Stanier Pacifics in the West country?

[LMS2968]

35 minutes ago, Ian Hargrave said:

Always thought their appearances on locals at Salop was for ex works running in turns....viz Crewe …Salop…Stafford. First mention of 5A turntable length reason I have heard.Interesting indeed.My first sight of a green Duchess was 46236 ex works at the front of 3 Stanier suburban stock Crewe bound from Salop,1954..Other than that,heavy North to West trains were their province,alongside Lizzies,Scots,Patriots ,Black 5’s etc.

They could also use the Gresty Lane - North Sorting Sidings triangle, or even the 70 foot table at Crewe South, but the Salop turns was another option allowing them to turn productively, always provided there was a decent lay-over before their booked diagram back north.

 

It gets a brief mention in John Jennison's book on the classes from the RCTS, bottom of Page 177.

[kevinlms]

23 hours ago, LMS2968 said:

Fair enough, but I still con't think they got to Bristol!

Even though one was named after the city!

[pH]

25 minutes ago, kevinlms said:

Even though one was named after the city!

And that is a point. CJ Allen in “British Pacific Locomotives” says ‘most’ of the Cities were taken to the cities they were named after for naming ceremonies, even though it could mean travelling over lines from which they would normally be barred. (6251 came off the road in Nottingham station after the ceremony.)

 

Does anyone know which of the Cities were named in their namesake cities? And was 6237 one of them?

[LMS2968]

1 hour ago, kevinlms said:

Even though one was named after the city!

Could I just take you back to the first post: ". . . the write up says, "... was used on London to the West Country and Glasgow express passenger trains." This isn't about one-off movements for a very specific purpose but working trains on a regular basis, and they didn't work to Bristol, even if one turned up there once or twice over a thirty-five year career.

 

There was at one time, I can't remember when or the circumstances, but the WCML was blocked and traffic, including that with a Pacific at the head, was diverted through Farington Jct, Hellifield, Settle Jct., and back to Low Gill. There is a photo (somewhere) of a Pacific coming back on to the WCML with a 3F pilot, provided for the pilotman and not to assist. But it can'rt be said that they worked that route.

[TheSignalEngineer]

9 hours ago, The Stationmaster said:

An excellent Control interpretation of the WR Route Availability Book which was rather ambiguous and could be read  as saying that if a Class isn't barred it is therefore permitted -

More likely that the LMR sent it and it was well into the WR and too late to do anything about it when they found out what was on the front. After all, it was a Hatched Red route on the map and a Big Lizzie was 2" lower than a King, same width across the cylinders and could go round tighter curves so why shouldn't it be OK.

[sandwich station]

10 hours ago, kevinlms said:

Even though one was named after the city!

 

Didn't go to Edinburgh either.  

[pH]

29 minutes ago, sandwich station said:

 

Didn't go to Edinburgh either.  

 

Polmadie Duchesses regularly went to Edinburgh Princes Street station from Glasgow Central.

[kevinlms]

13 hours ago, LMS2968 said:

Could I just take you back to the first post: ". . . the write up says, "... was used on London to the West Country and Glasgow express passenger trains." This isn't about one-off movements for a very specific purpose but working trains on a regular basis, and they didn't work to Bristol, even if one turned up there once or twice over a thirty-five year career.

 

There was at one time, I can't remember when or the circumstances, but the WCML was blocked and traffic, including that with a Pacific at the head, was diverted through Farington Jct, Hellifield, Settle Jct., and back to Low Gill. There is a photo (somewhere) of a Pacific coming back on to the WCML with a 3F pilot, provided for the pilotman and not to assist. But it can'rt be said that they worked that route.

Yes, I agree with you.

 

In fact the 'City' names didn't mean a great deal for their normal operations. A lot of those names never saw them on a regular basis - if ever.

[The Stationmaster]

11 hours ago, TheSignalEngineer said:

More likely that the LMR sent it and it was well into the WR and too late to do anything about it when they found out what was on the front. After all, it was a Hatched Red route on the map and a Big Lizzie was 2" lower than a King, same width across the cylinders and could go round tighter curves so why shouldn't it be OK.

Mind you at that time the route had not long been cleared for 'Kings' throughout - they'd been barred off a lot of it for many years.