Cymmer Afan MGR workings 1969

[br2975]

The link shows Cymmer Afan station in March 1969.

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The Bridgend - Treherbert service was cut back to Cymmer when the 'Rhondda Tunnel' was deemed unsafe.

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In reality, a schools contract kept the service going until late spring 1970.

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There is reference in the WTT of a Cymmer Afan - Aberthaw MGR circa 1968-1970.

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But can anyone identify where the MGR actually loaded ?

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My money is on the Duffryn Rhondda 'coal preparation' site just south of Cymmer.

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However, I stand to be corrected, and enlightened.

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Brian R

 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/camperdown/8441464727/

[HGT1972]

Hello Brian! You're right - Duffryn Rhondda washery. The pit closed at the end of 1966 but the washery (just modernised as part of an aborted upgrade of the colliery) continued in use with much of the Run of Mine coal coming in from Avon Colliery. They dispatched quite a bit of coal to Llynfi Power Station south of Maesteg and, as you say, the MGRs to Aberthaw. Due to the route they took the trains were assembled at Cymmer then through Cymmer tunnel via Maesteg and Bridgend to Aberthaw. Rail traffic from the washery ended in the first weeks of 1970 and it closed later that year.

 

Enjoyed your brother's layout at Taunton!

 

Hywel

[philwaglab]

Yes Hywel is spot on.The majority of marshalling from both Duffryn Rhondda and Glyncorrwg was done at Cymmer,this was to enable full loads of traffic for Margam to be made up.In 1966 wagons were recorded at Cymmer yard for such far off places as Fort William,Glasgow,Edinburgh etc etc.In 1968 wagons from Duffryn Rhondda were recorded in Cymmer Yard for Stonehouse,Exeter,Taunton,Abergavenny,Pontnewynydd,Crowborough,Reading etc etc

[Andy Kirkham]

As a slight digression, can anyone explain the popularity of names with Rhondda in them, for collieries which were not situated in either the Rhondda Fach or Rhondda Fawr valleys?

 

Duffryn Rhondda is mentioned above; there was North Rhondda at Glyncorrwg, South Rhondda at Llanharen, and British Rhondda in the Vale of Neath.

 

Was it perhaps a commercial ploy to attract investors by means of a famous name, even though it was geographically wrong?

[br2975]

Thanks Hywel & Phil.

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You have both confirmed my suspicions regarding Duffryn Rhondda, which although I was aware of the place and its' location is somewhere I had little knowledge of - after all the Afan Valley is allegedly one of the "remotest places" in the coalfield.

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I have always had an interest in the railways of the Cymmer Afan area since finding the signal box diagram displayed on the wall of the downstairs bar in the "Great Western" near Cardiff General, in the early 1970s.

 

So a little research later, and my IRS Handbooks suggest the last working loco at Duffryn Rhondda, "Eileen" a Hudswell Clarke of 1925 vintage arrived from Maesteg in April 1967.

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Cooke, Section 51 suggests the line from Cymmer to Duffryn Rhondda was singled in 1968, and the distinctive box demolished (it looked like Ron Weasley's parents house !!).

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However, the one line that formed the headshunt at the south end of the complex was extended in 1969, so business was continuing.

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My favourite 'nine-fivers' featured prominently in the area for a few years, but by 1967 Margam only had three remaining duties for its (Landore outbased) Cl.14s - one to Cymmer, another to Glyncorrwg. The third tripped to Eastern Depot at Swansea.

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D9529 ran away and was damaged in the area, being returned to Swindon for repair In August 1965.

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A year later and the same fate befell D9542 in the same valley.

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The R.O. reports that on 14th Feb 1969 D9521 and D9538 were both at Margam. The same edition of the R.O. also summarised the remaining class 14 diagrams in South Wales and opined that the class was unlikely to survive after March.

There was one duty listed from Margam – the 03:40 Glyncorrwg.

 

However the May RO records that the class 14 used on the 15:40 (sic.) Margam - Glyncorrwg had been replaced by a 350hp shunter (utilising a loco that had become spare when the Bridgend pilot duty was withdrawn in January), thus bringing to an end Margam-based class 14 workings. .

http://www.tymawrpublications.co.uk/Resources/Articles/10-16%20Brian%20Penney%20part1.pdf

 

Contains a photo of a failed Cl.14 with its rescuer a Cl.37 apparently at Glyncorrwg during January 1967...... but surely the Cl.37 was not permitted across Cymmer viaduct ?

.

