Why were the Peaks considered redundant?

[Phil Bullock]

22 minutes ago, Rugd1022 said:

 

That triple sighting at Perry Barr would have been the holy grail of Warship shots had you had a camera to hand that day! As well as floating around the West Mids they also had a daylight turn to Shrewsbury and Crewe, yet so far not a single photo of this has emerged.

Certainly would. And D855 was at Crewe Gresty Lane when I first visited in April 69

[MidlandRed]

1 hour ago, Phil Bullock said:

Yes D845 had SYP just around headcode boxes with white cab roof front as an early experiment. The NBL Warships (Class 43) were on the Padd -Worcester - Herefords from April 68 and there were still two workings … evening van trains from Worcester …. That brought them up to the West Midlands…. Plus a 3 coach SuO passenger from Hereford. Saw them all at Worcester except D840 which I copped on my first visit to Bescot. 

That’s v interesting - do you know how long they were on the Worcester/ Herefords? Also re D845, did it retain that arrangement of syp until repaint or was the syp ‘standardised’ at some point?

 

There was a parcels train which appeared at about 9 pm on the Perry Barr - Bescot section in 1967/early 68 which was Hymek worked, often one of the Lickey bankers so I presumed had originated at Worcester (ran as 3M02) but I wasn’t about to see that train after that period so if it was one of the Warship workings I’d have missed it 

 

The three Warships seen on 19/10/67 at Perry Barr North Junction were D842 (maroon syp), D845 (green syp - no note taken of non standard syp and I don’t recall it), and D847 (blue fye) - they appeared from the Soho loop so I presume had operated from the Worcester/ Stourbridge Jumction/ Smethwick West route - unlikely to have come from Birmingham New Street. As you say @Rugd1022 it would have been a great photograph although I recall being shocked to the core at the sight - one of those open mouthed moments so probably would have only achieved a fumbled photo!! Even more so as just three months before I’d spent a two week holiday nr Teignmouth and spent most of it on the sea wall spotting the almost wall to wall procession of hydraulics!! I think the Hymek hauled 3M02 ran the same route also. Would be interesting to know it’s destination.

 

Sorry for the slight thread divert….. 

Edited November 5, 2021 by MidlandRed

[Mike_Walker]

D845 had standard size small yellow panels and the white above the windscreens removed by at least 6/68 from photos in my collection.

[MidlandRed]

2 hours ago, Phil Bullock said:

Certainly would. And D855 was at Crewe Gresty Lane when I first visited in April 69

Unless I’m dreaming it, IIRC, at some time in the 60s SW/NW trains were Warship hauled and thus, they appeared at Crewe. I think this may have been early/mid 60s though - I’m sure someone else may know - this would give another possible explanation for Warships at Shrewsbury. I’m guessing D855 may have been from one of those workings previously mentioned, associated with Worcester/Birmingham workings. 

Edited November 5, 2021 by MidlandRed
Corrected NE/SW to SW/NW

[rodent279]

7 minutes ago, MidlandRed said:

Unless I’m dreaming it, IIRC, at some time in the 60s NE/SW trains were Warship hauled and thus, they appeared at Crewe. I think this may have been early/mid 60s though - I’m sure someone else may know - this would give a possible explanation for Warships at Shrewsbury. I’m guessing D855 may have been from one of those workings previously mentioned, associated with Worcester/Birmingham workings. 

I'm sure I've seen a photo of a Warship at Crewe sometime in the 60's. Flickr is your friend.

[Rugd1022]

1 hour ago, MidlandRed said:

That’s v interesting - do you know how long they were on the Worcester/ Herefords? Also re D845, did it retain that arrangement of syp until repaint or was the syp ‘standardised’ at some point?

 

There was a parcels train which appeared at about 9 pm on the Perry Barr - Bescot section in 1967/early 68 which was Hymek worked, often one of the Lickey bankers so I presumed had originated at Worcester (ran as 3M02) but I wasn’t about to see that train after that period so if it was one of the Warship workings I’d have missed it 

 

The three Warships seen on 19/10/67 at Perry Barr North Junction were D842 (maroon syp), D845 (green syp - no note taken of non standard syp and I don’t recall it), and D847 (blue fye) - they appeared from the Soho loop so I presume had operated from the Worcester/ Stourbridge Jumction/ Smethwick West route - unlikely to have come from Birmingham New Street. As you say @Rugd1022 it would have been a great photograph although I recall being shocked to the core at the sight - one of those open mouthed moments so probably would have only achieved a fumbled photo!! Even more so as just three months before I’d spent a two week holiday nr Teignmouth and spent most of it on the sea wall spotting the almost wall to wall procession of hydraulics!! I think the Hymek hauled 3M02 ran the same route also. Would be interesting to know it’s destination.

 

Sorry for the slight thread divert….. 

 

The Warships finished on the Cotswold route in late '71, as October 4th was the date of the dreaded  cull of the remaining NBL 43s, after that it was Hymeks, 47s and later on, 50s.

 

A pal of mine, retired Bescot man Tony 'Lulu' Llewelyn was a secondman on the 43s when they operated out of Bescot and told me they were actually pretty good on most of the jobs they were booked on, particularly once they'd built up some speed, the problem was that because of the route characteristics, junctions and numerous changes of line speeds etc they didn't often get the chance to show what they could do. He said he liked driving them anyway.

Edited November 5, 2021 by Rugd1022

[The Johnster]

Bath Road used Warships on some of their North to West jobs in the early 60s, especially as the Westerns began to be delivered, followed by Brush Type 4s, and the dire locomotive shortage was eased a little, and some of these worked throught to Crewe.  Pontypool Road closed in '64 IIRC, but I have no recollection of loco changes involving Warships there, which is not to say it didn't happen.  PPRD was significant as a suitable place to change steam locos that had originiated from Crewe (or Manchester/Liverpool) in one direction and Plymouth in the other, the right distance for a loco to require servicing and to get the crews home with a back working within their hours.

[Phil Bullock]

21 hours ago, Rugd1022 said:

 

The Warships finished on the Cotswold route in late '71, as October 4th was the date of the dreaded  cull of the remaining NBL 43s, after that it was Hymeks, 47s and later on, 50s.

 

A pal of mine, retired Bescot man Tony 'Lulu' Llewelyn was a secondman on the 43s when they operated out of Bescot and told me they were actually pretty good on most of the jobs they were booked on, particularly once they'd built up some speed, the problem was that because of the route characteristics, junctions and numerous changes of line speeds etc they didn't often get the chance to show what they could do. He said he liked driving them anyway.

Spot on Nidge they were there pretty well until the end… 861 was the last one off Worcester depot where it had been failed with a pressurised sump, it ran OEO 0F61 to Bristol and withdrawn. However she wasn’t the last at Worcester as in November 844 came up from the scrap line at Swindon to be used as a carriage heating unit for a couple of weeks.

 

Good to hear something positive from train crew about the NBLs too… they certainly did good work in the Cotswold line …