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If I understand what happened correctly, and I'm not sure I do from the information reported at the time, the train had been running with the rear portion's brakes disconnected and isolated after having had dragging brakes earlier. Had the proper procedure been followed, a brake continuity test would have established that the brakes were not operating at all and did not leak on on the rear portion, which suggests to me that the brake was isolated throughout that portion not just on one wagon. It looks as if the brake pipes were disconnected at the front of the trailing portion and the cocks closed, in which case the set would run free but the brakes would begin to leak on after a while The story become plausible once the train clears Shap summit and begins to be braked on the falling gradient towards Carlisle. The unbraked portion will now buffer up against the braked train, and in this set of circumstances a screw coupling that is stiff, dirty, and inadequately greased can easily lift out of the hook on the adjoining set. By this time the brakes are starting to leak on on the rear portion, slowing it, but the weight does not allow it to come to a stand or even a low speed as it approaches the junction. Thus, as the train arrives at Upperby Bridge Junction, it is in two portions, the front under control but the rear a runaway that is going to hit the front hard when it catches up at Citadel, where it is to stop for relief. The crew on the loco have no idea anything is wrong at this point. The rear portion is therefore diverted by some very smart work by Mr.Taylor, and comes to grief relatively harmlessly on the avoiding lines, though it leaves a terrible mess. The guard has definitely let the side down badly, and I do not know if any action was taken against him; it probably should have been, and against the driver if he was not certain that the brake continuity test had been properly carried out. On the WCML there is pressure to get going and clear the line, but I would have done a continuity test and satisfied myself that the brakes applied and released properly on both bogies of the rear flat, irrespective of what anyone had told me to do, signalman, driver, yard foreman, who cares, this is my job not yours, ferk off and do yours, I'll let the train go without me if I have to but I'm doing this brake test, and we'll see who gets a Form 1 for not obeying procedure. The roots of the incident are in the earlier brake dragging problem, and as the media were more interested at the time with the damage and the hero signalman (fair enough) I never quite understood what had gone wrong. But there have been incidents of air-braked trains running away with isolated brakes, some years ago with a Royal Mail train coming down Filton Bank and more recently a Caledonian Sleeper, split at Carstairs and the rear Edinburgh portion running away, apparently because an air pipe cock had been accidentally closed during the operation, possibly by a swinging coupling. If the continuity test is performed properly this will not happen as any discrepancy in the procedure will be shown up. which is why the continuity test should always be performed whenever the train brake pipe has been parted for whatever reason and irrespective of a) how well you know the brake to be performing or b) how many times you've done it before and got away with it. It is one of the few bits of proper railway work left to drivers, guards, and shunters, and should be taken a pride in, though I can see how pressure to get moving in the case of late running may be a problem

The whole shape, length and curvature of those noses look different to me. definitely a technical gap between those two. I wonder why they did that ?

Lovely - a 121 will always feel at home on Traeth Hafren!

I know we've discussed this before but that photo really shows what a huge difference your flush glazing makes to the cab. I'll probably give it a go on my 7mm one.

there more likely be a run 2

Something looks odd about the G on the GW versions too. For anyone who is strict with their timescales, the XP on the shirt button livery is (if I've interpreted information in Atkins et all correctly) only valid for after 1938 when the XP branding was introduced. If you model anywhere between 1934-38 you'll need to get the fibreglass pencil out.

Not 45099 as the /0s didn't go that high. Looks like a 45/1 - any nameplate experts here? (or itinerant Deltic identifiers?)

Wasn't there some talk a few years ago about possibly reinstating the avoiding lines? They've not been built on with more than the odd bit of car park AFAICT. Also seems odd that a small stub was left, although I suppose on a little-used line it might be easier just to clip the points in place than remove them. But the OHLE masts were removed.

Ahh, been a while since I looked at them, I thought they were pictures of the blind rolls. I know Soi Buakhao has video of actual underground destination blind rolls, on his YouTube channel, but, that is no use here.....

I digressed today from track laying to install two signal gantries, delivered by Absolute Aspects on Monday. As with all of their creations, they are works of art! 1st photo is the board at the southern end stripped of anything that could fall off when tipped. The signals locate into DIN sockets fitted under the baseboard. Once the holes for these were drilled and filed, the board was gently slid out (it is wedge shaped) and turned on its side. 2nd photo shows the board with the two gantries slotted into place. With the board located back into its normal position and parts replaced, a few photos of the gantries in situ. Wiring up us 'work in progress'. Giles Giles

I love rock and roll - Suzi Quattro.

