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jamessolomon

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Been asking around at the local club ages ago and had some notes I finally dug up during a room move wasn't much use but was wondering what types of locos passed through and what sort of coaching stock. Swapped my 31 with a mate for a 27 with the Scottish terrier on the side to go along with the 04, 33 and 35 and the HST. So my questions are

 

1) what sort of types came through Macclesfield was it a mix of freight and coaching

2) The current station was built in 1960s so was it passenger services by then on the line to Manchester

3) Did BR ever use multiple units on the line

4) Any pictures online of it in BR days

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Locomotive types:

Diesel: 20/24/25/40/47  If I recall correctly the 20s came after the 24/25s went as did 31s but they were past BR blue.

Electric: any class 81-87

Multiple Units:

Diesel Swindon Cross Country (Derby-Crewe service)

Electrics class 304 and class 310 units

 

In terms of what is available RTR: class 20/24/25/40/47 85/86/87 none of the units are available Ready to Run.

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theres pics on Flickr of the 310 (310059) crash due to incorrect switched points theres the 304 (304001,304003, 304039), 47 (47826) in IC pulling the Virgin Cross Country service in about 2002  theres 309617 in NSE in the 90s and the IC 31s (31405,31420) that did the A1A Charter through there. I know from a mate that the Virgin old livery coaches are fairly cheap to pick up these days and I guess renumbering a loco cant be that hard

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The class 33 (crompton) is a southern loco . The class 35 (Hymek) was a western loco. There is only a slim chance these ever got to Macclesfield.

 

33's were used on the Cardiff to Manchester services in the 80s so it's not totally impossible (if unlikely) that they went through Macclesfield at some point. Also I know that about ten years ago some of the local services from Manchester to Macc used 142 & 101 (including the famous Daisy!) DMUs

 

http://www.deltic21.co.uk/gallery/displayimage.php?album=140&pid=5955

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If you can find a copy of Railway modeller circa 1963, there was a good article the which ISTR included a lot of pics of Macclesfield Station and Ditton Junction. The issue was titled "Modelling the Modern Image" and is the first recorded use of the term "modern image". AL1's with panelled LMS suburban stock etc...

 

Playcraft done a nice plastic model of Macclesfield Station building 

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Hi James, other than what others have mentioned above from May 1984 there was a 7 car Western Region InterCity Cross Country HST from Plymouth to Manchester Piccadilly that travelled this way. This was initially in blue / grey livery making way to Executive. I am not so sure when this ran until as I lost interest in the late 80s due to the introduction of Sprinters, mass loco withdrawls and the plethora of new liveries at the time. South Wales to Man Picc Class 33s would always run via Crewe. I am also not so sure about what freight would have run at that time, maybe only departmental workings.

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I grew up in Macclesfield in the 70s so remember a lot of the rail workings from that period.

 

AC electric classes 81 85-6-7 dominated the Manchester-London expresses with 304 & 310 EMUs on the Manchester-Stoke locals but I do recall a Clacton unit in the 1990s, were they 312s?

 

Freight tended to be 25, 40, 47s. Not that varied so trips to Manchester & London added to this.

 

Hope this helps.

 

Dava

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I am a Macc lad ( not sure whether that's something to admit! ) and have spent many hours in my youth spotting on the station.

 

What era are you planning on modelling? I can only echo what others have already said about electric traction. The Euston - Manchesters, for many years were handled by 81's to 87's ( mainly 86/2's and 87's ) with the coaching rakes made up of 8 or so Mk 3's with a Mk1 buffet car somewhere in the middle and a BG on the rear end. With the advent of the DVT's, these replaced the BG's.

 

Multiple units in the 70's and 80's were always either 304's or slightly more rarer, the 310's. Again into the 90's the 323's ( and still are ) the main staple of the stopping services between Man Picc and Stoke.

 

I have never seen a 33 on a Crewe/Cardiff pass through Macc and as for freight, it tended only to be when there was any engineering on the Man Picc - Crewe line, resulting in diverted freightliners or MGR's running through Macc. The majority of the time though, it was mainly all passnger stuff.

Sundays would sometimes throw up something unusual, if the power was off then there were a lot of drags, with the 86 or 87 being hauled by a 47 usually. However, I can remember being excited once on seeing a 45 haul a dead electric through Macc and occasionaly 40's would also make an appearance. Again, on Sundays, DMU's would be used instead of the 304's - with these being mainly 101's or 104's

 

I do have quite a lot of photos from years ago, and I reall need to scan these in, buit I'm sure there must be a selection on Flickr already.

