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Hymeks - multiple working


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I know that Hymeks were wired for multiple working and had a yellow triangle symbol for this but did anyone ever see two Hymeks working in multiple?

 

Two warships or two NB Type 2 and sometimes warship and NB Type 2 combinations were not unusual but although I saw 94 of the 101 members of this class, they were always working alone.

 

If anyone has any recollection of this, or even better, some photographic evidence I would be very grateful.

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Evenin' 9,

 

I've seen a pic of what I took to be 2 in multi whilst working as the Lickey banker somewhere. 

 

I'll look the link or mag pic out and let you have it.

 

'Westerns, Warships & Hymeks at work' by Geoff Endacott has a pic of them as the Lickey banker on page 64. Geoff states in the text that a 2nd driver was used if 3 were required for the job but 2 were routinely used in multiple.

 

Dave

Edited by Torr Giffard LSWR 1951-71
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Not normally used in multiple other than as Lickey bankers but on that duty the regulars (the same six were nominally assigned to the duty IIRC with enhanced maintenance to cover for the extra work involved) were normally run in multiple with one crew.

 

Hymeks working in tandem with other types required a crew in each due to the absence of multiple working or incompatibility with other classes. 

 

There were a few examples of Hymeks being rostered in tandem with another type (usually a Warship or Western) usually as assistance over the Devon banks or as positioning moves to save a pathway.  Hymeks were occasionally paired as bankers at Exeter though timetabled passenger trains after steam ceased did not routinely require rear-end assistance.

Edited by Gwiwer
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A couple of weeks back, in a report on funding for the Somerset mining museum, BBC West showed some black and white footage of coal mining operations in the 1960s. There was a brief glimpse of a North British D63XX (class 22) leading a Hymek out of a colliery with a coal train.

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Although they did very little work in multiple (the notable example being the Lickey as already mentioned) all the Hymeks were factory tested in multiple prior to delivery (or if a second loco wasn't available the wiring was tested so at least they should have worked provided no jumpers had been damaged in traffic.  And that would probably have rendered them most unusual on the Western as the EEType 3s were notoriously difficult to get working in multiple varying from completely dead connections to locos running in opposite directions when coupled - we used to keep a list of which ones worked and which way round they had to be in order to work in multiple, including a note of which ones didn't work with each other when multi'd :O

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Not normally used in multiple other than as Lickey bankers but on that duty the regulars (the same six were nominally assigned to the duty IIRC with enhanced maintenance to cover for the extra work involved) were normally run in multiple with one crew.

 

 

Not relevant to the MW part of this thread, but the Lickey bankers had first gear locked out to save unwanted gear changes and coupling recoils on the incline, another reason they were kept together as stated.

 

Mike.

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I know that Hymeks were wired for multiple working and had a yellow triangle symbol for this but did anyone ever see two Hymeks working in multiple?

 

Two warships or two NB Type 2 and sometimes warship and NB Type 2 combinations were not unusual but although I saw 94 of the 101 members of this class, they were always working alone.

 

If anyone has any recollection of this, or even better, some photographic evidence I would be very grateful.

I only joined a month ago so a little overdue but here goes, In the late sixties I was trainspotting on Royal Oak station when a pair of working Hymeks were approaching with a train for Paddington, I'm not sure if they had been signal checked or not but the sound reminded me of a helicopter, afterwards I told friends what I had experienced and that is because of the sound they made that I remember seeing the two Hymeks. No camera at the time so no photographs.   

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Here are the Lickey bankers having the easiest trip up the bank ever!

 

http://www.shelbrooke.co.uk/Hymek/74.jpg

 

Control probably said that's a Class 9 working - Ashchurch to to Tyseley - so get the bankers out. Diesel on the front too - 25 IIRC - but you can see who is doing all the work - 6201!

 

And the banking MU pair did escape occasionally....

 

http://www.miac.org.uk/images/d7021d7025a.jpg

 

Gwiwer mentioned 6 Hymek bankers but it was usually D7021-D7025 unless there were problems

 

Phil

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During the very last months of Hymek operation I saw several working out of Severn Tunnel Junction double headed, presumably to cover breakdowns on what were by then locos in very poor external and internal condition.  A Hymek in good nick was a force to be reckoned with, but those days had gone by that time!

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