RMweb Gold rodent279 Posted September 10, 2023 RMweb Gold Share Posted September 10, 2023 22 hours ago, Rugd1022 said: I've been looking for this image in my files for ages - taken by an unknown snapper at Acton Yard in 1983, 31 135's unique livery application had been done in the Factory at nearby Old Oak in the first week of April 1982... Still that way in July '84. I have published this photo before on here. 7 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rugd1022 Posted September 10, 2023 Share Posted September 10, 2023 2 hours ago, rodent279 said: Still that way in July '84. I have published this photo before on here. The siding it's occupying there is long gone now and the platform has been widened. We used 135 for lots of local jobs at OC, the Acton, Park Royal and Southall trips were regulars and on a couple of occasions ad hoc freights to Swindon and back. It would make a rather nice model I think. Photo by David Birks : another Old Oak resident, 31 261 at Didcot in 1974... 6 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
rob D2 Posted September 10, 2023 Share Posted September 10, 2023 1 hour ago, Rugd1022 said: The siding it's occupying there is long gone now and the platform has been widened. We used 135 for lots of local jobs at OC, the Acton, Park Royal and Southall trips were regulars and on a couple of occasions ad hoc freights to Swindon and back. It would make a rather nice model I think. Photo by David Birks : another Old Oak resident, 31 261 at Didcot in 1974... Was certainly on my list of candidates for my Hornby ones - but in the end I thought spraying the yellow over blue might be a bit opaque/ wrong shade - so they've stayed as 118/102/413 . Park royal ? was that for guiness ? 1 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rugd1022 Posted September 10, 2023 Share Posted September 10, 2023 4 hours ago, rob D2 said: Was certainly on my list of candidates for my Hornby ones - but in the end I thought spraying the yellow over blue might be a bit opaque/ wrong shade - so they've stayed as 118/102/413 . Park royal ? was that for guiness ? Yes we went into the Guinness factory, and usually came out with a few freebies thanks to one of the regular shunters there! Some more WR 31s... 18 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold The Pilotman Posted September 11, 2023 RMweb Gold Share Posted September 11, 2023 (edited) On 09/09/2023 at 12:09, Rugd1022 said: I've been looking for this image in my files for ages - taken by an unknown snapper at Acton Yard in 1983, 31 135's unique livery application had been done in the Factory at nearby Old Oak in the first week of April 1982... 31135’s livery variation seems to have lasted quite a while as it pops up at Grantham in this video (about 22 minutes in) in 1987, still in this condition. Edited September 11, 2023 by The Pilotman 4 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
rob D2 Posted September 11, 2023 Share Posted September 11, 2023 I noticed that too ! It makes it look like a hymek . Makes me wonder the proverbial question which was better class 25 or 31 ? 31 doesn't seem to have a cult following , and is often claimed to be sluggish but the 40 was also underpowered and has a big following I'm told 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rugd1022 Posted September 11, 2023 Share Posted September 11, 2023 18 minutes ago, rob D2 said: I noticed that too ! It makes it look like a hymek . Makes me wonder the proverbial question which was better class 25 or 31 ? 31 doesn't seem to have a cult following , and is often claimed to be sluggish but the 40 was also underpowered and has a big following I'm told Horses for courses I'd say, both classes covered a variety of work but both had their achillies heels. Having driven many of both I'd prefer 25s on shunting and shorter trip workings and 31s for longer distance medium speed traffic. Both had really good cab heaters but the 31 had more room to stretch your legs out. In my experience the 31s were plodders which needed a run up if you needed or wanted to get a spurt on, whereas the 25s felt as though they had more oomph from the off. I remember coming back light engine from Rugby to Stonebridge Park with a pair of 25s one afternoon and we absolutely flew all the way, being routed via Kilsby instead of Northampton helped though! The 25s had more finesse in the controls for shunting but I have a real soft spot for the 31s, especially when 31 321 arrived at Stonebridge as the new crew training loco in early '83 to replace the outgoing 25s. Moving to Old Oak a few months later, my first day was spent being shown round the depot and working on 31 117, 31 261 and 31 304 so I soon got used to pootling around on them. A few days later we had 31 412 on the Southall trip