Morris Cowley car trains

[bigherb]

I think carflats would be a popular kit for someone like Cambrian.

 

Im sure ive got some old Hornby 57ft LMS coaches and some old Hornby GWR collets somewhere if they could be made use of.

 

I like the one in the first shot of the article posted earlier, with the cut down tops of the buffers, doesnt have a handrail along the side either.

Perhaps the Dapol LMS coach kits underframes might be a good source if Dapol do them as spares.

[TheSignalEngineer]

Also a lot of variations in the BR Freight Stock book available through the Barrowmore site

[unravelled]

One thing that interested me was that the empties I photographed had brake vans both ends, possibly to facilitate a reversal en route, but  the  mini train didn't. I wonder if this is a different working. Might the minis have been going to Special tuning at Abingdon?

 

thanks

 

Dave

[TheSignalEngineer]

Interesting reference in Railway World to Hymek 7056 reaching Colwick on a MosCow - Immingham train on 7 November 1968. It had an Oxford crew and Saltley conductor.

[BrushVeteran]

 

Well here's D5599 on a train of moggys Mike, excuse image quality!

Edited March 10, 2013 by BrushVeteran

[Rugd1022]

Nice one BV ;O)

 

Just found out from one of the gurus in the Mini Cooper Register that no Coopers were ever built at Cowley, only 'bog standard' Mini Saloons.

[Porcy Mane]

One thing that interested me was that the empties I photographed had brake vans both ends, possibly to facilitate a reversal en route, but  the  mini train didn't. I wonder if this is a different working. Might the minis have been going to Special tuning at Abingdon?

 

thanks

 

Dave

I doubt it. The entire "official" Mini throughput of the BMC Competitions Department/Special Tuning/Leyland ST from 1959 to 1972 would only have taken up space on four or five flats. (If that)

 

Non Abingdon produced cars were driven into ST or arrived on a car transporter for works preparation. ST eventually got it's own transporter for completion use but it was only a miniscule department  (with matching budget that Lord Stokes eventually killed.) within the bigger picture.of MG/BMC/ Leyland.

 

I would imagine most will have seen the official photographs of Morris Minors, an MGA and single Morris Cowley loaded onto a Newton Chambers Tierwag at Cowley.

Some of the tierwags went onto be used for importation of Fiats. For loading, they were shunted inside of the fiat factory at Turin directly under the roof top test track were the Italian job “Oval” scene was filmed.

I seen to remember that the Italy bound tierwags were loaded with export tractors but my notes are in the attic at the mo and I can’t fit through the loft hatch any more!

 

A few pics of the tierwags (and one Flat)  on the Fiat workings can be found here:

 

http://www.southernrailway.net/search/display_pic.php?search_fd0=33448

http://www.southernrailway.net/search/display_pic.php?search_fd0=33449

http://www.southernrailway.net/search/display_pic.php?search_fd0=33447

 

Porcy

Edited March 12, 2013 by Porcy Mane

[Michael Delamar]

those tierwags are fascinating. makes me wonder if the triang one could be detailed.

 

totally seperate question, does anyone know the last workings of new cars on rakes of 4 wheels wagons?

[Porcy Mane]

those tierwags are fascinating. makes me wonder if the triang one could be detailed.

 

 

 

Dimensionally they're miles out. I'd thought about it...

 

P

[Michael Delamar]

do you know what fiat cars they are?

my dad had a look and his first thought where that they where simca or skodas at first

maybe simca aronde?

Edited March 12, 2013 by Michael Delamar

[bigherb]

do you know what fiat cars they are?

my dad had a look and his first thought where that they where simca or skodas at first

maybe simca aronde?

Look like Aronde's to me as well, definatly not Skoda Octavia's

[Porcy Mane]

Look like Aronde's to me as well, definatly not Skoda Octavia's

 

Definitely Arondes...   Goes off muttering and thinks about trying to negotiate loft hatch...

 

P

[Porcy Mane]

Thinks... "those earlier links can't have been the Turin workings...

Thinks... "this might save a trip to the attic".

