Terminology

[Rob F]

I agree with Cromptons for class 45s, 46s were Brushes and Brush Type 4s were type four and a 'alf.

My dad worked for BR in Furlong House in Nottingham and when I was growing up in the early 70s a 47 was a “Brush” and a 45 was a “Sulzer”. Strange isn’t it?!

[Nearholmer]

Whereas, Class 33, which enthusiasts call ‘cromptons’ were almost universally known by staff as KA and KB, their pre-TOPS class designations, well into the 1980s. I left Southern Region in 1987, and I don’t think I ever heard any motive power referred to by its TOPS class, always the proper SR class, except possibly 508(?), which never had a proper name, and 08 and 09, where the ‘warp speed’ capability of the latter was important. The DEMUs were always Hastings, Hampshire and Oxted.

[F-UnitMad]

Even among 'spotters terms for Classes could be different. My mates and I always called 37s 'Syphons', which seemed quite rare as these days they mostly seem to be referred to as 'Tractors'. We called 47s 'Duffs' when most others seem to call them 'Spoons', and HSTs were 'Zings', due to the noise the power cars made as they passed you at speed. I don't know what the common term for them is now. As I viewed them as Deltic Killers for years, I wouldn't have minded if the term for them now was "Extinct", but one does have to admit that they were/are quite a success story.

[rodent279]

I always knew 47's as Duffs. Anyone know why?

Syphon is another one I can't understand the origin of. Tractor or Growler, yes, self explanatory, but Syphon? Someone please explain!

My favourite has to be Tea Cup, as applied to 27's. Apparently it's from the sound they make at tickover. Tea-cup, tea-cup, tea-cup......

Oh yeah, Peds as well. No prizes for guessing which class that refers to!

[Fat Controller]

'Duffs' was probably due to a reputation for unreliability; only to be expected that there be a lot of failures, given the size of the class and their ubiquity.

'Siphons'; perhaps because of the side and roof louvres being reminiscent of the GWR Siphon G?

In the late sixties, we simply called them 'Brushes' or 'Six-eighters'- I think a lot of the nick-names originated in the railway press from the 1970s onwards.

[roythebus]

Whereas, Class 33, which enthusiasts call ‘cromptons’ were almost universally known by staff as KA and KB, their pre-TOPS class designations, well into the 1980s. I left Southern Region in 1987, and I don’t think I ever heard any motive power referred to by its TOPS class, always the proper SR class, except possibly 508(?), which never had a proper name, and 08 and 09, where the ‘warp speed’ capability of the latter was important. The DEMUs were always Hastings, Hampshire and Oxted.

 

508s were dubbed 4NOB. 4 car, no bikes.

[Andy Louch]

Ha ha, another 'can of worms'!! We used the following nicknames

 

Class 20: H-Bombs. No idea why!

Class 25; Bo-Bo

Class 31: Brush Type 2

Class 37: Ingy 3 (EE Type)

Class 40: Tats

Class 44: 1-10ers

Class 45, 46: Peaks

Class 47: Brush 4

Class 55: Delli

 

and of course the obvious ones; Hymeks, Warships and Wessies

 

all DMSs were 'bug units' and EMUs 'leccy-bugs'

 

Happy days!!

[rodent279]

I heard of 20's being referred to as "bombs". Didn't someone get into trouble once, saying (or emailing) about a "pair of bombs on so-and-so train"?

[Zomboid]

It might be a relatively new term, but I picked up the idea that a 20 is a whistling wardrobe. Probably due to the doors down the side. And a 31 is a ped because they're so pedestrian.

[melmerby]

We assume that on the Western side of the Atlantic they are all "Railroads"

Not so. The BNSF is a "Railway" http://www.bnsf.com/ as were many of it's constituents. http://www.bnsf.com/about-bnsf/our-railroad/index.html

 

Keith

Edited July 31, 2018 by melmerby

[Wickham Green]

We assume that on the Western side of the Atlantic they are all "Railroads"

Not so. The BNSF is a "Railway" http://www.bnsf.com/ as were many of it's constituents. http://www.bnsf.com/about-bnsf/our-railroad/index.html

 

Keith

I think your assumption may be a bit too general as 'Railroad' seems to be a U.S.of A. term  -  whereas there's a fair bit more 'Western side of the Atlantic' where 'Railway' is used.

[LMS2968]

The term 'Railroad' was commonly used in Britain in the very early days around the 1820s and 1830s. It was still used in the 1970s, but generally only by BR people. There are hangovers: having a signal Off is referred to as 'Getting the road', Up and Down roads, etc.

[iands]

And not forgetting "one on" when working lineside (which is nothing to do with the state of a signal).

 

Regards, Ian.

[34theletterbetweenB&D]

... Off thread, when did 'personnel' become Human Resources'?!!...

 I can offer 1977, when it went on my record that I had used the term 'Human Remains' in the hearing of the chief stuffed shirt of the Human Remains department. (This was before the likes of de Bono, Branson and Harvey Jones had managed to get real traction for the idea that a sense of humour might be generally permissible in the UK work place.)

