Peterborough North

[Welly]

1 hour ago, great northern said:

60064 was the last GN A3 I was able to rule under in my Ian Allan, to the predictable derision of other small and not so small boys. Goodness know why, because it was just as regular a performer as all the rest. I will forgive it the embarassment it caused me over 60 years ago now though.

My mate's uncle had spotted all of the A4s except for 60009. He cleared it when it visited KX sometime in the late 1980s!

[Clive Mortimore]

11 minutes ago, Welly said:

My mate's uncle had spotted all of the A4s except for 60009. He cleared it when it visited KX sometime in the late 1980s!

Anyone who spotted on the ECML in early post steam days cleared their Detics in weeks. Not me D9021 didn't like me for some reason. It wasn't until 1981 open day at Stratford I saw it, the week it was withdrawn.

[BMacdermott]

2 hours ago, Welly said:

My mate's uncle had spotted all of the A4s except for 60009. He cleared it when it visited KX sometime in the late 1980s!

 

Hello Welly and everyone

 

I was very similar! She remained stubbornly without underline in my spotter's book until I heard that she was due to visit King's Cross in the mid-80s...where, I thought, I could settle the matter once and for all.

 

Others will know more of the technical difficulties than I, but the loco 'failed' at or near York and was put in some sidings very near the station - with no idea of if or when it would ever come south.

 

I dealt with a supplier not far from York and quickly arranged 'an overdue factory visit' (!). Of course, I drove via York Station to see the loco and felt an immense sense of satisfaction as I stood looking at her after all those years of waiting!

 

I couldn't wait to get home, whereupon I promptly underlined her...in red!

 

Brian

 

 

 

 

[landscapes]

4 hours ago, great northern said:

Yesterday saw another visit from Tim, and more goodies. Nothing new this time, but a continuation of our policy of upgrading exisiting locomotives,  First up is Dominion of Canada, which was beginning to stand out like a sore thumb, as it was still more or less as it came out of the box. Not now though.

 

 

 

 

Transformed. The second loco's transformation is even greater, as it involved a change of identity. A3 60067 Ladas had been bothering me for some time, as it had a double chimney, which put it in post April 59 condition, and outside the parameters I allow myself. So it has become 60064 Tagalie, another Doncaster engine, and correctly in single chimney condition. Tim and I thought when we discussed this that it would be an easy job to pop the double off and pop a single on, but it turned out not to be. As usual, I will leave Tim to explain how he dealt with it. He also had a struggle with the weathering that had previously been applied, but it came off in the end, and now it looks like this.

 

 

 

 

60064 was the last GN A3 I was able to rule under in my Ian Allan, to the predictable derision of other small and not so small boys. Goodness know why, because it was just as regular a performer as all the rest. I will forgive it the embarassment it caused me over 60 years ago now though. And I don't know why 60010 decided that it was so good that the driver's side should be shown twice.

Hi Gilbert

 

Superb work by Tim, no doubt about it a coat or two of Johnson’s Klear works wonders on the Brunswick Green paintwork.

 

Regards

 

David

[jazzer]

On 30/11/2021 at 09:32, great northern said:

9F out of the way, which allows the Talisman to come through. Gateshead normally turns out an A4 or an A1 for this prestige train, but today we have an A2/3, and a Heaton engine as well. What happened?  It seems the rostered A4 failed, and so the shed foreman shouted to the driver to take 518 instead. Sadly, the driver is a bit deaf, and so when he came to 517, he thought that was the one.

 

 

So, 517 now heading for London, instead of York or Leeds, which is where it should have been going, and the foreman is left scratching his head.

It might be my faulty memory playing tricks on me but I though that there was some rule that in the interests of  maintaining dignified standards and appropriate decorum , if an A4 was not available the headboard was to be removed and it would be run anonymously as a normal train, or preferably if they only had a Thompson it would be run after dark .

[great northern]

Back to colour, and yet another look at the V2.

 

 

Only one more to come now.

 

 

 

[great northern]

This bright and fine morning, so far, we have positively the last sighting of the V2.

 

 

[great northern]

For those who have asked for video of the layout in the past, there is some, properly put together, on the virtual show this weekend.Unfortunately I wasn't available, so I had to get some old fool in to do the talking bits. No fallings off to laugh at though, they got edited out.

[great northern]

The loco has moved on, but our man couldn't resist one more shot.

 

 

[great northern]

One V2 departs, and almost immediately another appears. 60862 will have taken over the Delaval Sidings- KX ECS at New England, and is now on its way home.

 

 

[Oldddudders]

It was a positive privilege to see PN : The Movie. We now know for certain the trains do move between photo-shoots! However, I did have a slight concern at the 4mm representation of 20 mph. In my day, the Motive Power Inspectors periodically had sessions with a radar gun at key locations. Not available in 1958, of course....

[great northern]

4 minutes ago, Oldddudders said:

It was a positive privilege to see PN : The Movie. We now know for certain the trains do move between photo-shoots! However, I did have a slight concern at the 4mm representation of 20 mph. In my day, the Motive Power Inspectors periodically had sessions with a radar gun at key locations. Not available in 1958, of course....