And a few shots by John Wiltshire, care of Peter Brabham:-

 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/taffytank/5649925231

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https://www.flickr.com/photos/taffytank/8624593791

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There we are, a little research that saved me from "I'm a celebrity......"

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Brian R

[philwaglab]

Thanks Hywel & Phil.

.

You have both confirmed my suspicions regarding Duffryn Rhondda, which although I was aware of the place and its' location is somewhere I had little knowledge of - after all the Afan Valley is allegedly one of the "remotest places" in the coalfield.

.

I have always had an interest in the railways of the Cymmer Afan area since finding the signal box diagram displayed on the wall of the downstairs bar in the "Great Western" near Cardiff General, in the early 1970s.

 

So a little research later, and my IRS Handbooks suggest the last working loco at Duffryn Rhondda, "Eileen" a Hudswell Clarke of 1925 vintage arrived from Maesteg in April 1967.

.

Cooke, Section 51 suggests the line from Cymmer to Duffryn Rhondda was singled in 1968, and the distinctive box demolished (it looked like Ron Weasley's parents house !!).

.

However, the one line that formed the headshunt at the south end of the complex was extended in 1969, so business was continuing.

.

My favourite 'nine-fivers' featured prominently in the area for a few years, but by 1967 Margam only had three remaining duties for its (Landore outbased) Cl.14s - one to Cymmer, another to Glyncorrwg. The third tripped to Eastern Depot at Swansea.

.

D9529 ran away and was damaged in the area, being returned to Swindon for repair In August 1965.

.

A year later and the same fate befell D9542 in the same valley.

.

The R.O. reports that on 14th Feb 1969 D9521 and D9538 were both at Margam. The same edition of the R.O. also summarised the remaining class 14 diagrams in South Wales and opined that the class was unlikely to survive after March.

There was one duty listed from Margam – the 03:40 Glyncorrwg.

 

However the May RO records that the class 14 used on the 15:40 (sic.) Margam - Glyncorrwg had been replaced by a 350hp shunter (utilising a loco that had become spare when the Bridgend pilot duty was withdrawn in January), thus bringing to an end Margam-based class 14 workings. .

http://www.tymawrpublications.co.uk/Resources/Articles/10-16%20Brian%20Penney%20part1.pdf

 

Contains a photo of a failed Cl.14 with its rescuer a Cl.37 apparently at Glyncorrwg during January 1967...... but surely the Cl.37 was not permitted across Cymmer viaduct ?

.

And a few shots by John Wiltshire, care of Peter Brabham:-

 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/taffytank/5649925231

.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/taffytank/8624593791

.

There we are, a little research that saved me from "I'm a celebrity......"

.

Brian R

Hi Brian.A book worth reading is Fifty Years of station limits by John M Morgan.He was one of the last signalmen in Cymmer and details his life around the Cymmer area.I knew him personally and he gave me a lot of info on the area.The class 37 is somewhat of a mystery but I think 2 went over the viaduct when the ban was in place.The one to rescue the failed 14 and the othe to take the 2 cranes up to rerail the 14.This may have been the same occasion I dont know.John said that the 14 were terrable locos in the cymmer area and always were failing or derailing.In johns book there is an occount of a coupling break at Duffryn Rhondd in 1968 and a train of coal smashed through the stop block south of Duffryn Rhondda !!! 

[br2975]

Thanks Phil.

Found this link to the book, http://www.gwales.com/goto/biblio/en/9781847718297/  and it would make (me) a nice Crhistmas present.

 

Brian R

[br2975]

A couple more snipptes..................

 

The WTT for 1970-1971 shows the following MGR diagram.

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6O89 15:40 SX  Aberthaw - Cymmer Afan

6089 19:20 SX Cymmer Afan - Aberthaw arr. 20:40hrs

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The 1969 Sectional Appendix contains an entry relating to 'pigeon traffic' on the Bridgend - Treherbert line.

 

Briefly, one Siphon G could be attached to a DMU service, provided the DMU contained 3 motor cars, all engines of which were working.

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This 'sort of' narrows things down a little as by then the service was maintained by a Cl.121 'bubble car' with a three car Derby Suburban unit (Cl.116) being employed on the schools contract services (which prolonged the life of the line after the closure of the Rhondda Tunnel) and a couple of Saturday workings - one of which at one time had run through to Pontypridd.

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During 1970 two Class 103 Park Royal units were transferred to Canton and reformed into a 'power twin' with the trailers temporarily stored whilst the two DMBS cars operated the service - for a few weeks ( but long enough for me to see them ).

