Eastwood Town - A tribute to Gordon's modelling.

[Enterprisingwestern]

 

39 minutes ago, gordon s said:

Guilty!  Just needed another loco fitted for DCC.
 

Diesels are a bit of an unknown to me as just as they came along,  so did motor bikes/cars/karting and women, but not necessarily in that order....

 

Rule 1 will kick in occasionally, but I suspect that if it never went near the Eastern Region then it will be eBay bound once the next rationalisation kicks in.

 

At the risk of incurring the wrath of the boss with thread drift, but, BRCW type 2 and 3's were regular performers on the ECML at various times in their life, at both the Northern and Southern ends, so not beyond the realms of possibility at Eastwood Town.

 

Mike.

[gordon s]

Those discussions are no problem for me at all, Mike, in fact I find them quite enlightening.

 

I certainly recall seeing similar locos at KX as a lad. I've said before that when I started it was anything goes, but now we're up and running I will want to rationalise the loco's I have to be reasonably correct. Not as  precise as what ran on March 1st 1964, as I know Rule 1 will definitely kick in every now and again. After all, sat nav wasn't around in the 60's so I'm sure one or two drivers will lose their way en route. Q1's on cross London freights for one....

 

Heard this morning that someone in our borough has tested positive for Covid 19. As someone who has lived with a suppressed immune system for over 30 years, I guess I'll just have to stay indoors now and play trains....

 

Edit: Just found this..

 

The Pilot Scheme batch of twenty locomotives (D5300-5319, Class 26/0) were delivered to Hornsey TMD (Traction Maintenance Depot) on the Eastern Region of British Railways between July 1958 and March 1959. They were used on a variety of duties, notably including London commuter services into King's Cross station and were evaluated against designs from the North British Locomotive Company, English Electric, Brush Traction, and British Railways' own works. Their allocation was switched to the new Finsbury Park TMD when it opened in 1960.

Locomotive D5303 was on loan to the Scottish Region from 1958, being operated briefly from Inverness TMD, and Eastfield TMD before moving to Leith Central TMD. This was the precursor to a further twenty seven locomotives of a slightly modified design (D5320-5346, Class 26/1) being delivered to the Scottish Region between April and October 1959. The first two of these locomotives were briefly allocated to Leith Central, but subsequently all of the Scottish batch were based at Haymarket TMD (although some went to Hornsey on loan for a time).

 

D5326 must have been on his holiday from Haymarket.....

Edited March 1, 2020 by gordon s

[thegreenhowards]

Gordon,

 

The 26/0 were very much part of the early diesel King’s Cross suburban scene for the first couple of years of their life (late ‘58 to early ‘60) along with the first 10 NB Type 2’s (class 21) and baby Deltic (class 23). And the 26s actually worked unlike the baby Deltic s and especially the 21s the latter of which hardly turned a wheel as far as I can make out!  I’m not so sure about the class 25 though - that would have been a rarer visitor.

 

Andy

[gordon s]

Hi Andy and welcome...

 

I always enjoy your videos. What is there not to like as an LNER man...

 

I said at the outset, my knowledge of diesels is limited, but assume you mean the Class 24? I guess I would have seen D5011 at the southern end of the LMS in '66, but that seems late for my trainspotting days

 

The sixteen year three month career of D5011/24011 saw allocation to London Midland, Southern & Scottish depots. 

Built Derby Locomotive Works.
Delivered with Athermos axleboxes (D5010 - D5019).
Full size fuel & water tanks (shortened water tank added later).
Four upper and four lower air filters on non-BIS side, three upper and four lower on BIS side (standard arrangement).
Additional headcode disc brackets fitted (for use with SR six disc headcodes).
Headcode discs centered on cab front (Glasgow modification).
Time between last Classified repair and withdrawal: ?? months.
Time between withdrawal & scrapping: 18 months.

