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Accurascale announces at KUA in OO gauge


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Hi.

 

Referring to Jacks video, anybody know why there were three sheds employed in that train ?

 

By the sounds coming from the video they were all fired up as well.

 

Could prove expensive if we all have to acquire another loco to be prototypical !!!

 

Keith

 

 

 

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6 hours ago, pylonman said:

Hi Jack.

 

Many thanks for the excellent video.

I don't suppose you can say how you knew the train was "coming through" in order to get the video.

I would really like to see these things "in the flesh", but can't afford to spend weeks camped out on a station, just in case.

 


Unfortunately it’s not my video, it’s a YouTube link. There are various platforms (pardon the pun) holding info on these workings, which are essentially class 6 freights. Realtime Trains shows the live timings whilst I use (and subscribe to) RailCam which can tell you which locos are on a train and you can see the live signalling diagrams. There are various other websites too; these are the ones I use. I saw a photo of the locos and coaches heading down there and soon after they returned with flasks. It’s really a case of spotting a path in for a run, usually from Crewe or Sellafield to Devonport, but paths only go in a day or two before they run.

 

Whilst you don’t have to camp out at a station to see them, you do have to keep a keen eye on the aforementioned websites or find out through word of mouth that a run is planned. I imagine the people who post the photos and videos have either been informed from friends or the working is going through their 'patch' which they monitor all the time in case anything interesting comes up.

 

Jack.

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Hi Jack.

 

Thanks very much for the info, very interesting.

 

It would be nice to see them, for real, perhaps i'll start monitoring things next summer,  which is

when I retire !!  (Camping out at a station may  not be out of the question then !!)

 

Have a good Xmas and a Happy and Safe New Year .

 

Keith

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I was having a flick through Flickr (groans) and I found several pictures of a pair of DRS Class 66’s on the Far North Line, top and tailing their security Mk2’s and sandwiched between them looked like a KUA.

 

I assume that they we’re running empty to Georgemas Junction and then bringing back spent fuel rods from the decommissioning of Dounreay power station.

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7 hours ago, jools1959 said:

I was having a flick through Flickr (groans) and I found several pictures of a pair of DRS Class 66’s on the Far North Line, top and tailing their security Mk2’s and sandwiched between them looked like a KUA.

 

I assume that they we’re running empty to Georgemas Junction and then bringing back spent fuel rods from the decommissioning of Dounreay power station.

I think the KUA's only carry nuclear submarine related stuff, might be wrong though...

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7 hours ago, jools1959 said:

I was having a flick through Flickr (groans) and I found several pictures of a pair of DRS Class 66’s on the Far North Line, top and tailing their security Mk2’s and sandwiched between them looked like a KUA.

 

I assume that they we’re running empty to Georgemas Junction and then bringing back spent fuel rods from the decommissioning of Dounreay power station.

 

 

The KUAs have been to Georgemas with both the early and late escort coaches - see page 3/4

 

2 minutes ago, KDG said:

I think the KUA's only carry nuclear submarine related stuff, might be wrong though...

 

Dounreay isn't (wasn't?) your "average" nuclear power station.......

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1 hour ago, TomScrut said:

A few Flickr pics for reference, note none of these are mine and clicking will get to credits etc. and are Georgemas services not specifically taken on the Far North line:

 

Palindromic Push Pull Set. Dredding It. DRS 66305 & 66302 on diverted 6S99 at Culross

 

6M69 Kildonan FNL16012 Ness Viaduct 37607+37218 6S99 0556 Carlisle Kingmoor - Georgemas on 021116

 

DRS 37607 & 37218 at Dunkeld and Birnam

 

 

That last one is interesting as it has no escort coaches, I presume therefore it will be empty!


It might be empty but I’m not going to nick it.  Don’t really want to “glow in the dark” :rolleyes:.

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On 26/12/2020 at 22:35, TomScrut said:

A few Flickr pics for reference, note none of these are mine and clicking will get to credits etc. and are Georgemas services not specifically taken on the Far North line:

 

Palindromic Push Pull Set. Dredding It. DRS 66305 & 66302 on diverted 6S99 at Culross

 

6M69 Kildonan FNL16012 Ness Viaduct 37607+37218 6S99 0556 Carlisle Kingmoor - Georgemas on 021116

 

DRS 37607 & 37218 at Dunkeld and Birnam

 

 

That last one is interesting as it has no escort coaches, I presume therefore it will be empty!

Just a couple of Barrier wagons to improve the brake force.

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1 hour ago, Railfreight1998 said:

I think they're actually to spread the weight of the train over the various bridges on the route.

 

Given the lack of coaches it's probably a training run.

Attaching additional weight in the form of barrier waggons will not spread the weight, only increase it. On the other hand it will attach an additional 4 axles of braking force for the relatively steep grades that train is working.

Ian_B

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29 minutes ago, Ian_B said:

Attaching additional weight in the form of barrier waggons will not spread the weight, only increase it.