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Brian R

[br2975]

Carrying on from my previous post,  Cardiff Valleys DMU diagrams for 1966 show that Duffryn Rhondda Halt was still served by the Bridgend - Treherbert 'bubble car' several times a day.

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Obviously a 'Workmens Service"  the unit would need to reverse at Cymmer Afan ( on the trips shown thus * ) in order to make the short journey down the former R&SB line to Duffryn Rhondda.

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Unfortunately I don't have a 1966 WTT, the earliest I have is 1968-1969 (which I will study later).

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The following are the Bridgend - Cymmer - Treherbert line services that served Duffryn Rhondda Halt.

 

05:40       Tondu - Llangynwyd arr 05:50 ECS.

05:51       Llangynwyd - Duffryn Rhondda Halt arr. 06:20 *

07:04       Duffryn Rhondda Halt - Bridgend arr. 07:50 *

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13:38 SX Bridgend - Duffryn Rhondda Halt arr. 14:25 *

14:55 SX Duffryn Rhondda Halt - Treherbert arr. 15:26 

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21:33 SX Bridgend - Duffryn Rhondda Halt arr. 22:22 *

23:00 SX Duffryn Rhondda Halt - Llangynwyd arr. 23:31 *

23:32 SX Llangynwyd - Tondu arr 23:41 ECS.

 

Any further info would be appreciated.

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Brian R

 

 

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[philwaglab]

Hi Brian,

There are some great photos on the rcts site for cymmer afan. I will dig out some more info on Cymmer when I get 5 minutes.

[br2975]

There are some great photos on the rcts site for cymmer afan. I will dig out some more info on Cymmer when I get 5 minutes.

Thanks for any info on the Cymmer area.

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I've downloaded the shots from the RCTS mystery photo site, and got links to a few other images as well.

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For those unfamiliar with Cymmer Afan, here are a few shots from the RCTS site:-

http://www.rcts.org.uk/features/mysteryphotos/show.htm?srch=cymmer&serial=15&img=Y-36-17A

http://www.rcts.org.uk/features/mysteryphotos/show.htm?srch=cymmer&img=Y-36-20A

http://www.rcts.org.uk/features/mysteryphotos/show.htm?srch=cymmer&img=Y-36-21A

http://www.rcts.org.uk/features/mysteryphotos/show.htm?srch=cymmer&page=1&serial=22&img=Y-36-34A

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Brian R

http://www.rcts.org.uk/features/mysteryphotos/show.htm?srch=cymmer&img=Y-36-35A&serial=23&page=1

[philwaglab]

Hi Brian,

I have dug out some general info about failures in the Cymmer area during 1966.These are all for the 95 class locos.

 

March 3rd 1966 9520 Failed at Cymmer

March 30th 1966 9541 Instructions in foremans book do not switch off engine starting problems

April 1st 1966 9541 Failed at Cymmer

April 6th 1966 9536 Failed at Cymmer

April 20th 1966 9544 Failed at Cymmer

April 28th 1966 9528 Failed at Glyncorrwg

May 12th 1966 9544 Broken down at Cymmer.Problems with reversing gear

July 12th 1966 9536 Failed at Cymmer

July 15th 1966 9532 Failed at Cymmer

Sept 24th 1966 9542 At Cymmer awaiting collection (possably derailment at Gelli Ground Frame

Sept 30th 1966 9542 Collected from Cymmer to Canton

Oct 3rd 1966 9516 Failed at Glyncorrwg

Oct 6th 1966 9548 Failed at Glyncorrwg

A note in the Cymmer foremans logbook stated : Guard reported man taking parts off Class 14 engine at Gelli Ground frame,Police called and it turned out to be a fitter from Swansea doing some prep work for the loco to be moved after Gelli derailment !!!

 

Some headcodes in the area during 1966 were V42 V48 V43 V47 V49 & V50 also after April 66 J71 J72 J74 J75 & J76

 

Hope the above info will be of interest to yourself and others out there with 1960's interest

[br2975]

Hi Brian,

I have dug out some general info about failures in the Cymmer area during 1966.These are all for the 95 class locos.

