AndyH Posted November 7, 2012 Share Posted November 7, 2012 Ah, did you find anything interesting apart from buddleia and bamboo? I would be interested to see if they find anything when they build flats on the former engine shed and water tower site. Interesting thread. Andy Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xerces Fobe2 Posted November 7, 2012 Share Posted November 7, 2012 I have walked along the sidings behind the station a few over the years and apart from the red buffer stops and the fact that they are the same length as the station was before it was shortened in the 1960's, there is nothing of interest There used be some some tidying in the siding area in the past, but now it just left to nature. XF Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium New Haven Neil Posted November 8, 2012 RMweb Premium Share Posted November 8, 2012 Oh, love the ship photos...I'm ex-Bibby Line, and my old man sailed with Trident Tankers amongst others! The scenes are so reminiscent of the era, before my time really, but makes me so want to model the dockyard/railway scene. However the space needed is an issue. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
woodsworks Posted November 24, 2012 Share Posted November 24, 2012 As an ex-ship repair and new-build man, working in dockyards for many years, I would like to add to the list of materials delivered to shipyards: Paint, lubricants (oil and grease), chain, wire rope, electrical wire, thermal insulation, timber both solid and plywood for interior fit-out, machinery such as generators and pumps, liferafts....these are just the things which would be recognisable 'as they come'. Then there are the countless boxes which would contain bolts, nails, paintbrushes, tools, equipment for the galley, fans, furniture, overalls for engineering crew, lamps, lightbulbs, dunny rolls, fire extinguishers, medical supplies, linen - just about anything you could possibly imagine. Plenty of scope there for interesting loads in and on wagons, I should think. Keep in mind that a ship cannot stop off at the local supermarket, so must take everything vital to the well-being of the crew and itself with it to sea. Regards Paul. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Welsh Yorkie Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 Off topic, but I think Falmouth was used as the setting for Falport (makes sense!) in the pre-war Will Hay film 'Windbag the Sailor' -- anybody confirm this? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
D820 Posted April 18, 2013 Share Posted April 18, 2013 Can't believe I missed this thread, you never told me about this Xerces! My Dad was an electrician at the docks and talked me out of working there. The docks engines worked up to the exchange sidings adjacent to the station. In an unashamed plug for a website I'm involved in, there is a picture of one such working. Follow this link to the Cornwall Railway Society website:- http://www.cornwallrailwaysociety.org.uk/falmouth-branch.html The New Zealand Steam Shipping Company transported agricultural goods to Britain and took manufactured goods back. Siley Cox & Co had a contract with them for repair work, so they were regular visitors. For me, my favourite ship was the 'SS Uganda', which regularly sailed from Falmouth on those now legendry schools cruises. She sailed from Falmouth for the last time on 20th May 1986 as the SS Triton, her final voyage to the breakers yard. Thousands gathered on Pendennis Headland to watch her go. Anyway, back to the trains, oil and general merchandise went into the yards well into the seventies on a fairly regular basis. Traffic dropped off in the eighties, however during mid nineties there was a regular two week coal flow from Coedbach using Cawoods containers. We also had used flint (used to blast paint off ships) taken away in the Greater Manchester PTE household waste wagons. The rail connection is still in place, although unused for sometime. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyH Posted April 19, 2013 Share Posted April 19, 2013 Excellent stuff D820. Travel on it every day and live right by it. Been part of my life for years, so great to see such an excellent collection. Many thanks, Andy Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
D820 Posted April 29, 2013 Share Posted April 29, 2013 Sad news for freight traffic in Falmouth, I understand from several sources that the rail connection to the docks, together with the loop and presumably the sidings will be removed during the 2013/14 financial year. The end of an era..... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gruffalo Posted April 29, 2013 Share Posted April 29, 2013 Another ex Marine Engineer who stumbled upon this threat somewhat late! We were threatened with dry-docking in Falmouth a couple of times but ended up first in Cammell-Laird at Birkenhead and then at Bluhm & Voss, Bremen. C-L on an old 18,000T tar boiler for Shell was a nightmare with bits going missing and shoddy workmanship but B&V were very much better. I never got to Falmouth but the pictures are something I can reminisce over to my grandson (who always asks about the ships I went on). Thanks for posting them! Remember that the ships in these pictures were between 12,000 and 35,000T whilst today we see 350,00T tankers and 120,000T box boats. Times have change and big isn't aways beautiful. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xerces Fobe2 Posted April 29, 2013 Share Posted April 29, 2013 Sad news for freight traffic in Falmouth, I understand from several sources that the rail connection to the docks, together with the loop and presumably the sidings will be removed during the 2013/14 financial year. The end of an era..... Removing the loop is very short sited as it will mean that any loco hauled passenger or engineering trains on the branch will have to be topped and tailed. I bet yet more student flats will be built on the land! Sad indeed! XF Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Captain Kernow Posted April 30, 2013 RMweb Gold Share Posted April 30, 2013 Removing the loop is very short sited as it will mean that any loco hauled passenger or engineering trains on the branch will have to be topped and tailed. I bet yet more student flats will be built on the land! Not quite, there is more to this than meets the eye. The land will certainly not be sold off, it's still undecided whether the connection will be completely lifted or the running line fittings 'plain lined'. Proposals for a deep water port, with a study sponsored by the Council, have still not yet been shelved, as far as I know, although there were environmental issues in the estuary regarding dredging. Part of the study was for a rail connection. As regards loco-hauled trains, the current passenger service really would preclude much time shunting or running around at Falmouth Docks, and it's more likely that any charter train would be top and tailed, as per the other Cornish branch lines. The maximum permitted RR length (using the running line and running round via the loop) is 30 SLU, if you do it the other way, it's only 25 SLU. Enough for 10 coaches, admittedly, but more likely to be missed by engineering trains.... Edit - just to add that the track inside the dock gates, the responsiblity of the Port Company, is in a really bad state, partly tarmacked over for a car park, and would require wholesale renewal before it could be used by trains again. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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