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Class 85


Michael Delamar
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Just to bump this thread, I notice there are several shots of 85's at Stratford, and one at Woodgrange Park and Dagenham Dock on flickr in the 1989-1991 period on the Garston-Dagenham workings. AFAIK Roarers would've been extremely rare over Great Eastern metals as the NLL wasn't wired for freight until 1989. Does anyone know if they had any other booked work over the Great Eastern in their twilight years, and if 81's ever appeared? Would love to see a shot of an 85 at Maryland, Forest Gate or Barking if anyone has one to scan in! 

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  • RMweb Gold

Just to bump this thread, I notice there are several shots of 85's at Stratford, and one at Woodgrange Park and Dagenham Dock on flickr in the 1989-1991 period on the Garston-Dagenham workings. AFAIK Roarers would've been extremely rare over Great Eastern metals as the NLL wasn't wired for freight until 1989. Does anyone know if they had any other booked work over the Great Eastern in their twilight years, and if 81's ever appeared? Would love to see a shot of an 85 at Maryland, Forest Gate or Barking if anyone has one to scan in!

Some years earlier than the time you mention, I remember seeing a piece in Modern Railways sometime in about 1980, about the conversion of the last stretch of 6.25kv to 25kv, in the Liverpool St area. There was a photo of an AC electric used for testing - it was either an 85 or an 86/3, can't remember which.

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Some years earlier than the time you mention, I remember seeing a piece in Modern Railways sometime in about 1980, about the conversion of the last stretch of 6.25kv to 25kv, in the Liverpool St area. There was a photo of an AC electric used for testing - it was either an 85 or an 86/3, can't remember which.

 

Interesting, would like to see that if anyone has the magazine in question? Chances are it was an 86, although saying that electric freight wasn't a thing on the GEML then, as the NLL wasn't wired at that time. 85's did make it to Glossop/Hadfield testing the OHLE when it was converted IIRC, and right at the end of their lives someone on WNXX positively ID'd one on the blocks at St Pancras, so they did start to spread their wings before their withdrawal. Would love to know if 81's did the same.  

 

Further to this, there's this shot of an 81 on the Garston-Dagenham on the WCML, and the caption makes for interesting reading as it suggests the 81's worked all the way through. There's got to be photo evidence out there of them on the Great Eastern/LTS, surely? 

 

Link here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/actonwellsjunction/8566896057/in/photolist-81JzpW-81JzLb-8367w1-5LEg2R-81JCL1-8369Jd-81FtLe-83zxqq-o3YUnT-e42zJr

Edited by NXEA!
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  • 4 weeks later...

Hi Stovepipe

 

Thank you so very much for looking this up for me. The period l am working around is Mid 1965 to Mid 1966, so these two photos are spot on. This time frame allows me to have AL5s in Electric Blue, with no SYWP twin pan, Electric Blue with SYWP and twin pan, and thanks to your efforts, Electric Blue with SYWP  & single pan.

 

In addition, with these links, l now have another source of photos to work through as well

 

 

One very happy bunny

 

Bob C

 

from this pic can anybody tell me what those short wooden posts were for inbetween the tracks (but probably sunk a good 1ft down into the ballast maybe more)???  some kind of set measurement for the pway or what? 

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from this pic can anybody tell me what those short wooden posts were for inbetween the tracks (but probably sunk a good 1ft down into the ballast maybe more)???  some kind of set measurement for the pway or what? 

I think they were for a re-alignment or track re-laying project.  They would be used as a datum if the tracks were lifted etc.

 

Tony

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Just been checking through some of my old books and came up with:-

Ripple Lane 31/05/88 85020 ?

Ripple Lane 17/02/89 85031 ?

Ripple Lane 11/08/90 85003 ?

Stratford 14/06/91 85101 on ford vans

 

Convinced I had seen more than that an have memories of seeing at least one CL81 at Daggenham.?

 

Cheers Trailrage

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Just been checking through some of my old books and came up with:-

Ripple Lane 31/05/88 85020 ?

Ripple Lane 17/02/89 85031 ?

Ripple Lane 11/08/90 85003 ?

Stratford 14/06/91 85101 on ford vans

 

Convinced I had seen more than that an have memories of seeing at least one CL81 at Daggenham.?

 

Cheers Trailrage

Very interesting, thanks! It's been mentioned 81's made it through to Dagenham, still no photographic evidence as yet!
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There was 10 months between E3095 and the penultimate loco, E3092, entering service (according to BRDatabase). Here is a link to E3092 with no yellow panels and two pantographs in June 1964, four months into service.