Good point Ian, and I thought the same when I first viewed it, too fast. However, the old fool with controller in hand was myself by this time, and I'm sure I ran the trains as I normally do.  A while back I did some calculations, and concluded that I had been running things too slowly, so I speeded them up somewhat.

 

I don't know whether this is yet another trick of the camera, but I can assure you that the trains did, as usual, take quite a while to move through the station. Having instructed my stand in to stress this point, I did take care to keep the speeds down.

[30368]

On 04/12/2021 at 10:59, great northern said:

For those who have asked for video of the layout in the past, there is some, properly put together, on the virtual show this weekend.Unfortunately I wasn't available, so I had to get some old fool in to do the talking bits. No fallings off to laugh at though, they got edited out.

 

Hello Gilbert,

 

You don't look too much like an old fool to me, more like a man that has enjoyed life and his hobbies...

 

It is the first time I have seen a video of your truly great layout. The layout gives many an old fool like me much pleasure and a real nostalgic experience. Your daily images are always interesting so long may you, and your layout, continue. Thanks.

 

I do remember a trip to Peterborough in 1962 (?), My brother, my self and two mates travelled from Wellingborough (having spotted a few 8Fs on that shed) to Peterborough behind some form of ex LMS 2-6-4T. We walked from the station to New England Shed which was a bit sparse but did have a K3 pretending to be a stationary boiler. So I assume that would have been the old station as modelled.

 

Kind regards,

 

Richard B

[mullie]

I have followed your thread daily for quite a few years, always something interesting to see and read about. It was great to see the layout on video, see trains moving and hear you talk about your layout. Even better, was the inclusion of Clauds and 4mts as well as those other big engines!

 

I watched the video twice yesterday and I'm sure I will watch it again, saved to my watch later list so I can easily watch it on TV after SWMBO has gone to bed.

 

Thank you for letting us see what is a great layout.

 

Martyn

 

 

[Bazza]

Hi Gilbert, yes great to see trains moving on Peterborough North. My experience is that video I've taken on my layout shows the trains moving too quickly, although they look about right for real. Probably something that does not scale as we would expect.

Thanks again for daily sharing your layout with us.

Bazza 

[LNER4479]

Ditto here too, re PN's appearance at today's virtual show.

 

I too have suffered the 'too fast' syndrome when layouts are video'd - I also suspect that some form of adverse trompe l'oeil is going on. The video-er has to be careful I think in how the zoom is set. Default position tends to be wide-angle which will make trains look faster as they pass the lens.

 

Mind you, original film doesn't always help as that could be easily speeded-up / slowed-down.

 

HOWEVER, none of this should detract from the ability to see an otherwise 'stay at home' layout such as PN in action via a virtual show ... and with Retford and Little Bytham also featuring, the 1950s ECML cup do indeed runneth over.

[great northern]

6 hours ago, 30368 said:

 

Hello Gilbert,

 

You don't look too much like an old fool to me, more like a man that has enjoyed life and his hobbies...

 

It is the first time I have seen a video of your truly great layout. The layout gives many an old fool like me much pleasure and a real nostalgic experience. Your daily images are always interesting so long may you, and your layout, continue. Thanks.

 

I do remember a trip to Peterborough in 1962 (?), My brother, my self and two mates travelled from Wellingborough (having spotted a few 8Fs on that shed) to Peterborough behind some form of ex LMS 2-6-4T. We walked from the station to New England Shed which was a bit sparse but did have a K3 pretending to be a stationary boiler. So I assume that would have been the old station as modelled.

 

Kind regards,

 

Richard B

Yes, still the old station, except that more bits of the overall roof would have fallen off.

[great northern]

As our photographer seems to have sprouted wings, we might as well get him to fly around a bit, and give us some more unusual angles.

 

 

[great northern]

Carefully we rotate on our cushion of air, and follow the V2 towards the smoky recesses of the roof.

 

 

You can see that the light is fading fast now.

[great northern]

Still up in the air, and again the V2 is reluctant to take centre stage.

 

 

Worth trying something different occasionally though.

[St Enodoc]

2 hours ago, great northern said:

Still up in the air, and again the V2 is reluctant to take centre stage.

 

 

Worth trying something different occasionally though.

Nice, especially with no precipices at the ends of the bridge.

[great northern]

Another turn and no trains to be seen, but a nice snapshot anyway.

 

 

[Dragonboy]

Thoroughly enjoyed the video footage on Saturday Gilbert, as I have your layout for nearly 9 years now.

 

I was very disappointed to see that it had gone yesterday along with all the other Saturday content as I would have liked to rewatch a few items.

 

Do you consider the layout to be broadly speaking “finished” or if not what’s left to be done?

[St Enodoc]

4 minutes ago, Dragonboy said:

I was very disappointed to see that it had gone yesterday along with all the other Saturday content as I would have liked to rewatch a few items.

So was I, although as I didn't read the instructions I shouldn't complain. Nevertheless, it would have been hard for me to watch the show "live", as it were, since I didn't want to sit up all night on both Saturday and Sunday. Still mulling over whether to shell out three quid for the layout videos...

[FarrMan]

41 minutes ago, great northern said:

Another turn and no trains to be seen, but a nice snapshot anyway.

 

 

That could be taken from Crescent Bridge, though may need a step ladder. Lovely reminiscence, though. Thanks.

 

Lloyd