job which involved quite a long rake of mixed wagons, so the generous brake force available with the loco came in handy. The fastest trip I had on them was with a pair on the early morning Padd - New St job, the booked fifty was a failure that day so we had no choice but to take the 31s. We only had nine on so they coped reasonably well with Fosse bank and the run back to Padd was very good, particularly from Didcot onwards. We shared the driving as usual so I got a taste of what they could do when in good nick. On the other hand, there were several occasions where a single 31 struggled up the engine and carriage line flyover outside Old Oak and we had to set back and have another go. We had our regulars of course at OC, 31 117 and 31 121 were our pet 'skinheads', then there was 31 128, 31 135, 31 260, 31 261, 31 273 (fitted with snowploughs at the time), 31 304 and the batch of ETH fitted 31/4s which used to get swapped round with March depot. 4 4 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
rob D2 Posted September 12, 2023 Share Posted September 12, 2023 Couldn't make it over the flyover ! oh dear ! It's good that OOC is still a depot of sorts but modern ones are just so sterile and characterless 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rugd1022 Posted September 12, 2023 Share Posted September 12, 2023 Another shot of 31 135 at Old Oak, pictured in the Factory on 27th November 1982... 12 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray M Posted September 13, 2023 Share Posted September 13, 2023 My own pic of 31135 at OOC in Dec 84 + the for 4 eyed Non skinhead, skinhead at Tinsley in May 85 12 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rugd1022 Posted September 19, 2023 Share Posted September 19, 2023 Photographer unknown : newly arrived at Old Oak from Stratford, 5535 is on the 'ups and downs' Paddington Pilot job in May 1969... 13 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rivercider Posted September 19, 2023 Share Posted September 19, 2023 (edited) It is good to get a drivers view of the class 31s, and the comparison with class 25s is interesting. I Have had a soft spot for the class 31s, starting from the 1970s when I became familiar with the Bath Road locos. Later on my BR career starting in 1977 and later as a Bristol TOPS clerk I knew them on local freight trip work in the Bristol area and on parcels work and midweek ballast drops. My impression was that they performed that kind of work well enough. Class 31s often worked parcels services from the Premium Parcels Services which usually loaded to three GUVs to 4A21 the Malago Vale to Old Oak empty news vans which often loaded heavily ten, twelve or more vans at times. Here Old Oak 31261 is on the Up Through Line at Bristol Temple Meads with 4A21 Malago Vale to Old Oak Common. 26/5/80 cheers Edited September 19, 2023 by Rivercider Additional info 12 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rivercider Posted September 19, 2023 Share Posted September 19, 2023 My memories from the 1970s and 1980s tell me that the Old Oak 31s were generally much cleaner that the filthy Bath Road allocation. Here is another of the Old Oak Common allocated class 31s, this time in South Wales. At East Usk Junction 31304 heads west on the down relief line with a short train of BAAs with steel coil loaded 'eye to sky', 10/2/82. cheers 14 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johann Marsbar Posted September 19, 2023 Share Posted September 19, 2023 If you want to go and see a 31 being named (31 105)....... http://www.radiocaroline.co.uk/#home.html Click on the "Tribute Loco" tag if it doesn't automatically default to that page. 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rugd1022 Posted September 19, 2023 Share Posted September 19, 2023 50 minutes ago, Rivercider said: It is good to get a drivers view of the class 31s, and the comparison with class 25s is interesting. I Have had a soft spot for the class 31s, starting from the 1970s when I became familiar with the Bath Road locos. Later on my BR career starting in 1977 and later as a Bristol TOPS clerk I knew them on local freight trip work in the Bristol area and on parcels work and midweek ballast drops. My impression was that they performed that kind of work well enough. Class 31s often worked parcels services from the Premium Parcels Services which usually loaded to three GUVs to 4A21 the Malago Vale to Old Oak empty news vans which often loaded heavily ten, twelve or more vans at times. Here Old Oak 31261 is on the Up Through Line at Bristol Temple Meads with 4A21 Malago Vale to Old Oak Common. 