Loads for Seahorse wagons?

[TT-Pete]

Hi all,

 

Can anyone give me an idea of realistic loads for engineers' Seahorse wagons please? I am assuming used ballast, spoil, sleepers, rail off-cuts and general detritus etc...

 

Cheers,

Peter.

[Fat Controller]

The Seahorses were built for transporting new ballast, initially from Meldon to Tonbridge West Yard, I believe. The idea was that they'd be used to stock a virtual quarry with ballast, which would be used to top up the bogie ballast wagons based there. This would allow the latter to carry out overnight ballast drops, rather than spending the weekdays travelling to and from Meldon, and just the weekends dropping the stuff. At the time, there was a lot or refettling of the main routes in Kent going on, in preparation for the opening of the Channel Tunnel.

They seem to have proved a success, as bulk trains to 'virtual quarries', using low-tech open wagons, have become the norm.

Once the Seahorses were supplanted by larger bogie wagons, I would imagine they went over to spoil workings and so on

[jonhall]

The original intent of Seahorse was to be for suttleing between quarry and yards on the SR for filling Sealion/cow, later in life as interchangeable with SeaHare and Sea Urchin.

 

Jon

[Lyddrail]

Peter,

 

As Brian & Jon have stated they were converted to haul new ballast from Meldon to Hoo Junction via Tonbridge West Yard to build a supply to reload part emptied ballast hoppers.

 

See pic below of Hoo with every Seahorse in 2 rakes.

 

 

After this they were used for new ballast or spoil. They were not a good wagon for anything else as they had fixed sides so could not be manually loaded.

 

Cheers.

 

 

 

[Lyddrail]

Peter,

 

Correct pic below.

 

 

Cheers.

 

 

[TT-Pete]

Thanks for all the replies :-)

 

That'll teach me to do the research *before* buying the kits! :-(

 

I can't see any justification for just 3 of them trundling around the layout, either alone or as part of a consist, unless anyone has any suggestions? (And buying another 20 of them is not an option! )

 

Peter.

[Glorious NSE]

What's your era?

 

Later on they would be mixed with broadly similar Sea Hare / Sea Urchin, giving you a bit more variety in a rake

 

One ended it's life in Balfour Beatty paint as a trailer for a GP-TRAMM

[hmrspaul]

And a little earlier, even  before they were cut down http://paulbartlett.zenfolio.com/seahorse

 

Paul

[TT-Pete]

NSE, I model BR era from about '68 up to privatisation, so just about anything goes, but unfortunately no hares or urchins in 3 mil. :-(

 

Paul, yes, the Seahorses were an impulse purchase at the same time I bought these OCA wagon kits:

(BTW I really admire your most excellent site)

 

On reflection I have got more than enough other flat kits to be getting on with so the Seahorses will probably go back into store for the time being.

[wirey33]

My understanding was that they would be used to fill part-used seacow or walrus wagons to save sending part-loaded wagons all the way to Meldon for part-filling.

 

I have some shots of them at Exeter in mixed rakes with Seacows.

 

It would easy to justify a short rake....

 

"Last weekend some planned ballast drops were cancelled due to severe weather. This means that some seacow and walrus wagons in the yard are still full. The knock-on effect is that some of the seahorses waiting to fill these are also still full. Only a part rake needs to be sent to Meldon for filling to provide enough ballast for next weekends work."