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Trainspotting at Little Benton Sidings, Newcastle.


rowanj
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The latest loco leaves the sidings with the LOCO coal. This is the first-build Worsdell J72 with the short bunker. 68682 was at Heaton until 1954, then went on to Tweedmouth. It will take the LOCO coal to Heaton Yard, then a Blaydon loco, probably a K1, will take it up the Tyne Valley Line to feed the small sheds on that route. Does that seem feasible?

 

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Though there is a fair bit of activity, the spotters won't have been too impressed by the J27 and J71, though the Teesside-based WD may have been a cop.

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However, it being a July Saturday, there is always the chance of a bit of excitement, and they probably won't believe their eyes when the Thompson rebuilt K1/1 returns a SO Whitley Bay-Glasgow.

 

I have no evidence of a K1/1 or K4 visiting Tyneside until the preserved "Great Marquess" started turning upon Society excursions. The nearest I have is a photo of K2 61789 LOCH LAIDON. on a routine freight heading passed Little Benton South Box in April 1957. However, it looks as though it may actually have happened, as Doncaster took over the repairs of the K1/1 in 1958, and it seems to have made 3 visits.

 

I cant quite remember how I built the K1/1, but suspect it was based on a Replica B1 on Bachmann K3 chassis. I think the main work involved shortening the cab sides, then the boiler and footplate.

 

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Since I have this photo for another purpose, I may as well post it here too. The J72 has had its' Scalelink wheels replaced with Romford's, which are more tolerant of my tracklaying. The K3 running light has just become Heaton's 61844 and will take the fitted freight out of the sidings to Darlington and York. The B16/3 has a SO York- Edinburgh, and either Gateshead or Heaton have left the 50A loco on rather than replace it with a V2 or B1.

 

The 3 locos together illustrate how I put my stock together - a re-numbered RTR, a cut and shut plastic body, and a kit- either etched or whitemetal. In this way I get a reasonably authentic loco roster for Little Benton, with the odd surprise thrown in to keep the spotters happy. The last lot are really just stuff I built or converted over the years to which I have some sort of sentimental attachment. So look out for W1, J15, D1o and D11, and Crosti 9F at some point. Oh- and a BB too.

 

Can I also thank those folk good enough to visit the thread- it's always a pleasure to see and hear from you. Happy spotting.

 

John

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Any spotters at Little Benton today wont believe their eyes. The older boys will probably blame the effects of the night before, and everyone who tells their pals at school next day will be accused of being "bungers". But here is the photographic proof. D11 62666 ZEEBRUGGE runs light back to Sheffield having attended an open day at Haymarket. Even more astonishingly, St. Margaret's have put the last D10, which was also there, on a special to Tyneside before it too heads back to the Great Central.

The locos were GBL Directors, - I really enjoyed carving up those models.. The D11 was just a case of getting the body and tender on an appropriate chassis, but the D10 took a bit more work ..the cab and front end are a bit different. 

As the layout is essentially about trainspotting, I thought I'd post my "ABC". As can be seen, most of my locos have a connection of some sort with NE England , though there a few anomalies. I will address some through re-numbering, but others are locos I just have to live with. Like most folk, I was less selective at one time, and bought or built stuff I just liked- especially if the number started with a 6. Many I have re-numbered already or sold on, and what is left are locos I want to keep for one reason or another. The D11 and D10 are cases in point.

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Locomotive roster.docx

Edited by rowanj
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One more for the spotters before a return to normality. 84009 was the only one of the class on the NE Region, albeit at Hull. The loco is a converted Ivatt 2MT from the GBL model on a Bachmann chassis. 

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More realistically, J21 65033, ex-works, has a Newbiggin- Central train, probably an early morning "express", as most of these trains went via Benton and South Gosforth, terminating at Manors North. A few took the direct route down the mainline to Central. The loco is an early Dave Alexander whitemetal kit.

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

B1's were around on Tyneside, but not in huge numbers. Heaton and Gateshead had fewer than a dozen between them at any one time, though Blaydon's worked the Carlisle line, and Tweedmouth and Edinburgh, particularly St Margaret's worked to Newcastle. The picture is Tweedmouth based "ORIBI" heading north.

Like many,I have too many Pacifics and not enough mixed traffic stock. On the B1 front, I have three, two of which need re-numbered, and a Pro-Scale kit in a box. But 61273 is authentic for Little Benton, and heads a train similar to ORIBI, probably an Newcastle-Edinburgh (or possibly Berwick ) stopper.

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This is, more or less, the view we had as young teens when spotting at Little Benton. However, it was unusual to be as busy at this. The B1 on the Down, running light, is Heaton's 61322, re-numbered from KUDU. 61275 has dropped off a freight in the sidings, and waits a path back to either Heaton or Gateshead.

