D860 VICTORIOUS Posted June 7, 2022 Share Posted June 7, 2022 Evening all, A question prompted by running my Heljan W55991 today,fab model,weighs a ton and is silky smooth. W55991/2 became a regular familiar sight right from when I first started scribbling down numbers at Southall back in 1968 🙄 I assumed they spent their lives shuttling back and forth between Paddington,Slough and Reading (possibly Didcot?). I'm wondering if they ever sauntered further afield,e.g. via Greenford towards the Chiltern line,the West London line or anywhere else off-region? It's probable that very little info exists about these units,they weren't at all glamorous and perhaps largely ignored,but any info at all would be greatly appreciated. Neil. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium keefer Posted June 7, 2022 RMweb Premium Share Posted June 7, 2022 https://www.railcar.co.uk/type/class-128/operations Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
D860 VICTORIOUS Posted June 7, 2022 Author Share Posted June 7, 2022 Nice one keefer,many thanks. Neil. 1 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Covkid Posted June 8, 2022 Share Posted June 8, 2022 11 hours ago, keefer said: https://www.railcar.co.uk/type/class-128/operations Good call Keefer. These were very active in the West Mids anf there is a corking photo of one leaving Wolverhampton Low Level possibly heading to Dudley via Priestfield. For a short period (maybe 2-3 years) BR had to estsblish parcel depots and a network of services to replace the DMU services withdrawn in 1964. Dudley was one of these and the diesel parcel cars were used quite intensively. Returning to the image, from memory it was a class 128 DPU a 12T van, a Palethorpes 6 wheel sausage van, a BG and possibly a CCT. Discussed this with Mike Hollick a few years ago and we believe BR had an arrangement to hire or at least use one of the vans which were based very near Dudley at that time. In addition to parcels there are a couple of published photos of DPUs hauling BGs on pigeon specials in the Black Country, bearing in mind that pigeons were a very important passtime for the working man. 1 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Mike_Walker Posted June 8, 2022 RMweb Premium Share Posted June 8, 2022 Whilst W55991 and W55992 were mostly used on the GW Main Line, I have seen a photo of one at Uxbridge Vine Street so it is possible they visited the other London area branches although I've never seen evidence of them on the Maidenhead-Marlow/Wycombe branch. Likewise, I've never seen photos of them used on the Chiltern Line although I have heard that their ex-GWR predecessors ran as far as High Wycombe so they may have replaced them. 1 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold 08221 Posted June 8, 2022 RMweb Gold Share Posted June 8, 2022 On occasions in later years, the “scooby doos” were used as stand ins for non available class 117 power cars, so may well have visited the Thames valley branches and other routes in that scenario. 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Phil Bullock Posted June 8, 2022 RMweb Gold Share Posted June 8, 2022 (edited) Very characterful units. We used to see one every lunch time late 60s/early 70s at Worcester on a working from Curzon Street …. M55993/4/5 IIRC, gangwayed units like W55991/2. As everything had to have a nick name we called them WONKYPUS… No worrying about exceeding tail load with Heljan model …. Will pull a house down! Edited June 8, 2022 by Phil Bullock 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold The Stationmaster Posted June 8, 2022 RMweb Gold Share Posted June 8, 2022 When they were new Southall Drivers knew them and (possibly a little later) Reading Drivers also knew them but I don't about Slough although I suspect that they didn't as they never seem to have been stabled there as part of booked working. As far as I know Southall men never had any regular work over the Wycombe branch (which was Slough territory) and I don't think they went very far up the Joint Line either although it is possible they did know the road to Wycombe. 1 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dibber25 Posted June 9, 2022 Share Posted June 9, 2022 (edited) On 08/06/2022 at 09:06, Mike_Walker said: Whilst W55991 and W55992 were mostly used on the GW Main Line, I have seen a photo of one at Uxbridge Vine Street so it is possible they visited the other London area branches although I've never seen evidence of them on the Maidenhead-Marlow/Wycombe branch. Likewise, I've never seen photos of them used on the Chiltern Line although I have heard that their ex-GWR predecessors ran as far as High Wycombe so they may have replaced them. I can't now find the photo but there was a working to Colnbrook on the Staines branch. I believe it was once a week to collect consignments of Penguin books. 1960s period but after withdrawal of passenger services. (CJL) Edit : Found picture. Photographer T. Wright Edited June 9, 2022 by dibber25 13 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
