139), I found a picture of 7S68 Hardendale-Ravenscraig near Beattock, taken on August 4th 1990; The train consist was 87002/87027 and 11 PTA wagons.

[tractor_37260]

Have a look at this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_gu0v33e7A  The guy who took it must have been standing beside me, as I have my own still shots of this train!

 

cls37smoke2.jpg

 

Jim

 

Wow -  one word  - AWESOME !