Peterborough North

[St Enodoc]

Many of my reminiscences can't be written down in order to protect the guilty (including myself) but here's one that involves the East Coast Main Line, Deltics and HSTs so might be of interest.

 

The first Saturday of 1982 was the last day of BR service for the Deltics and of course there was the commemorative run from King's Cross to Edinburgh and back. I wandered down to Waverley in the afternoon to have a look at (and listen to) the last train. As I was standing on the platform one of my very senior colleagues from York (well known in the rail and tram preservation world) came up and asked me if I was busy. Slightly guardedly, not knowing what was coming, I replied that I was not. "Good" he said. "You know the line between here and Newcastle don't you?". "Yes, more or less. Why?" "Peter Semmens is the official timekeeper for the train but he won't know where he is once it gets dark. Can you ride up front with him and point out the landmarks?".

 

So off we went, four in the front cab and several more in the back. As it turned out, it wasn't hard to tell where we were due to the incessant camera flashes all along the way. Sadly, the train was formed of 90 mph stock as much of the "A" fleet had had its water systems damaged by frost over the previous few days, so we didn't hit the ton.

 

When we got to Newcastle I was relieved by another mate, so I strolled across and got in the cab of a northbound HST for a swifter, quieter but definitely less exciting run home.

 

All in all, a grand day out.

[manna]

G'Day Folks

 

One job I did enjoy, was Route Learning, Skipton to Carlisle, sitting behind the driver on a old type DMU, with the cab door open to the rest of the coach, with the Driver giving a running commentary, on where we were, after a couple of days he was asking us were we were, I think we had three weeks of this, Brilliant.

 

manna

[great northern]

Here comes the first arrival of the day from Grimsby. It has stopped just about everywhere, and taken hours to get here. An ideal job for a run down B1.

 

 

Very heavy going on the golf course, and clubs had to be carried. Seven miles of that, and the first game for weeks means an aching back and a growing longing for bed. So, more tomorrow.

[great northern]

Fifteen minutes have passed since the previous image was taken, all passengers have disembarked, and the ECS has been taken away to Nene sidings. The road is clear for the 6.51 Grimsby Town to KX, as always headed by a properly turned out Immingham engine.

 

 

[bigwordsmith]

18 hours ago, Mallard60022 said:

One of his Daughters was firing on my simpler course in 2001. She might be doing the honours now?  I liked Mr. Groom and yes, even on the simple course we had to do a great deal. My achievement was stopping exactly where he had chalked a mark on the platform in line with the mark on the Cab step/floor.  His book is a good read too.

Phil

 

Round about that time, that probably would have been Liz - so there you were Phil you can honestly say you knew her before she was famous!

[60027Merlin]

On 10/12/2020 at 21:05, St Enodoc said:

Many of my reminiscences can't be written down in order to protect the guilty (including myself) but here's one that involves the East Coast Main Line, Deltics and HSTs so might be of interest.

 

The first Saturday of 1982 was the last day of BR service for the Deltics and of course there was the commemorative run from King's Cross to Edinburgh and back. I wandered down to Waverley in the afternoon to have a look at (and listen to) the last train. As I was standing on the platform one of my very senior colleagues from York (well known in the rail and tram preservation world) came up and asked me if I was busy. Slightly guardedly, not knowing what was coming, I replied that I was not. "Good" he said. "You know the line between here and Newcastle don't you?". "Yes, more or less. Why?" "Peter Semmens is the official timekeeper for the train but he won't know where he is once it gets dark. Can you ride up front with him and point out the landmarks?".

 

So off we went, four in the front cab and several more in the back. As it turned out, it wasn't hard to tell where we were due to the incessant camera flashes all along the way. Sadly, the train was formed of 90 mph stock as much of the "A" fleet had had its water systems damaged by frost over the previous few days, so we didn't hit the ton.

 

When we got to Newcastle I was relieved by another mate, so I strolled across and got in the cab of a northbound HST for a swifter, quieter but definitely less exciting run home.

 

All in all, a grand day out.

 

I recall going in to town to The Waverley to see this last Deltic service run and attach a couple of photos taken then. Unfortunately the light was poor that afternoon of the 2nd. of January as not only was it a really dreich mid winter Edinburgh day but to top it off the haar from the Forth was with us as well. In fact we had it yet again a couple of weeks ago for a few days with the visibility stretching for all of approximately 10 feet in the street!

 

Hopefully the photos I have just taken of these 1982 photos are relatively clear to give a flavour of the day. It is frightening that it is practically 39 years ago and I can still envisage that damp cold atmosphere, at least the Deltic performed well fairly hammering out heading south.