Just wondering if the SPT liveried 314 samples have been seen yet? Or still to be revealed? Cheers, Sean

Possibly a question no one knows the answer to, but how far apart were the two sections of the train as they approached Carlisle? I am wondering how long he had to change the points so one section went one way, and the other a different way.

Thank you The seller accepted 65 so she is on her way! Even though I'm in the very early stages, I really cannot understand why it's taken so long to do this. I like your ideas and you are allowing me to consider how prescribed in terms of era and types etc I want to be. For sure being Correct appeals to me (I very much like the numbers idea) My Father was from west Wales (Aberporth) and a miner so that is fuelling my desire to replicate this area. Lake Bala such a beautiful place and happy to now understand that that line was originally standard gauge so I very much like your idea of incorporating that line as a mainline rather than slipping into the 70's with a narrow gauge interpretation.

Well you now have trigger warnings on probably the most gentle comedies that Britain ever produced such as Terry & June and Last Of The Summer Wine! One of which is Compo trying to get a kiss from Nora Batty and commenting on her wrinkly stockings.....

20083 Corpach 1984 by Andy

This from 1907 is directly relevant to the 517: The photo illustration shows a 517, which we have to assume to be "brown", hauling a chocolate and cream coach. Not sure if this link will work but: https://didcotrailwaycentre.cook.websds.net/PDFViewer/web/viewer.html?file=%2fFilename.ashx%3ftableName%3dta_journals%26columnName%3dfilename%26recordId%3d296%26page%3d15%26end%3d16&searchText=brown

31265 Basildon 1978

Interested - any photos? How much would postage be?

The MR601 is a 1.2A receiver 22.5x11x5 mm it works with Deltang transmitters and has lots of options. The larger MR603 is a 3 amp receiver for 0 gauge etc. I have installed one to provide RAIL power to my mineral line. It has short circuit protection as well

One of my f*ckups in the 70s was shunting a Freightliner out at the old Pengam yard in Cardiff. The headshunt, up the bank alongside the Tidal branch, could take a loco and 3 sets, 15 flats, but one would sometimes pull out of the yard with 4 sets on as the yard wanted to move the trailing set up to 'this' end. Doing such a move one day, on a 47, driver hadn't changed ends (we didn't, much, in those days) and I'm in the 2man's seat with the window down relaying the shunter's handsignals (shunter is under the road bridge and I can see him well enough), so the loco is effectively running backwards in terms of the cab it was being driven from. Slight bump as we came to a stand and I noticed we were quite close to the 15-wagon indicator postion light. I had a pretty good idea what I'd done, and got off the loco driver's side to confirm my suspicions; we'd pushed the stop back far enough to isolate the other end bogie on it's own private bit of railway with a gap of clear trackbed between the bogies. My fault and I felt duly guilty, but of course the driver had to take the blame for not changing ends; he never heard anything more about it but I have no idea how the thing was covered up! But it was end of sports for several hours while the Per.Way. sent a flatbed lorry out with a couple of blokes, some sleepers, chairs, and some rail to rescue the isolated bogie. I was so fixated on the shunters' handsignals that I forgot to look where I was going. Embarrassing, and a lesson learned. With a train stopped across the yard throat, there was quite a bit of knock-on effect to FLT services from Cardiff for the rest of that day, especially the Swansea traffic.

How to lose your credibility in one sentence😄

Both the rural fire services and the state emergency services in the various states are volunteer forces, or at least those who do the frontline work are. In times of significant disasters like the 2019 bushfires they can be asked to travel across states, for weeks at a time, leaving families and jobs. Often the strain on funds is so great that they have to pay for their own travel, meals and protective clothing , on top of being on unpaid leave for weeks at a time. Some state governments did tend to take them for granted, relying on the grace of volunteers to save on having to pay professional fire and emergency personnel, but since the recent major disasters the government (at least in NSW) has been coughing up for decent equipment that is up to spec for doing what these blokes expect it to. These guys are all volunteers, the truck the camera is on stayed there in order to protect properties on the left once the firefront had passed over. Rural firetrucks have the ability to drench themselves in a curtain of water to protect the crew, which is what this one did as it sat there.

Rock and roll never forgets- Bob Segar and the silver bullet band

I thought Making Tracks was 3 separate layouts joined up for one time only in that configuration?