Allocations

The frames for D5011 were laid down during the winter of 1958 at Derby Works. D5011 was new to Crewe South (5B) on March 28th 1959. Further transfers were:

March 1959 to Derby (17A) on loan. 
April 1959 to Hither Green (73C) on loan.
May 1962 to Crewe South (5B). 
May 1962 to Willesden (1A). 
June 1962 to Crewe South (5B). 
June 1962 to Rugby (2A). 
September 1963 to Rugby (1F). 
June 1965 to Bletchley (1E). 
April 1966 to London Division (D01).
July 1966 to Birmingham Division (D02). 
May 1967 to Stoke Division (D05). 
January 1969, stored (at Chester). 
June 1969, reinstated to Stoke Division (D05). 
October 1971 to Polmadie (66A). 
March 1972 to Eastfield (65A). 
July 7th 1975, stored unserviceable. 
October 5th 1975 - withdrawn.

 

 

[gordon s]

Funny how these things start to materialise. Even a few minutes chat on diesels and where they were based started the brain ticking over and the inevitable question as to where Eastwood Town is supposed to be. Until this morning a) it didn't matter as I just wanted to run a few trains and b) I never thought I would get this far and if I did then Rule one would apply anyway.

 

Why Eastwood Town? Well, I needed a name in the early days and opted for the easy way out. Eastwood was where my grand parents lived and Town sounded right for the 60's. 

 

Of course it's very early days and a lot more research has to be done, but the station buildings were based on a combination of Spalding and Sleaford, but without checking, could be typical of LNER architecture throughout the region. My love of loco's comes from LNER, but with Euston walking distance from KX, then LMS is also up there. Add to that my annual trip up to Glasgow on the Royal Scot and loco's starting with a 4 are just as important to me as those beginning with a beloved 6. Those beginning with a 5 were extremely rare and I'm not sure I ever saw any.

 

Right at the very beginning of ET, I had someone contact me who thought I had an association with his local football team, Eastwood Town. From memory he said he could  see their ground from his office window. Small world.....and where was Eastwood Town's ground?....Just outside Nottingham.

 

This morning has been spent scouring the internet about trains in Nottingham and there were pics of most of the loco's in my collection, including the Blue Pullman.....

 

This could be the Holy Grail for me. Eastwood Town, a fictitious through station, just outside Nottingham where trainspotters could write down both 4's and 6's plus the onset of diesels.

 

Now I need to do a lot more work, but I do have the first joys of knowing where ET might have been.....unless you know otherwise...

 

 

Edited March 1, 2020 by gordon s

[thegreenhowards]

Hi Gordon,

 

Thanks, I’ve been following your thread for some time since Gilbert recommended it, always entertaining and great track work.

 

Yes I did mean D5011. I couldn’t read the number and I associate class 24s with no head code boxes and 25s with head code boxes. I know some of the later class 24s got headcode boxes, but I’m surprised to see D5011 with one. I’m pretty sure it would have had the rounded roof and discs, at least as built. 

 

Andy

[john dew]

Hi Gordon

Once again congratulations....that was very impressive. I particularly admired the freight train. Out of interest how are you controlling the four trains....I assume they were running on the four separate running lines but are they all on the one throttle?

 

I got a bit confused about locos beginning with 4, 5 or 6. The premier line had them all ........1 through 9
 

I believe the phrase is...”gets coat”

 

Cheers

 

John

[bigwordsmith]

3 minutes ago, john dew said:

Hi Gordon

Once again congratulations....that was very impressive. I particularly admired the freight train. Out of interest how are you controlling the four trains....I assume they were running on the four separate running lines but are they all on the one throttle?

 

I got a bit confused about locos beginning with 4, 5 or 6. The premier line had them all ........1 through 9
 

I believe the phrase is...”gets coat”

 

Cheers

 

John

cant remember any steamers or diseasels beginning with 7 or 8...

 

P Edant

[KalKat]

*kof* standard classes

'

 

 

Emma

[gordon s]

Shall I start with Britannia on BR or the Castles on John’s Premier line?

 

...or have I missed the joke...

[bigwordsmith]

8 hours ago, gordon s said:

Those discussions are no problem for me at all, Mike, in fact I find them quite enlightening.

 

I certainly recall seeing similar locos at KX as a lad. I've said before that when I started it was anything goes, but now we're up and running I will want to rationalise the loco's I have to be reasonably correct. Not as  precise as what ran on March 1st 1964, as I know Rule 1 will definitely kick in every now and again. After all, sat nav wasn't around in the 60's so I'm sure one or two drivers will lose their way en route. Q1's on cross London freights for one....