 

K2's were reasonably frequent visitors on Tyneside, usually en-route to or from Cowlairs,and I have photos on both Gateshead and Heaton Sheds. Normally, they ran light, but on odd occasions, as here, they would be used to take a freight if nothing better was available. The K2 is an old NUCast kit, on its' original whitemetal chassis, and was one of the first kits I built, and as a consequence, never really worked. Recently, I dug it out, carved out the chassis to take a modern motor gearbox combo, and, sods law, it now runs well. I cant quite fathom the distaste some folk have for whitemetal chassis, as I find they can be set up satisfactorily, have brakes etc fitted, and have a bit of weight to boot.

 

Edit..I also have a picture of Scottish K2 Loch Laidon passing Little Benton South in 1957, so another kit,this time from LRM, is a future possibility, along with a PDK Hunt.

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Edited by rowanj
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Having proved it can run, 61322 has been entrusted with a train, albeit only a Newcastle- Berwick stopper. The rake is a mix of Hornby and Kirk. It must be a Saturday, as 60506 WOLF OF BADENOCH emerges under Hall's Bridge with a SO Edinburgh-York.

 

Memo to self- must fix the ladder on the Stop signal protecting the Down exit to the siding.

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Edited by rowanj
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I don't actually spend a lot of time playing trains, but spent a half-hour or so to run a few locos which haven't turned a wheel in a while.

 

60506 is passing Little Benton South. Another 5 miles will get it to Newcastle, and then the last 80 or so to York.

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I was taught at school by the famous local photographer I.S Carr, who told me the last Queen of Scots would run on the coming Saturday, so I walked the 3 miles from our caravan site at Beadnell to Chathill to see it - Deltic-hauled, going north. I have a transparency somewhere. I cant remember which Deltic, but it wouldn't be D9012,CREPELLO. a GBL model on Lima chassis.

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After the expresses, there is time for the Q7 to take its' freight northwards to Callington and Ponteland, and the B1 to escape the relief sidings and head for either Heaton Yard or New Bridge Street Goods, probably the former given the tank wagons in the train - now safely between the barrier wagons.

 

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Edited by rowanj
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13 hours ago, 46256 said:

Like your photos John especially the wolf....I do have a soft spot for an A2/2 as you know

 

best wishes Brian

Thanks, Brian. As you know, it's kit building which is my main pre-occupation these days, and the layout is really a large diorama on which to run the locos before they go onto the shelves, hardly ever to run again. I stopped showing the building of the kits, as it was becoming repetitive, and a fear the same is happening here, so we will see how it goes.

 

Having said that, this is the GBL K3 you sent me, on the SEF chassis which I put together having been sent a set of instructions, after I asked for some, by a contact on the Site. So, though I dislike a lot of the fluff which can fly around from time to time, I have made several great contacts via posting. The chassis itself is excellent, though I'm not a fan of the crosshead/cylinder arrangement, preferring the more modern etched versions.

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Edited by rowanj
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John always good to see your work and messages both personal and here. We both model actual locations. Our layouts have the same function, diorama, test track and lastly just to watch trains travelling through. Like you my postings tend to be any rare archive stuff that appears occasionally, relating to my chosen area, or an adaptation to a source model to produce a different type.  Our friendship commenced via the GBL magazine run. I know we both shared the buzz of expectation on what was in the pipeline. The series provided us both with source material used in countless projects since. The K3 is a case in point married to the excellent SEF chassis, lovely model. I do like how your modelling threads generate knowledge sharing between like minded nor eastern modellers. in my case I really appreciate when someone posts information about my station/ area, never forgetting when people show their appreciation via the various choices.

 

Best wishes Brian

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The latest addition is Heaton K3 61869. It's origins are the GBL-Bachmann clone. I bought a couple, but this one was a gift from Sir William Stanier, It is ex-works so should really have a lined valance. Still to fit is the dummy coupling and ATP banger plate, and the cab doors. This will be done after the LH side is lined and the buffer beam painted. GBL body on SEF chassis. The original GBL is posed to show how it started. Being ex-works, Heaton has rostered it on an empty  Parcels to Craigentinny.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Even I can't dream up an excuse for these two to pass Little Benton, so Tyneside has somehow been translated to East Anglia. These locos have a bit of sentimental value, so I dig them out from time to time. The BEC J17 was the second kit I ever built - a birthday present from my then-girlfriend, now my wife of 45 years. It originally ran on a Triang chassis, then had Romfords fitted, then had the chassis ground out to take a motor/gearbox, and now runs on a Hornby Jinty chassis.

 

The K5 was an early carve-up of a GBL K3, and is, frankly, a bit of a mess, but it runs OK on a modified Bachmann V1/3 chassis and just about passes muster from normal viewing. It was actually at Blaydon shortly after rebuilding, but too early for my period, and was probably still in LNER livery when it headed south.

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The K3 61869 is now complete, bar crew and a dummy buckeye coupling. It heads back to Newcastle on a fully fitted freight. These would normally have a V2 on the train, but an ex-works K3 would easily handle a load like this.