D860 VICTORIOUS Posted June 10, 2022 Author Share Posted June 10, 2022 Hi all, I remembered I have the photo in the Middleton Press "Branch Lines of West London" book,thanks dibber25 for posting.Looks like W55992 even has the same headcode as the Heljan model...OT,but the book has only the briefest section on the railways of Greenford(my home town),something I'd like to find out more about,but that's for another time. I can vaguely remember these units mixed in with other DMU's,as 08221 has said,and somewhere in the vaults I have a colour print pic I took of one in the up bay at Southall,seem to remember Posties chucking mailbags in on some occasions before the unit spluttered off to Paddington. The main thing is,thank you to each of you who took the trouble to reply and share your knowledge and recollections,much appreciated. Neil. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dibber25 Posted June 11, 2022 Share Posted June 11, 2022 On 10/06/2022 at 09:57, D860 VICTORIOUS said: Hi all, I remembered I have the photo in the Middleton Press "Branch Lines of West London" book,thanks dibber25 for posting.Looks like W55992 even has the same headcode as the Heljan model...OT,but the book has only the briefest section on the railways of Greenford(my home town),something I'd like to find out more about,but that's for another time. I can vaguely remember these units mixed in with other DMU's,as 08221 has said,and somewhere in the vaults I have a colour print pic I took of one in the up bay at Southall,seem to remember Posties chucking mailbags in on some occasions before the unit spluttered off to Paddington. The main thing is,thank you to each of you who took the trouble to reply and share your knowledge and recollections,much appreciated. Neil. Like the rail buses and the 121/122s, the parcels cars were personal favourites of mine. I provided Martyn at Heljan with quite a lot of help on these and quite a few reference photographs so I suspect the 3A49 head code may be a result of this particular picture. The rail blue/white roof dome/yellow corridor blanking panel version and 'Scooby-do' with the lettering in the dirt were also from my references. Manufacturers go to great lengths to get these things right and it is always good to assist them. (CJL) 4 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
hmrspaul Posted June 12, 2022 Share Posted June 12, 2022 12 hours ago, dibber25 said: Like the rail buses and the 121/122s, the parcels cars were personal favourites of mine. I provided Martyn at Heljan with quite a lot of help on these and quite a few reference photographs so I suspect the 3A49 head code may be a result of this particular picture. The rail blue/white roof dome/yellow corridor blanking panel version and 'Scooby-do' with the lettering in the dirt were also from my references. Manufacturers go to great lengths to get these things right and it is always good to assist them. (CJL) I also provided some of the photos, not least Scooby Doo https://PaulBartlett.zenfolio.com/dieselparcelvan/e1d10a185 Paul 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold The Stationmaster Posted June 13, 2022 RMweb Gold Share Posted June 13, 2022 22 hours ago, hmrspaul said: I also provided some of the photos, not least Scooby Doo https://PaulBartlett.zenfolio.com/dieselparcelvan/e1d10a185 Paul Minor point Paul but that is Reading Triangle Sidings Fuel Point, not the depot. (Spend a night turn, in particular, up there and you didn't need to be reminded that it wasn't the depot) . Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold astropsidings Posted June 27, 2022 RMweb Gold Share Posted June 27, 2022 55991, and 55022, Maidenhead enroute to Reading. 19 December 1985 9 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RateTheFreight Posted March 3 Share Posted March 3 On 08/06/2022 at 08:40, Covkid said: Good call Keefer. These were very active in the West Mids anf there is a corking photo of one leaving Wolverhampton Low Level possibly heading to Dudley via Priestfield. For a short period (maybe 2-3 years) BR had to estsblish parcel depots and a network of services to replace the DMU services withdrawn in 1964. Dudley was one of these and the diesel parcel cars were used quite intensively. Returning to the image, from memory it was a class 128 DPU a 12T van, a Palethorpes 6 wheel sausage van, a BG and possibly a CCT. Discussed this with Mike Hollick a few years ago and we believe BR had an arrangement to hire or at least use one of the vans which were based very near Dudley at that time. In addition to parcels there are a couple of published photos of DPUs hauling BGs on pigeon specials in the Black Country, bearing in mind that pigeons were a very important passtime for the working man. Im intrigued by the Wolverhampton Low Level photo especially if it involves a Palethorpes wagon! Where might I find the image online or book wise? Thanks in advance! G Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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