 

Thats a Fiat...

and looking at that picture you can understand why the lower decks of the tierwags were later isolated following the crushing of a worker.

Edited March 12, 2013 by Porcy Mane

[PhilJ W]

The other cars are the first Vauxhall Victors. It must be at the start of their journey as there's no sign of rust.

[Michael Delamar]

flicking through some old railway magazines tonight, railway magazine june 67 had this which I thought would be of interest.

 

 

 

[Porcy Mane]

http://www.disused-stations.org.uk/a/abingdon/index21.shtml

 

Porcy

[bigherb]

those tierwags are fascinating. makes me wonder if the triang one could be detailed.

 

 

Dimensionally they're miles out. I'd thought about it...

But considering the age of them they still make a nice looking train.

[hmrspaul]

The other cars are the first Vauxhall Victors. It must be at the start of their journey as there's no sign of rust.

Earlier Victors were carried on Lowfits from Luton http://PaulBartlett.zenfolio.com/brlowfit/ef4d197  http://PaulBartlett.zenfolio.com/brlowfit/e1502d5c6

 

Although looking like typical countryside, I suspect this is in the area south of Luton and towards Harpenden. OOPs, now read the caption, well at least I was correct!. I had no idea there was enough of Chiltern Green at that time to operate as car loading area. It would have been quite handy for the Vauxhall plant which is at the southern end of  Luton.

 

Paul Bartlett

[jonhall]

From BR's London Midland Railway Magazine October 1962

 

 

[jonhall]

I realise that I'm heading away from Morris Cowley, but I had always intended to post a collection of the NRM's photo's together in a thread with a Car transport theme, nand as this is halfway there, it seems appropriate to put them here, I hope that meets with general approval?

 

SO as we have moved onto Vauxhall at Chiltern Green here are a few from thereabouts.

 

Cars at Chiltern Green, 1965

Description: Vauxhall cars at Chiltern Green, London, 1965. These new cars have been unloaded from a train and are ready to be driven to garages for sale. Industries were now relying more and more heavily on the roads for the transportation of goods but this photograph shows that even road transport still depended on the railways! Car ownership and congestion increased during the 1960s and fewer people were using public transport by this time.

 

 

http://www.nrm.org.uk/ourcollection/photo?group=British Transport Commission&objid=1996-7038_BTF_10305

 

 

Cars on a train at Luton, 1965.

Description: Vauxhall cars being loaded onto a freight train at Luton, Bedfordshire, 1965. Industries were now relying more and more heavily on the roads for the transportation of goods but this photograph shows that even road transport still depended on the railways! Car ownership and congestion increased during the 1960s and fewer people were using public transport by this time.

 

 

 

http://www.nrm.org.uk/ourcollection/photo?group=British Transport Commission&objid=1996-7038_BTF_10281

 

 

Cars on a train at Luton, 1965.

Description: Vauxhall cars and Bedford vans on a freight train at Luton, Bedfordshire, 1965. The trains are carrying finished cars and car bodies on their way to the factory. Industries were now relying more and more heavily on the roads for the transportation of goods but this photograph shows that even road transport still depended on the railways! Car ownership and congestion increased during the 1960s and fewer people were using public transport by this time.

 

 

http://www.nrm.org.uk/ourcollection/photo?group=British Transport Commission&objid=1996-7038_BTF_10285

 

New cars at Luton, 1965.

Description: Vauxhall cars being loaded from a road vehicle onto a freight train at Luton, Bedfordshire, 1965. Industries were now relying more and more heavily on the roads for the transportation of goods but this photograph shows that even road transport still depended on the railways! Car ownership and congestion increased during the 1960s and fewer people were using public transport by this time.

 

 

 

http://www.nrm.org.uk/ourcollection/photo?group=British Transport Commission&objid=1996-7038_BTF_10286

 

New cars at Luton, 1965.

Description: Vauxhall cars on a freight train at Luton, Bedfordshire, 1965. Industries were now relying more and more heavily on the roads for the transportation of goods but this photograph shows that even road transport still depended on the railways! Car ownership and congestion increased during the 1960s and fewer people were using public transport by this time.