 

I read the comment about the use of barrier wagons as separating the heavier parts of the train, so that the locomotive and the KUA wouldn't both be on a structure at the same time.  That is, when crossing some of the weaker structures, the inclusion of a barrier wagon as a spacer would ensure that by the time the KUA started to impart a load on the bridge, the locomotive would be clear of structure and on the other side.

 

However, I can see the point you make about the extra brake force that barrier wagons would provide.

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6 minutes ago, Ian_B said:

Attaching additional weight in the form of barrier waggons will not spread the weight, only increase it.

 

Are you sure? Moving 2 100+ ton locos about half a loco length away from a 130 ton wagon will make a significant difference to the weight distribution, if the bridge of concern isn't very long (such as over a beck or something). A PFA only weighs 10.5t so 2 of those is a small change (less than 10%) to the weight of the train.

 

Obviously it doesn't change axle loadings but the distributed load over a bridge it would assuming the train is of comparable length to the bridge/spans. I'd be more questioning the point of it rather than if it made a difference. A lot of tracks in the UK this wouldn't be an issue as 2 37s and a KUA would be less of a distributed load than a rake of full short ballast hoppers (I think you'd roughly get 5 HIA, shorty HYA or HOA in the length of 2 37s and a KUA), making a 450-500t mass instead of a 330t mass.

 

Therefore I'd have thought if it was for weight distribution then it must be specific to the route, and I expect though to offset the additional weight of the extra wagons the difference would have to me ensuring loco 1, KUA and loco 2 are never on the bridge at the same time. So it would have to be a short bridge with low capacity on a specific route for it to be any benefit I think.

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Just now, Dungrange said:

However, I can see the point you make about the extra brake force that barrier wagons would provide.

 

But, the fact they do weigh less than 10% of the train mass (if fully loaded) proportionately they won't make a massive difference unless it is literally bringing the train over a threshold it is already close to

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43 minutes ago, TomScrut said:

Therefore I'd have thought if it was for weight distribution then it must be specific to the route, and I expect though to offset the additional weight of the extra wagons the difference would have to me ensuring loco 1, KUA and loco 2 are never on the bridge at the same time. So it would have to be a short bridge with low capacity on a specific route for it to be any benefit I think.

 

Looking at the Sectional Appendix (https://sacuksprodnrdigital0001.blob.core.windows.net/sectional-appendix/Sectional Appendix full PDFs/Scotland Sectional Appendix December 2020.pdf) the route from Invergordon to Georgemas Junction is RA5 and the relevant notes for Class 37 haulage between Invergordon and Georgemas Junction states:

 

R1 20mph over bridge 292 (115m 09ch)

R2 20mph over bridge 296 (116m 18ch)

R4 Double Heading permitted when hauling wagons which are loaded to a maximum of RA5

R5 If a locomotive fails north of Invergordon, the authority of the Infrastructure Manager's Structures Engineer must be obtained before an assisting locomotive is permitted to proceed towards the failed train

 

My guess would therefore be that it is one of the two bridges that have a 20 mph speed restriction, that is the limiting factor for the line in terms of weight restriction.  Heavier locomotives, such as the Class 67 are prohibited to the north of Lairg and double heading is not permitted for most classes of locomotive: Class 31, 37 (but not 37/7 and 37/9) and 47/4 seem to be the only locomotives that are allowed to be double headed on this section of the network.

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Hi everyone,

 

Please excuse the slight diversion.

 

Living in Plymouth I popped out to see the "mega-flask move" leave the dockyard. It was an interesting experience. Hopefully I can answer some of the questions posed.

 

I know the service was due as I follow WNXX (railway news feed). A few weeks ago there was a photo of the presumably empty KUAs being delivered to the dockyard, with the locos returning north the next day, leaving the KUAs in the dockyard for loading. Then 24 hours or so before the return trip photos were posted of the 3 locos and barrier coaches heading back down south, suggesting the trip was imminent. I checked Realtime Trains over the next day or so and the working appeared, leaving the Dockyard at 18.35.

 

This seemed a really sensitive working, significantly more so than normal flask workings. The dockyard is huge in Plymouth and covers much of the city's western shore with the Tamar, it is adjacent to built up areas and public roads. You can view the junction of the dockyard branch from a main road overbridge close to Keyham station. I drove down and stood on this bridge with a couple of others. It was striking how much additional security was in place. Extra armed guards on the gates, police with dogs, plain clothes police etc.. I was approached and spoken to by a policeman, who was very friendly about the whole thing, but let me know they were speaking to everyone who appeared to be taking an interest.

 

I presume there were three locos as I understand these workings need to be double headed, especially this one with the "national security" element, and there simply isn't a convenient run-round nearby - hence the third loco to draw the train back out of the dockyard and down to St Budeaux Junction for the reversal.

 

It was an impressive train, made more so by the cover of darkness and security operation.

 

As an aside - every Monday morning at 11.30am in Plymouth you can hear an air-raid siren ring out. This is the weekly test of the alarm they would sound should there be a "problem" with a nuclear sub at the dockyard.