 

March 3rd 1966 9520 Failed at Cymmer

March 30th 1966 9541 Instructions in foremans book do not switch off engine starting problems

April 1st 1966 9541 Failed at Cymmer

April 6th 1966 9536 Failed at Cymmer

April 20th 1966 9544 Failed at Cymmer

April 28th 1966 9528 Failed at Glyncorrwg

May 12th 1966 9544 Broken down at Cymmer.Problems with reversing gear

July 12th 1966 9536 Failed at Cymmer

July 15th 1966 9532 Failed at Cymmer

Sept 24th 1966 9542 At Cymmer awaiting collection (possably derailment at Gelli Ground Frame

Sept 30th 1966 9542 Collected from Cymmer to Canton

Oct 3rd 1966 9516 Failed at Glyncorrwg

Oct 6th 1966 9548 Failed at Glyncorrwg

A note in the Cymmer foremans logbook stated : Guard reported man taking parts off Class 14 engine at Gelli Ground frame,Police called and it turned out to be a fitter from Swansea doing some prep work for the loco to be moved after Gelli derailment !!!

 

Some headcodes in the area during 1966 were V42 V48 V43 V47 V49 & V50 also after April 66 J71 J72 J74 J75 & J76

 

Hope the above info will be of interest to yourself and others out there with 1960's interest

From some scribblings in one of my notebooks, the following 'nine-fivers' were located as follows on Sunday 24th. July, 1966.

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Including some (in bold) referred to above;

 

9509 Swansea, Landore

9510 Cardiff, Canton

9511 Cardiff, Canton

9512 Cardiff, Canton

9515 Cardiff, Canton

9516 Swansea, Landore

9518 Cardiff, Canton

9514 Newport, Ebbw Jct.

9528 Swansea, Landore /Margam (in use ?)

9529 Swansea, East Dock

9532 Barry

9533 Cardiff, Canton

9534 Cardiff, Canton

9536 Swansea, Landore /Margam (in use ?)

9537 Radyr

9538 Radyr

9540 Cardiff, Canton

9541 Severn Tunnel Jct.

9542 Margam

9543 Swansea, Landore

9544 Swansea, Landore

9545 Swansea, East Dock

9546 Margam

9548 Radyr

9549 Cardiff, Canton

9550 Radyr

9551 Radyr

9553 Severn Tunnel Jct

.

Brian R

[philwaglab]

Hi Brian,Im surprised there were none at Aberbeeg

[br2975]

Hi Brian,Im surprised there were none at Aberbeeg

 

I've no doubt there were examples at Ebbw Jct, Aberbeeg and possibly Rogerstone, but I don't think my source visited any of the Eastern / Western Valleys that weekend. 

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These were the surviving South Wales turns (24) for the remaining 'nine-fivers' at July 1967.

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86A Canton outbased, Newport Ebbw Jct.

(i) Uskmouth Branch trips incl. Uskmouth Power Station

(ii) Bedwas Colliery & Trethomas Coke Ovens.

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Outbased Pontypool Rd.

(iii) Abergavenny trips

(iv) Glascoed trips

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Outbased Aberbeeg

(v) Aberbeeg trips pilot

(vi) Aberbeeg banker 

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Outbased Severn Tunnel Jct.

(vii) Chepstow and Tintern Quarry

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86A Canton

(i) Cardiff area - Barry, Barry Docks & Radyr Yd.

(ii) Cardiff area - Ely Paper Mill, Newtown Yard/Long Dyke & Radyr Yard

(iii) Cardiff area - Penarth Town & Penarth Cement Works.

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Outbased Abercynon

(iv) Trips to Lady Windsor Colliery (Ynysybwl)

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Outbased Aberdare

(v) Trips to Mountain Ash

(vi) Trips to Abercwmboi Phurnacite Plant

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Outbased Barry

(vii) Trips to Aberthaw

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Outbased Radyr

(viii) Trips to Aber Jct (via Taffs Well)

(ix) Trips to Cathays, Gabalfa Coal Yd. and Stanton & Staveley Ltd.

(x) Trips to Treforest, Pontypridd & Maritime Colliery

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Outbased Treherbert

(xi) Trips Rhondda Valley

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87E Landore outbased Margam

(i) Trips to Glyncorrwg

(ii) Trips to Cymmer

(iii) Trips to Swansea Eastern Depot

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87E Landore

(i) Landore Steelworks and trips to Margam / Neath

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Outbased Swansea Eastern depot

(ii) Trips to felin Fran & Mond Nickel

(ii) Swansea Eastern depot Control, duties as required.

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Cardiff Trip (i) Newtown - Ely Paper Mill and Radyr was the probably longest surviving turn for "nine fivers" and was used to keep the officially withdrawn locos in running order in anticipation of their sale to private industry. They would struggle past my old school, just after 11.00am heading for Radyr with 50+ SLU in tow most days, screaming for mercy and clagging like mad. Double English would come to an abrudpt halt for the passing !!

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This turn was eventually taken over, gradually by an 08, and the noise was just as bad, but the loco would crawl by.

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Brian R