 

Heard this morning that someone in our borough has tested positive for Covid 19. As someone who has lived with a suppressed immune system for over 30 years, I guess I'll just have to stay indoors now and play trains....

 

Edit: Just found this..

 

The Pilot Scheme batch of twenty locomotives (D5300-5319, Class 26/0) were delivered to Hornsey TMD (Traction Maintenance Depot) on the Eastern Region of British Railways between July 1958 and March 1959. They were used on a variety of duties, notably including London commuter services into King's Cross station and were evaluated against designs from the North British Locomotive Company, English Electric, Brush Traction, and British Railways' own works. Their allocation was switched to the new Finsbury Park TMD when it opened in 1960.

Locomotive D5303 was on loan to the Scottish Region from 1958, being operated briefly from Inverness TMD, and Eastfield TMD before moving to Leith Central TMD. This was the precursor to a further twenty seven locomotives of a slightly modified design (D5320-5346, Class 26/1) being delivered to the Scottish Region between April and October 1959. The first two of these locomotives were briefly allocated to Leith Central, but subsequently all of the Scottish batch were based at Haymarket TMD (although some went to Hornsey on loan for a time).

 

D5326 must have been on his holiday from Haymarket.....

Hi Gordon,  

 

my immune system is also suppressed(isn’t it fun getting older?), but I kinda take the view that when your time comes....

 

Anyway, my bad on the 26, as I didn’t know they’d paused on GN metals before fuelling up for the long trek North.

 

I Commuted on the East Grinstead line when it was class 33 hauled- cracking locos, with a lusty bark from the exhaust while dragging eight heavy bogies up hill fromLingfield to EG on the home run

[gordon s]

Sorry John, I didn’t answer your question. I’ve recently modified the track plan on ET to allow four completely separate loops. Up and Down fast and slow.

 

All on DCC controlled through an ECoS which has two controllers, each running two loco’s. Having checked and tested all the track, I was fairly confident nothing would derail and with four loops there was no chance of a rear end accident.

 

I just wanted to test the possibility. OK with four operators, but scary with just one....

[cb900f]

Gordon,

 

The Sun Inn, Eastwood, Nottinghamshire, was the birthplace of the Midland Counties' Railway in 1832 and progressed to become the Midland Railway.

 

Pete

[woodenhead]

I think you need to run what you want to run.

 

It's a fictitious station within a fictitious line, so you can adjust the allocation of early diesels however you like.

 

Diesels ended up all over as they were tested for suitability in different scenarios or whilst BR waited on other pilot scheme arrivals so if you want a class 26 you can have a class 26, the class 33s made their way off the Southern with freights so they too could turn up.  The only things you might want to steer away from is Deltics, Westerns and Warships, Hymeks were delivered by rail from Gorton so a revenue earning service would not be completely out of the question.  For steam, Scots, Jubilees, Patriots, A3s displaced from premier lines by diesels would look nice on inter regional expresses then Standard 9Fs, Stanier 2-8-0s and LNER 2-8-0s on your mineral trains

[gordon s]

Wot, no Deltics.....

 

Rule 1 or there may be two new ones for sale shortly.....

[john dew]

1 hour ago, bigwordsmith said:

cant remember any steamers or diseasels beginning with 7 or 8...

 

P Edant

To old know much about diesels.....but steam:

 

7. Manors 78xx.     Some Castles and some 57xx Panniers

 

8. to be honest I was thinking of the 8750 sub class of pannier but when I checked no 8s however I was saved..... some 94xx were numbered 8xxx

 

The GWR applied their own unique logic to numbering!

 

Regards from a sunny Vancouver

 

John

[woodenhead]

16 hours ago, gordon s said:

Wot, no Deltics.....

 

Rule 1 or there may be two new ones for sale shortly.....

Oh go on then - but no Westerns or Warships 

[Regularity]

21 hours ago, thegreenhowards said:

Yes I did mean D5011. I couldn’t read the number and I associate class 24s with no head code boxes and 25s with head code boxes. I know some of the later class 24s got headcode boxes, but I’m surprised to see D5011 with one. I’m pretty sure it would have had the rounded roof and discs, at least as built. 