 

Cheers

 

David 

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58 minutes ago, David41283 said:

Hi everyone,

 

Please excuse the slight diversion.

 

...

 

It was an impressive train, made more so by the cover of darkness and security operation.

 

As an aside - every Monday morning at 11.30am in Plymouth you can hear an air-raid siren ring out. This is the weekly test of the alarm they would sound should there be a "problem" with a nuclear sub at the dockyard.

 

Cheers

 

David 

 

Really interesting read, thanks - all adds to the mystery of these impressive, unusual trains!

The description also gives some ideas for people figures to add to a layout... something often missed in photos, either by wanting to only get the train in the image or by understandable Police request perhaps?!

 

Without wanting to deviate from the thread,  there used to be an air-raid siren sounded every (?) Tuesday afternoon down in Southampton back in the early 1990's... presumed to be because of the local docks but maybe some other reason?  Nearby Fawley Oil Terminal, perhaps?  I assume they never had 'special' cargos at the Docks that would warrant such a system?

 

Really want/must get my order in for these KUA's - I got the half-pint Revolution version and they are a real treat!  Looking at the photos of the OO version, it really does show the efforts put in to making a top class product too.

 

Just a thought - as it will be a bit of a late Christmas present and it's cold outside, should I also ask for a bowl of Ready-Brek to make me 'glow' ;) (probably a TV reference there for the older generation among us!).

 

Cheers,

Ixion.

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3 hours ago, bartram108 said:

 

Er, how did you know?

 

Graham

 

The policeman who spoke to me was in plain clothes, he came over and flashed his ID/warrant card before asking why I was there. I assumed then that the group of similarly dressed blokes he was with (also speaking to spectators/passers by) were also plain clothes officers too.

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9 hours ago, David41283 said:

 

The policeman who spoke to me was in plain clothes, he came over and flashed his ID/warrant card before asking why I was there. I assumed then that the group of similarly dressed blokes he was with (also speaking to spectators/passers by) were also plain clothes officers too.

 

Good job you weren't Russian!  

 

Thanks for the information.  With respect to the 3 locos- slightly confused.  With 2  locomotives there is one at either end - so wouldn't that be sufficient for the run arounds etc.?  As usually I believe they are top and tailed.  Are you saying they put 2 on the front, just incase one failed as a double safe guard?  Obviously something they either didn't want leaving around or due to some heightened threat level.  Then again with all the rotting Nuke Subs at Devonport there is enough nasties lurking around.  

 

Slightly off topic - sorry!  But with all the security regarding radioactive material (as demonstrated above!) - how can you not trust the Chinese to deliver a 5G network, but you can let them build a nuclear power station?  Is it me or just the Great British Sense of humour?  

 

KUA's will look very nice.  Are they arriving by ship or air?

 

Remain safe everyone,

 

Best Wishes,

 

Chris.

 

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10 hours ago, dogbox321 said:

 

With respect to the 3 locos- slightly confused.  With 2  locomotives there is one at either end - so wouldn't that be sufficient for the run arounds etc.?  As usually I believe they are top and tailed.  Are you saying they put 2 on the front, just incase one failed as a double safe guard?  Obviously something they either didn't want leaving around or due to some heightened threat level.  Then again with all the rotting Nuke Subs at Devonport there is enough nasties lurking around.  

 

 

 

It is not unusual to have a pair of locos used on trains when one may be fresh from repair, perhaps that was the case here where one of the usual two was being tested?

 

Roy

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22 hours ago, 97403_Ixion said:

 

Really interesting read, thanks - all adds to the mystery of these impressive, unusual trains!

The description also gives some ideas for people figures to add to a layout... something often missed in photos, either by wanting to only get the train in the image or by understandable Police request perhaps?!

 

Without wanting to deviate from the thread,  there used to be an air-raid siren sounded every (?) Tuesday afternoon down in Southampton back in the early 1990's... presumed to be because of the local docks but maybe some other reason?  Nearby Fawley Oil Terminal, perhaps?  I assume they never had 'special' cargos at the Docks that would warrant such a system?

 

Really want/must get my order in for these KUA's - I got the half-pint Revolution version and they are a real treat!  Looking at the photos of the OO version, it really does show the efforts put in to making a top class product too.

 

Just a thought - as it will be a bit of a late Christmas present and it's cold outside, should I also ask for a bowl of Ready-Brek to make me 'glow' ;) (probably a TV reference there for the older generation among us!).

 

Cheers,

Ixion.

 

Hi Ixion.

 

I used to work regularly on Fawley Refinery, and the siren you may have heard would have been the weekly test of the Site Fire Alarm, rather than anything nuclear.  

 

Regards Keith

 

 

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If I order this set, do I have to pay the full amount upfront or can I put a deposit down and pay the balance once they have arrived in the UK?  December is a expensive month for me without the added Christmas and New Year expense, and with a limited budget each month, I have to watch the pennies.

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