 

I hope the photo shows that the GBL loco can be "scrubbed up" sufficiently to be a decent loco. Just as well really, as I have a couple more.

 

Next into the works is an O1 to be converted to a Tyne Dock loco with air brakes, fitted to run on the Consett iron ore trains, 

 

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Gateshead's  60018 "Sparrow Hawk" has the Up Queen of Scots.  This would be unusual, as I think it was a Haymarket turn. The model is getting a spin, as it has just morphed from 60008 to 18 as part of my re-numbering scheme. Though "Dwight" certainly got to Newcastle, 34A locos rarely ventured further north other than on The Elizabethan. the origin of the model is the superb GBL clone of Mallard, which was on sale for the princely sum of £2.99 a few years ago.

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I have a Hornby O1, a lovely loco, but not really suitable for Little Benton. I was ready to put it on eBay, when a Dave Alexander Tyne Dock modification kit turned up. This is no longer available, but is really only a couple of Westinghouse pumps, pair of air tanks which fit under the footplate, the backing plates for the pumps, and some wire to represent the pipe runs. All of these can be sourced or fabricated.

Five O1's went to Tyne Dock to supplement the Q7's on the Consett trains and were adapted to allow the hopper doors to be opened and closed from the loco. After similarly adapted 9F's arrived, the o1's tended to be used on routine freight duties.

The photos show the basic modifications to the Hornby body to produce 63712, In addition to the kit, vacuum pipes need to be fitted to the buffer beams. I also coaled the tender, and weathered it using Tamiya powders.

The starting point

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The rear of the RH handrail needs cutting and lifting to clear the pumps.

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Pumps in place. The air tanks fit on each undersideside of the footplate, below the pumps. they fit into backing plates.

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And you finish up with something like this.

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A better lit shot of 63712 as it enters the relief sidings, built in 1940 to help protect stock in Heaton from Luftwaffe raids. Though they were usually full of open wagons, I only ever saw one train actually running into them from the north-- 60001 of all things on a freight .

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The reason for parking the O1 in the sidings is revealed by the passing of Gateshead's 60020., suitably scruffy, on an Edinburgh relief.

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Another Tyne Dock loco, 9F 92063, has a break from grinding up to Consett with a load of iron ore. It must be 1964 o r65 , as the loco has been turned out by Darlington with 12 inch cab numerals - I have a photo confirming this. The block train is probably empty tanks heading back to Jarrow.

 

The date is confirmed by the empty fish heading back to Aberdeen behind Haymarket's Class 40 D345. Of course, we didn't call them that in 1964, and I don't remember calling them "Whistlers" either,

 

The second photo is more or less what we saw looking over "Scottie Bridge" When I visited a few months ago, I saw it is really Little Benton Farm Bridge. No farm in sight now.

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Edited by rowanj
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Hello John, class 40s we used to call them "tats" when they first appeared through Water Orton. I havnt a clue where the name sprang from. Their contemporaries the 44 45 and 46 classes were always peaks.i thought as a child it was because of the front "nose" on them.  The 9fs always plentiful including the unique Berkeley stoker fitted trio used on the 4 40 PM Water Orton to Carlisle freight. Best wishes Brian

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I just cant remember any nickname up here for the Class 40's. Not usual, as we had a nickname for most things. "Another bloody J27" was a common cry at Little Benton, though they were more usual on hopper wagons than cattle trucks. These empties are headed north to dispersed from Morpeth to the smaller stations with marts in Northumberland. 

The A8 is being turned into the relief sidings to allow the passage of a late-running express. Unless it is on empty stock, it's passengers will miss the connection at Central. I remember taking a stopper from Chathill to Newcastle and being held up to allow a Down express to race past- I think in 1965.

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This is why the A8 was put into the sidings. The V2 is on a relief Edinburgh-Newcastle, which stopped only at Dunbar and Berwick.

 

Some of the passengers in the Pullman will be claiming a refund, as the train has a MK1 FO substituting for a 1st Class Parlour. The loco is Heaton's Bronzino, which is simply a re-numbered Bachmann with double-chimney fitted. The loco was apparently a "pet" at 52B and was often used when Heaton crew had "The Northumbrian"

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The A8 is finally released from the relief sidings, and will stop briefly at Manors East before terminating at Central. A8's were regular at Newcastle, though more usually from the south.

 

The Ivatt , which was shedded at Heaton, looks as though it is on a stopper heading to Berwick or beyond, but the splitting distant gives it away- it is actually a diverted portion of a Bergen Boat Train. The line through Percy Main is obviously closed, so the train is diverted up the ECML where it will take the route to Backworth and reverse , then head for the Tyne Commission Quay via Blue Bell.. Usually a V1/3 would be motive power, but I have a photo of an Ivatt on a similar train at the Quay station, so here is my version. The Ivatt is simply a re-numbered Bachmann,

 

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