26/5/80 cheers As I alluded to earlier they were generally good sloggers on certain jobs, and with 4A21 they would often be held on the up relief line alongside the works at Swindon to allow HSTs to pass and call at the station, before proceeding to Didcot, Reading and Old Oak. They Old Oak lot were definitely cleaner than Bath Road's, inside (mostly!) and out, but the chemicals in the wash plant at Kensal Rise didn't do their paint much good which is why the painters in the factory at Old Oak were kept busy. The last time I drove one was about years ago when I had to conduct a Serko driver on a short test train from New St to Didcot and back, it reminded me how nice they can be to drive. 31 260 looking nice and clean at Padd... 31 135 still looking spick and span at Bath Spa... 31 163 at Padd in August 1980... 31 124 on the up relief in the Goring gap... 31 230 and 31 209 on the blocks at Padd on 16th May 1981, photo by Chris Tolley... 31 403 has brought the sleeper stock for the down 'midnight' into Padd... 18 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rugd1022 Posted September 20, 2023 Share Posted September 20, 2023 (edited) Some more 31/4s on Western metals... 31 410 at Brum Moor Steet... 31 412 at Padd in 1976... 31 413 at Padd on 29th November 1980... 31 415 at Cheltenham Spa... 31 415 at Padd... 31 424 at Padd on 4th October 1981... Does anyone have any definitive dates for when the white stripes were painted out on these...? Edited September 20, 2023 by Rugd1022 16 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold rodent279 Posted September 20, 2023 RMweb Gold Share Posted September 20, 2023 (edited) 22 minutes ago, Rugd1022 said: Does anyone have any definitive dates for when the white stripes were painted out on these...? No, and I'd be interested to know. Best I can suggest is a lengthy trawl through Flickr, noting the last dates white stripes appear, and the first dates they disappear. I'd guess a few lasted until the late 80's, possibly early 90's. Edited September 20, 2023 by rodent279 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rivercider Posted September 20, 2023 Share Posted September 20, 2023 47 minutes ago, rodent279 said: No, and I'd be interested to know. Best I can suggest is a lengthy trawl through Flickr, noting the last dates white stripes appear, and the first dates they disappear. I'd guess a few lasted until the late 80's, possibly early 90's. I have had a quick look for 31415 which was one I photographed with a white stripe in 1981. 31415 passing Newton Abbot with ECS 5/11/81. On Flickr I find a photo of 31415 with stripe at Saltley 25/5/82, the caption says it is en-route to Doncaster for collision damage repair. Another photo at Doncaster dated 29/8/82 sees 31415 newly painted blue without stripe, Photo from Flickr by Andy Hoare cheers 10 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GRUNFOS Posted September 20, 2023 Share Posted September 20, 2023 When did the buffer beam cowlings start to be painted black? Was it a depot thing? Paul. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rugd1022 Posted September 21, 2023 Share Posted September 21, 2023 Photo by Andy Hoare from his flickr site : 31 141 at Thornaby in 1980, when ABBA were in the charts and the Railway Modeller was just 50p...! 16 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rugd1022 Posted November 25, 2023 Share Posted November 25, 2023 (edited) Photo by Ian Charles : Thornaby on 7th April 1979... Photographer unknown : D5567 at York on 7th January 1961... Edited November 25, 2023 by Rugd1022 14 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray M Posted November 26, 2023 Share Posted November 26, 2023 i cant recall 101 being like this. Taken from pinterest 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium brushman47544 Posted November 29, 2023 RMweb Premium Share Posted November 29, 2023 On 26/11/2023 at 08:27, Ray M said: i cant recall 101 being like this. Taken from pinterest Can't say I've seen locos in service with bin bags over the buffers either. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Titan Posted November 29, 2023 Share Posted November 29, 2023 On 25/11/2023 at 12:39, Rugd1022 said: Photo by Ian Charles : Thornaby on 7th April 1979... Photographer unknown : D5567 at York on 7th January 1961... Did not know you could turn the first digit of the headcode up to 11! 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium 65179 Posted November 29, 2023 RMweb Premium Share Posted November 29, 2023 On 26/11/2023 at 08:27, Ray M said: i cant recall 101 being like this. Taken from pinterest It certainly carried this livery from early 1990 (and possibly late 1989) until withdrawal in 1993, and on into preservation. March 1990 on Martin Loader's site here: http://www.hondawanderer.com/31101_Winwick_1990.htm Simon 1 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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