[The Johnster]

I remember Gloucester men in the 70s referring to 20s as wardrobes, and this was explained by the cupboard door access to the innards.

 

At Canton and other WR sheds, the GW tradition of referring to steam classes as 49s, 28s, 56s or whatever transferred to diesels seamlessly with 'D' prefixes pre TOPs, so there were D70s as well as Hymeks, D One Thousands as well as Westerns, D68s or D95s; nobody would have known what a Class 14 was at any time!  TOPS ended a lot of this, GW men be preconditioned to class numbers.  At Canton, the 25s when we had them were known as spin dryers; there is a part of the diesel engine that looks a bit like one, and a spin dryer was probably better at pulling trains...

 

Rail Road was used in the early days in the UK, along with Tram (Dram in South Wales) Road; they were similar to roads in a legal sense and everybody could use them with their own vehicles on payment of a fee.  The Stockton and Darlington was like this.  The Liverpool and Manchester was a different sort of beast altogether, defined as a Rail Way, way meaning right of way across private land authorised by Act of Parliament.  The railway, which it continued to be be known as after it's opening, provided the stock and acted as a 'common carrier', obliged to provide freight service to all comers at a pre-agreed rate by condition of it's Act; the government wanted some benefit to the community at large in return for allowing the company to profit from it.

[Peter Kazmierczak]

I think Up and Down originated from the layout of timetables.

You read Down the page for times away from London, and Up the page for times to London.

[LMS2968]

I think Up and Down originated from the layout of timetables.

You read Down the page for times away from London, and Up the page for times to London.

These terms were used in the days of the mail and road coaches, long before the railways.

[jonny777]

If they're Underground or Pullman they are Cars rather than coaches/carriages.

 

 

Did this apply to the Ashburton Grove Pullman?

Ha ha, another 'can of worms'!! We used the following nicknames

 

Class 20: H-Bombs. No idea why!

Class 25; Bo-Bo

Class 31: Brush Type 2

Class 37: Ingy 3 (EE Type)

Class 40: Tats

Class 44: 1-10ers

Class 45, 46: Peaks

Class 47: Brush 4

Class 55: Delli

 

and of course the obvious ones; Hymeks, Warships and Wessies

 

all DMSs were 'bug units' and EMUs 'leccy-bugs'

 

Happy days!!

 

 

 

Please.....

 

Not this again. 

[melmerby]

Some terminology must be purely a personal or local thing.

 

I remember seeing a You Tube video labelled "BNSF(or AN other US) freight knocks down signal"

 

I and virtually all the others that viewed it (mostly Americans) were expecting the train to actually knock over a signal post.

With comments like "What signal did it knock over?", "where did the train knock over the signal" etc.

The poster replied "Knock Down signal" means it turns the signal red.

 

Anybody else ever heard of this term?

 

The video was rubbish anyway with 15mins of extremely shaky camera work, zoom in, zoom out, rapid pan etc. showing a train running up to a red signal, waiting 15mins for it to clear, then proceeding and then the signal turning red again.

15mins of my life wasted!

 

Keith

[beast66606]

The poster replied "Knock Down signal" means it turns the signal red.

 

Anybody else ever heard of this term?

 

I've heard "Knock back behind it" - signals returning to danger behind a train

[iands]

The closest I can get is "Knock Out", meaning to send 'train out of section'.

 

Regards, Ian.

[The Johnster]

Did this apply to the Ashburton Grove Pullman?

 

 

 

Please.....

 

Not this again. 

 

Cars can also be applied to Sleeping, Buffet, Restaurant, and Kitchen.  A coach seems to me to be something with seats that carries passengers in compartments like the stage or mail coaches that preceded it and on which it is based, and, guard's/brake/luggage compartment aside, serves no other purpose, whereas a Car seems to have some sort of specialist use.  The need to describe coaches with saloons as opens sort of re-inforces this.

[rodent279]

It might be a relatively new term, but I picked up the idea that a 20 is a whistling wardrobe. Probably due to the doors down the side. And a 31 is a ped because they're so pedestrian.

That or they're quicker if you pedal!

[Wickham Green]

Cars can also be applied to Sleeping, Buffet, Restaurant, and Kitchen.  

...... not forgetting the occasional Griddle or Bar Car. 

[E3109]

Whereas, Class 33, which enthusiasts call ‘cromptons’ were almost universally known by staff as KA and KB, their pre-TOPS class designations, well into the 1980s. I left Southern Region in 1987, and I don’t think I ever heard any motive power referred to by its TOPS class, always the proper SR class, except possibly 508(?), which never had a proper name, and 08 and 09, where the ‘warp speed’ capability of the latter was important. The DEMUs were always Hastings, Hampshire and Oxted.

I suspect the reason the 508s weren't given a proper SR nickname, is because they were intended for the LM DC Lines (Merseyrail) to start with. Hence the 5xx classification.

Glad they never came up here until later, if only because 502s/503s were lovely!

 

Not sure if this has been mentioned but a northern mate who migrated to the SR in the 1980s, said 455s were known as '4SS' as in 'Four slide slide'.

Whether that was due to sliding doors, or lack of traction on a black rail, he didn't say!