D5114 was the first Derby Sulzer Type 2 to have headcode boxes as built. Some ended up with headcode boxes after repairs, but I don’t think D5011 was one of them.

The first 25 class 25s (class 25/0) looked like the later class 24s (class 24/1 started after the first 50 24s, not with the headcode boxes) as they had horns mounted below the buffer beams rather than either side of the headcode box.

[gordon s]

I really should get my eyes tested.....

 

Having scoured the internet for pics of D5011 with a head code box, I thought I'd better check in case Bachmann had got it wrong.

 

Lets start again with D5211......

[Regularity]

D5211 is a class 25... (later 25 061).

 

It had a "nose job" later on, as a result of a head-on which left it looking like this...

Edited March 2, 2020 by Regularity
Nose job photo

[bigwordsmith]

11 minutes ago, Regularity said:

D5211 is a class 25... (later 25 061).

 

It had a "nose job" later on...

 

Wouldn't have gone to that surgeon!

[Malcolm27]

Hello Gordon,

Not posted on here for a while, but great to see trains running on ET and operating so smoothly.  I noticed your post a few days ago about working under the baseboard and struggling to focus on the work in hand.  I've had the same problem, but have purchased some adjustable focal length glasses from a company "eyejusters" which allow you to alter the focal length to accommodate close work, or distance.  Purchased them from an exhibition a couple of years ago, not particularly cheap, around £70 but very useful.

 

I grew up in East Barnet, so remember the last few years of steam out of Kings Cross, used to watch the trains on my way home from school, around Oakleigh Park and got told off by my mum for being late home!

 

Still commute into Kings Cross, but from a few stations further up the line, how things have changed in 50 years.

 

Malcolm

[Joseph_Pestell]

19 minutes ago, Malcolm27 said:

Hello Gordon,

Not posted on here for a while, but great to see trains running on ET and operating so smoothly.  I noticed your post a few days ago about working under the baseboard and struggling to focus on the work in hand.  I've had the same problem, but have purchased some adjustable focal length glasses from a company "eyejusters" which allow you to alter the focal length to accommodate close work, or distance.  Purchased them from an exhibition a couple of years ago, not particularly cheap, around £70 but very useful.

 

I grew up in East Barnet, so remember the last few years of steam out of Kings Cross, used to watch the trains on my way home from school, around Oakleigh Park and got told off by my mum for being late home!

 

Still commute into Kings Cross, but from a few stations further up the line, how things have changed in 50 years.

 

Malcolm

 

I will look out for those. Had to borrow some reading glasses the other day when laying some track on a layout, having forgotten to take my own. But reading glasses not quite right for the job.

[gordon s]

Thanks for that, Malcolm. I’ve just taken a look at ‘eyejusters’. I did see them a few years ago in a Sunday paper, but had completely forgotten about them. They do have a range of frames from £49 upwards, but the big plus for me would be the +4 magnification. I have +3’s for close up work and they are fine, but an additional level would certainly help, particularly when taking loco’s apart.

 

I see they have a 30 day trial, so may give them a go. I’m not a fashion slave, so I suspect even the cheapest ones will be fine, provided it is just a frame issue and the actual working bits are the same.

 

Last time we spoke was regarding the open metal footbridge at Oakleigh Park and the joy of LNER steam in the ‘60’s. I keep thinking one day I”ll go back and take the train from Palmers Green to Kings Cross, As you say the changes over the last 60 years will be huge, but the basics will still be there. Bowes Park island platform, the Hertford North flyover plus numerous other memory triggers. I suspect the train spotting platform at the back of the actual Finsbury Park has long gone. We used to go to the park with my Aunt and Uncle to see the model village and boating lake as kids.

 

Well as you see ET is starting to take shape and I’m having fun running trains at last.....

 

Many thanks for the info.
 

 

Edited March 3, 2020 by gordon s

[KeithHC]

You need a couple of 33's they regularly operated to York up the ECML with an Uddington Cliffe cement train. But you could have an Hasting line DEMU they use to operate specials to Spalding for the flower festival.

 

Keith

Rule 1 rules............