 

 

Edited December 12, 2020 by 60027Merlin

[great northern]

The last of the trio of locomotives in the parcel now. Dominion of New Zealand has been a regular sight on the Elizabethan, as it was in 1958, but suffered a valve gear failure a while back. She went to Tim for repair, and he decided that he could do an improved weathering job too, as this had been one of his early jobs for me. 60013 was ex works on 4/7/58, and commenced Elizabethan duties on 27th. One wonders whether there was something that needed to be fettled before she was ready for the non stop. Once started though, 60013 missed only six days in the seven weeks before the service ended for the year.

 

Here she is. Besides weathering, she also carries a new feature, unique to the loco.

 

 

 

 

Any suggestions as to what it might be?

[LNER4479]

29 minutes ago, great northern said:

 

Any suggestions as to what it might be?

Didn't No.13 have a unique hooter?

[jwealleans]

Yes.   An ex-NZR whistle.   Didn't it end up on the Festiniog with Bill Hoole and then get stolen?

[Timara]

My last of the three locos' worth of outdoor photos....  Very little for me to say about them really!  As with 60028, the nameplates were refitted in the correct positions. 

 

 

 

2 hours ago, jwealleans said:

Yes.   An ex-NZR whistle.   Didn't it end up on the Festiniog with Bill Hoole and then get stolen?

 

Indeed it is!  They're not too hard to make.  All I'll say is "thank you Google!", with regard to finding suitable reference photos.  When it came to me for repair, I just couldn't hand if back without the proper whistle, could I?!

 

 

Cheers,

[great northern]

Another day of little light, so no trains and no photos means just one more shot, 61098 now resting at the south end of Platform 2.

 

 

[great northern]

B1 portrait this morning. I don't think we are doing daylight here today.

 

 

[great northern]

I was right, we didn't bother with daylight, and the forecasters say the same applies tomorrow. That means rationing continues, and tonight brings just one image, Quicksilver with our first express of the day, the Fair Maid.

 

 

[trw1089]

15 hours ago, great northern said:

B1 portrait this morning. I don't think we are doing daylight here today.

 

 

 

I do so much like a B1 portrait in the morning (well it is the morning here in the Antipodes...)

[St Enodoc]

4 minutes ago, trw1089 said:

 

I do so much like a B1 portrait in the morning (well it is the morning here in the Antipodes...)

It's nearly afternoon here but you've got another hour to go...

[trw1089]

2 minutes ago, St Enodoc said:

It's nearly afternoon here but you've got another hour to go...

That's us in Queensland, 1 hour and ten years behind the rest of the country!

[St Enodoc]

Just now, trw1089 said:

That's us in Queensland, 1 hour and ten years behind the rest of the country!

Only ten?????

[jazzer]

On 10/12/2020 at 19:47, Mallard60022 said:

One of his Daughters was firing on my simpler course in 2001. She might be doing the honours now?  I liked Mr. Groom and yes, even on the simple course we had to do a great deal. My achievement was stopping exactly where he had chalked a mark on the platform in line with the mark on the Cab step/floor.  His book is a good read too.

Phil

Well done getting the stopping spot on . I found that difficult to get the hang of.  It made me realise that one of the great skills of driving any vacuum braked loco, but especially a steam engine was driving approach a station at speed then stopping at the precise spot you are supposed to be , usually next to the water column . It’s absolutely nothing at all like driving a car. Clive told me that one of the big problems was on the 12 coach electrics at Waterloo where some of the platforms are a only just long enough to get the whole train in. It meant running in at 20mph and applying the brakes as you pass the platform ends which would bring you to a stop 6 feet from the buffers and that just gets the whole train in . A bit scary though if all the brakes are not working properly which often they are not ! 
One of the little details that modellers often don’t pay attention to on exhibition layouts , I think it realistic stopping . It’s very easy on a model to just turn the controller back if you are running in too fast but it looks far more realistic to think about how the real ones stop . It’s the same with coupling up , as we leaned on Clives course, you have to approach barely at a walking pace but so often at exhibitions I see a loco driven in too fast and giving the train a good clout. These little details can make a model far more realistic in its operation.

[great northern]

Morning, theoretically, unless one is upside down. Dark, dismal, and nine hours of heavy rain promised. It starts with another close up, of an A4 this time.

 

 

[great northern]

And tonight there is just another different angle on Quicksilver.

 

 

[great northern]

Before I go for a paddle at the golf club, here is another look at Quicksilver, now approaching Spital Bridge.

 

 

[great northern]

One lonely plonk, all alone in a folder where everything else has been posted. Similar to one you have seen, but here it is anyway.

 

 

[great northern]

You do seem to like these views from Spital Bridge, so here is another angle.

 

 

and  some zoom.

 

 

[David Bell]

7 hours ago, great northern said:

One lonely plonk, all alone in a folder where everything else has been posted. Similar to one you have seen, but here it is anyway.

 

 

Love this one. Feels like early on a Sunday morning, nobody about, but there is still life in it

[great northern]

A lovely morning, and plenty of time for trains and photos. We still have more of Quicksilver though.