 

http://railphotoprints.uk/p292472143/h230cdd9c#h31e53d7b

 

And here is E3095 in April 1966 with yellow panels and one pan. The yellow and white does look to have been newly applied, so perhaps it ran 15 months in original condition? The big gap to the last delivery suggests it may have been used for research or trials.

 

http://www.rail-online.co.uk/p1050452084/h2ef4b4ba#h2ef4b4ba

 

and heres E3090 with 2 pans no yellow in May 1965.

5178478215_dc40dbb83f_b.jpgHi-Res R0123 by Bill Wright, on Flickr

 

 

I love this photo; but being too young to photograph it myself, I now find that transparencies/negatives such as this can now command upwards of £50 on auction sites these days, putting them well out of my reach and putting them out of sight of everyone apart from those who wish only to make money out of these images.

 

Thankyou for sharing it with us.

Edited by jonny777
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  • RMweb Gold

I am cheating slightly here, because this is not just an 85, but an 86 and 81 as well.

 

 

85025 86221 81016 eus 27:2:83.jpg

 

85025 86221 81016 at the buffers, Euston 27th February 1983.

Either that's not 81016, or it's not 1983. 81016 was the loco written off in the accident at Linslade Tunnel, in the early hours of 9th December 1982.

 

Cheers N

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  • RMweb Gold

Some years earlier than the time you mention, I remember seeing a piece in Modern Railways sometime in about 1980, about the conversion of the last stretch of 6.25kv to 25kv, in the Liverpool St area. There was a photo of an AC electric used for testing - it was either an 85 or an 86/3, can't remember which.

And I would imagine that ADB968021, the former 84009, would have been used for load testing. Though I've no evidence for that.

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Either that's not 81016, or it's not 1983. 81016 was the loco written off in the accident at Linslade Tunnel, in the early hours of 9th December 1982.

 

Cheers N

 

 

Thanks for the info. I have looked at the original scan, and it might be 81015 but it is not particularly clear at that angle.

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Would love Bachmann to do a proper job of 85035 with domino heacodes.
 
Yes, it did actually run like this, though the model I used isn't quite acurate though I am reasonably happy with it (needless to say I would buy a full-fat genuine one). [sorry - not figured out how to attach a photo of mine yet].
 
The Class 84 would be fantastic, particularly if a special edition on the Loadbank in RTC were produced/commissioned.
 
 

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The Class 84 would be fantastic, particularly if a special edition on the Loadbank in RTC were produced/commissioned.

 

There are quite a few differences, and I'm not sure how a manufacturer would produce slides for bodies with or without the large grilles, short of actually having two entirely separate sets of main body tooling.

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Pretty sure ADB968021 made it at least as far as Ilford depot being used to loadbank test MK2d mini buffets during refurbishment (I think)

 

Cheers Trailrage

Why would ADB969021 be used to loadbank coaches, how do you loadbank coaches?

 

Its sole purpose was to draw as much current as possible to test the overhead wires and all their components!

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Why would ADB969021 be used to loadbank coaches, how do you loadbank coaches?

 

Its sole purpose was to draw as much current as possible to test the overhead wires and all their components!

It was used as an ETH supply, in the same manner that 86259/401/701 have done so fairly recently.

 

In theory using a Loadbank for this could emulate an unclean supply that might trip certain devices in the coach, instead of a more stable shore supply or one from a static/idle loco, but they had to be careful drawing current with it when it wasn't moving as it could melt the catenary....

Edited by 298
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Found a nice colour pic (in BR Traction in colour page 72/73) of ADB968021 inside Ilford Carriage shed coupled to 2 MK2 Aircon coaches and being used "solely for the Electric supply required" for the conversions taking place of TSO(T) coaches to "Choice express catering" RMB(T)s for use on cross London IC services. The 84 has its Pantograph in the raised position and in contact with the 

OLE but there is also a worker sat on top of the coach!

Now being a Mobile Loadbank I assumed it was for testing the electrical supply.

 

Apologies if anything I said was wrong as I was only 12 when this took place.

 

Cheers Trailrage :angel: 

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  • 9 months later...

What's all this doom and gloom about electrics? Why doesn't the rest of Europe have this issue? How come much more narrow range machines an the continent can make profit while an 86/87/90 can't?

 

Apparently because it is impossible to make a scale BW pantograph...?

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