 

 

 

http://www.nrm.org.uk/ourcollection/photo?group=British Transport Commission&objid=1996-7038_BTF_10287

 

New cars being transported by rail on conflat. Chiltern Green, June 1965.

Description: New cars being transported by rail on conflat. Chiltern Green, June 1965.

 

 

 

 

http://www.nrm.org.uk/ourcollection/photo?group=British Transport Commission&objid=1996-7038_BTF_10284

 

Use non-commercially: The photo above is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike (CC BY-NC-SA) licence. In a nutshell, that means it's free for any non-commercial use as long as you credit "© National Railway Museum and SSPL" and add a link back to this page.

 

 

 

[jonhall]

Moving on, Dagenham Dustbins

 

Cars at Dagenham, 1965

 

Description: Ford cars on a freight train at Dagenham, Essex, 1965. Industries were now relying more and more heavily on the roads for the transportation of goods but this photograph shows that even road transport still depended on the railways! Car ownership and congestion increased during the 1960s and fewer people were using public transport by this time.

 

 

http://www.nrm.org.uk/ourcollection/photo?group=British Transport Commission&objid=1996-7038_BTF_10288

 

Cars at Dagenham, 1965

Description: Ford cars, lorries and Transit vans at Dagenham, Essex, 1965. These cars are at a depot, waiting to be transported by rail. Industries were now relying more and more heavily on the roads for the transportation of goods but this photograph shows that even road transport still depended on the railways! Car ownership and congestion increased during the 1960s and fewer people were using public transport by this time.

 

 

http://www.nrm.org.uk/ourcollection/photo?group=British Transport Commission&objid=1996-7038_BTF_10289

 

Ford depot, Dagenham, 1965

Description: Ford car being secured onto a freight train at Dagenham, Essex, 1965. Industries were now relying more and more heavily on the roads for the transportation of goods but this photograph shows that even road transport still depended on the railways! Car ownership and congestion increased during the 1960s and fewer people were using public transport by this time.

 

 

http://www.nrm.org.uk/ourcollection/photo?group=British Transport Commission&objid=1996-7038_BTF_10299

 

Use non-commercially: The photo above is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike (CC BY-NC-SA) licence. In a nutshell, that means it's free for any non-commercial use as long as you credit "© National Railway Museum and SSPL" and add a link back to this page.

[jonhall]

And a bit of British Pathe Cartic film loading a cartic with Hillman imps - in the second half from about 0:36 - sixpence a gallon dosn't seem quite so bad....

 

http://www.britishpathe.com/video/beat-that-petrol-tax/query/cartic

Edited March 14, 2013 by jonhall

[jonhall]

ANd back on topic (sort of - might be a bit early)

 

http://www.britishpathe.com/video/nuffield-export-express-aka-nuffield-cars-on-steam/query/cars+on+train

[jonhall]

More Vauxhalls, and you have to wait until nearly 9 minutes, but its not a hardship, Blue Pullman, Golden Ocrhe Class 31, and definately yellow Presflos fill the time....

 

http://www.britishpathe.com/video/out-takes-cuts-from-cp-329-reel-2-of-2-electronic/query/cars+on+train

Edited March 14, 2013 by jonhall

[hmrspaul]

I realise that I'm heading away from Morris Cowley, but I had always intended to post a collection of the NRM's photo's together in a thread with a Car transport theme, nand as this is halfway there, it seems appropriate to put them here, I hope that meets with general approval?

Thanks very interesting, even if they do seem to think the Chiltern Green site was for unloading! I wonder when they decided Luton itself would be used for all loading - they even loaded French origin cars driven from the docks to go north. I just wish I had gone around Luton more often, it was an incredibly mixed yard well into the 1980s.

 

The bocars with car bodies are interesting, I have an official of such a load but no idea where it was taken.

 

Incidentally, I had always thought the period when "you can have any colour you like (for your car) as long as it is white or grey was a 1990s phenomena, but those train loads are pretty boring!   Do we all remember when red became the standard colour for cars (and earlier c1970 I painted a Bedford van black, which was simply unheard of at the time!)

 

Paul Bartlett