TRACTION issue 246

[steverabone]

 

TRACTION 246 the July/ August 2018 issue is published on Friday 1st June.

 

One of my regrets as an enthusiast is that I didn’t experience the time when the Class 37s dominated the haulage of both passenger and freight trains on the West Highland Line. My first visit was in 1968, in the days of the North British and BRCW Type 2s, but by the time I made my second visit in 1990 the Class 156 ‘Sprinters’ were firmly in control of most passenger services. Luckily, enthusiasts such as Martin Axford recorded on film the days of the Class 37s and his feature gives a vivid flavour of that time.

 

The humble electric multiple unit has often been ignored by enthusiasts, but the N.E.R. and L.N.E.R both adopted them enthusiastically for suburban services around Tyneside, and, later on, their lines out of Liverpool Street and Manchester, although their introduction into service there came in BR days. Quentin Williamson explains the development of these interesting and, for their time, advanced trains.

 

Many of us have fond memories of boarding a train of locomotive hauled carriages in winter with steam leaking from the pipes between vehicles. Bob Dunn tells us, “Yes, I worked on steam” as he explains what operating the steam heating system was like for the locomotive crews.

Glen Batten remembers the days when the Class 31s made an unexpected return to passenger haulage for Wessex Trains, which included the repainting of one of the ‘31s’ in ‘shocking pink’.

 

David Ratcliffe returns with the second part of his article about freight traffic in Manchester. This time he looks at the railways of the south of the city.

 

Our photo feature highlights the area around Peak Forest, known best for its heavy stone traffic. Photographs by Gavin Morrison, John Ford and John Dedman give a taste of this location through the years.

 

Colin Boocock’s travels with the RCTS took him to Germany and Austria in 1958. In those days many of the classic pre-war German electric locomotives could be seen operating in southern Germany and it is these intriguing types that are discussed in Colin’s article.

 

Ian Harrison recalls the days of Britain’s heavy industry in the Rotherham area in 1976. How Britain has changed in forty years!

 

In TRACTION MODELLING Simon George returns with a report on the development of his mammoth O Gauge project to replicate Heaton Lodge Junction. He has now found a home for the layout in the basement of an old woollen mill, whilst development work on the considerable amount of freight rolling stock needed is well underway.

 

At the opposite end of the scales, Andy Gibbs explains how he has developed a selection of suitable ferry wagons to operate trains on his N gauge layout Kensington Olympia.

 

Enjoy this issue!

 

Stephen Rabone editor

 

[dj_crisp]

Looks a great issue Stephen!

Cheers

Will

[tractionman]

Plenty of corporate blue in this issue, Manchester freight in the eighties and Rotherham in the seventies, marvellous stuff!

 

Cheers,

 

Keith

[steverabone]

Thanks for those positive comments. Don't forget that TRACTION would always like to hear from potential contributors who would like to write articles for the magazine. All our writers are enthusiasts or railwaymen who want to pass on their knowledge or experiences to other readers.

 

Contact me at steverabone@hotmail.com

[ruggedpeak]

Great issue. Love reading about the railwaymen's experiences.

 

I too wish I'd done the Far North lines when they had 37's. I did travel from Kyle once in those days but was totally hung over after a ceilidh the night before, so recall very little of the journey!

[steverabone]

Great issue. Love reading about the railwaymen's experiences.

 

I too wish I'd done the Far North lines when they had 37's. I did travel from Kyle once in those days but was totally hung over after a ceilidh the night before, so recall very little of the journey!

I did travel on the Kyle line behind 37s. The 37 broke down east of Plockton and we sat there for over an hour whilst the driver tried to get the loco started, which he did. He then drove the engine as hard as possible sometimes, I suspect, exceeding the speed limit given the rather exhilarating ride. We made it into Inverness and ScotRail held the last connection to Glasgow for us.

[EddieB]

Not the easiest issue to find! I visited a couple of local Smiths, at various times since the publication date, but neither had any copies. Eventually I found a single copy at a newsagent, which meant that I was limited to a cursory flick through before deciding to purchase. A good mix of articles, however.

Edited June 6, 2018 by EddieB

[John M Upton]

I thought it was just me, I have visited several WHSmiths since last Friday and not located a single copy.  Has the batch for the South/South East been left in a warehouse somewhere by any chance?

[Banger Blue]

Picked my copy up in Oxford (city centre WH Smiths) on Monday, plenty of copies in there.

[dj_crisp]

Paddington had received their allocation.... copy purchased!

[steverabone]

If the WH Smiths that you normally buy Traction from hasn't got them ask their staff why not. Sometimes it is simply that they haven't arrived or in some cases it is because the manager has decided not to stock it. Sometimes I also notice that copies are in the wrong section and pushed right at the back as I noticed in the Middlesbrough store.