 

cheers

 

Andy

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Not a lot on Flickr of Macclesfield in the early BR years was tempted to do the station till I realized the sheer size of it was the same length of my room so i decided to look at doing one of the many stations along the line from Macclesfield - Manchester line to runs something unusual on the spare track I have around. I have the Stafford and local rail show to go to to pick up something to run on it or some coaching stock. So I decided to have a small layout of maybe a station or a siding or another duel line station on this line to model on. Planning on picking up maybe the 2 Lima NSE mk1s a steam loco or more Mk1 BR stock to go with the Buffet car and the Golden Arrow dining cars at the local model shop that are in the 2nd hand case. I do have some LNER coaches or an old Airfix kit I got of a neighbor missing the tender thinking of trading them in for some stuff next year at a show or with some mates. This project sparked interest after I gave up on the Churnet Valley idea same size issue but might look at buying a D/EMU to run on it if there cheap or if there super cheap might get 2 different ones to run on it neede to pick a year D/EMUs are in RTR form

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Don't forget that there used to be a branch from Macclesfield to Marple, latterly DMU-worked,  that closed c1970-71 at the beginning of the blue period.

Branch that was the original direct mainline ! The route via Poynton/Cheadle Hulme to Stockport became the mainline because it served more people.

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The Derby- Crewe services wouldn't have run this way unless they were really lost; they left the Stoke- Manchester line at Kidsgrove. There were some freights that used the route, including occasional Freightliner services, but the mainstay (at least when we lived in Stoke in the late 1970s/early 1980s) were the hourly London services, the Manchester- Stoke locals, usually 304s, and a scattering of loco-hauled cross-country services.

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The Derby- Crewe services wouldn't have run this way unless they were really lost; they left the Stoke- Manchester line at Kidsgrove. There were some freights that used the route, including occasional Freightliner services, but the mainstay (at least when we lived in Stoke in the late 1970s/early 1980s) were the hourly London services, the Manchester- Stoke locals, usually 304s, and a scattering of loco-hauled cross-country services.

Oops, that was my mistake, I was too busy visualising Stoke as it was rather than what went through Macclesfield itself.

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there was the woolstanton -healymills mgr would muster a non eth 47 or occasionally a 56 

 

the kidsgrove to trafford park vans could muster anything from a 24/25 to a 47 

 

 alot of freight would run through to stockport with an electric then change to diesel and vice versa ecxept the above 

 

you could always throw in a pair of 50s on a diverted wcml express pre 76 

 

football specials heading to stoke & portvale from the yorkshire area or manchester to derby  could muster a 40/45/46/47 and a rake of mk1s 

 

 this is from observations as a box lad at various stockport boxes 81-83 

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The Clacton units were Class 309.

 

Some useful information on the 'new' station here:

 

http://www.disused-stations.org.uk/m/macclesfield_central/

 

Nice photograph of a 24 with a single carriage:

 

http://www.disused-stations.org.uk/m/macclesfield_central/index11.shtml

The single carraige seems to be an inspection car. Two Bachmann products there ready to use.

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Not a lot on Flickr of Macclesfield in the early BR years was tempted to do the station till I realized the sheer size of it was the same length of my room so i decided to look at doing one of the many stations along the line from Macclesfield - Manchester line to runs something unusual on the spare track I have around. I have the Stafford and local rail show to go to to pick up something to run on it or some coaching stock. So I decided to have a small layout of maybe a station or a siding or another duel line station on this line to model on. Planning on picking up maybe the 2 Lima NSE mk1s a steam loco or more Mk1 BR stock to go with the Buffet car and the Golden Arrow dining cars at the local model shop that are in the 2nd hand case. I do have some LNER coaches or an old Airfix kit I got of a neighbor missing the tender thinking of trading them in for some stuff next year at a show or with some mates. This project sparked interest after I gave up on the Churnet Valley idea same size issue but might look at buying a D/EMU to run on it if there cheap or if there super cheap might get 2 different ones to run on it neede to pick a year D/EMUs are in RTR form

 

 

If you're planning on modelling something based on one of the stations on the Macc - Man Picc line, the majority of them are just two platforms on the main running lines, such as - Prestbury, Aldington, Poynton, Bramhall.

 

IN the other direction, Congleton is pretty much the same, Kidsgrove is a junction which will take quite a bit of space.

 

If I was you, I reckon LONGPORT would be a better bet. It's much reduced now, but used to have sidings behind the station and other bits and bobs as well. You could probably shrink it to fit what space you have.........

 

Hope this helps

 

Cheers

 

Andy

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If you're planning on modelling something based on one of the stations on the Macc - Man Picc line, the majority of them are just two platforms on the main running lines, such as - Prestbury, Aldington, Poynton, Bramhall.

 

IN the other direction, Congleton is pretty much the same, Kidsgrove is a junction which will take quite a bit of space.

 

If I was you, I reckon LONGPORT would be a better bet. It's much reduced now, but used to have sidings behind the station and other bits and bobs as well. You could probably shrink it to fit what space you have.........

 

Hope this helps

 

Cheers

 

Andy

Seconded about Longport:-

several sidings behind Down platform, used to hold wagons destined for Marcrofts

very 'compressed' freight yard behind Up platform, handling a wide selection of goods, both under cover and in the open air.

Parcels depot in the old goods shed, next to the Up platform.

Scenic breaks with the footbridge (Manchester end) and the link between Tunstall/Boslem and the D-road at the Stoke end.

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