S.R. Sub-Stations

[Ceptic]

G'd evenin' All.

 

On the old RMweb forum, there were a couple of requests posted by Steve and Southernboy onto this thread by EtchedPixels :-

 

http://www.rmweb.co....php?f=5&t=51939

 

As EtchedPixel's thread enquiry didn't cover this topic, I thought it appropriate, seeing as we're about to be overrun by BR(S) DC EMUs , to bring the subject onto this forum.

 

Anyway, here's the updated pics.

The first few are from the old thread, taken at Petersfield in 2005, when the site was practically hidden from view by bloomin' Buddleia, and road works. The views start from the up platform, looking North, and work around, as far as I could get, anti-clockwise.

 

If any one would like pics. of '05 intermediate views, these can be viewed on the old forum, see link, above.

 

Apart from three '05 photos, taken from the road end, these shots were taken a year later, after the undergrowth had been cut back and the dust had settled. This time I was able to get all the way around.

Looking thro' the roadside fencing

Back where I started....Story of my life,... goin' round in circles.

 

More electrifying pics. to follow. The next high voltage instalment features the brick built sub-station at West Worthing.

 

Regards.

[Ceptic]

OK,

 

Not very exciting, I know, but just as essential to the running of the SR/BR(S) rail network as, say, steam loco coaling plants/stages and diesel fuelling points.

 

Here's the pics. of the West Worthing sub-station, taken 18/08/06, with the blinkin' bloomin' Buddleia still blocking a decent trackside shot .

 

 

I'm off now to take a few pics. of T.P. Huts, both metal and concrete, if I can get close enough.

 

Or I might just take up tractor spotting, (farm type). Bye fer now.

[Welly]

Actually I think these structures would be a challenge to model convincingly, the concrete texture, the weathering etc but will make a very nice corner filler on a 3rd rail layout.

 

:icon_thumbsup2:

[Southernboy]

I think that's where they put naughty children?

 

 

Excellent photography: I intend building a concrete substation for my layout at some point and your pictures are going to be invaluable. There's a wealth of detail there, especially around the electric bits which are not easy to see / photograph / memorise at the best of times.

 

My thanks again.

 

Mark

[cornelius]

If you're inclined to go to Glynde, the substation there is fairly accessible for photos.

[Southernman46]

That dustbin looking thing is a 33kV GEC JB424 bulk oil filled circuit-breaker installed in the early 1950's to replace the original 1935 vintage ASEA switchgear. They are of a standard basic design built for the SR electrification schemes to Hastings / Brighton / Eastbourne / Sevenoaks / Portsmouth / Reading / Sturt Lane (Farnborough)between 1932 & 1937. The standard layout catering for 2 HV 33kV feeder cables, one rectifier transformer & 4 DC circuit-breakers. The building & "raft" - the concrete structure with the busbars / switchgear were enlarged depending on the number of additional 33kV cables / rectifiers & DC circuit-breakers at the site. Large scale 33kV switchgear replacement was undertaken in the 1950's.

 

Might be able to lay my hands on some layout drawings for these substations.

[John M Upton]

At least the forests of buddleia keep all but the most determined graffiti moron at bay! I wondered if Bachmann would consider doing one of these substations in their buildings range, maybe as a limited edition as they did with the Hornby Mag signal box a while back?

 

Looking at the various substations today whilst on duty I noted that if you wish to model the current scene, all will need to be fitted with a scale plastic owl!! Supposed to scare off the pidgeons from getting shorted out in the transformers, they are usually covered in bird muck so probably safe to say they are not that effective!

 

The substation at Barnham in the vee of the triangle of the Bognor Branch is of the same era but a bit larger and refreshingly untouched by the graffiti morons, may try and get some pics of it one day, the view will be easier in a couple of weeks time as the signal box is about to be shifted.

[Ceptic]

Hi All.

Thanks for your comments, especially your technical info. Southernman46. Any diagrams you do have, willl be very welcome on here.

Me and electrical terms don't seem to have the old spark, hence the lack of, accompanying the photos.

I remember seeing one or two pics. of larger, probably older, substation buildings, in and around the South London suburbs. These looked to be the size of a small cinema beside the tracks. I wonder if any of these are still standing?.

There's a BR pic. of a recent enclosed type at Waltham, between pages 128/9, in G.T.Moody's book 'SOUTHERN ELECTRIC 1909-1979'. These would be easier to model. See pics of Pokesdown substation further down the thread.

 

Cheers and bye fer now. Frank.

[Southernman46]

Yup - these are known colloquially as "catherdral" built for the original SE electrification scheme in 1925 - originally contained rotary converter equipment and each site was manned 24 hours a day by teams of 2 . The electrical supply to the track was shut down at night after the last trains and re-energised in the morning. Any maintenance being done by the 2 men overnight. The subs were kept spotless - you could have eaten your dinner off the floor - all were converted in 1954 to standard rectifer equipment and subsequently unmanned. Today, they are largely empty shells as equipment has gotten smaller over the years. They are all still in use although Barnehurst only as a TP hut, except for Shooters Hill on the Bexleyheath line which just disappeared during the war - never have found out what happened to it - no trace exists - "enemy action" I suspect.

 

Will search for the drawings at work

[Southernboy]

Just to say I'd also much appreciate seeing any diagrams/drawings you may have Southernman46

[Ceptic]

Hi again.

You may have seen / referred to Russ Elliott's excellent site on the old RMweb, and, I think it's well worth repeating the link here.

 

http://homepage.ntlw...tt/3rd-4th.html

 

Packed with a wealth of info. regarding the PW side of things, it is regularly updated. Hopefully, at some point, to cover the current supply system.

 

Regards, Frank.

[Spearmint]

Congratulations on the unusual subject matter.

Please be aware however that in this day and age, pointing cameras at locations such as these can be seen by some as naughty.

 

I had some students doing a project on sub-station design and layout. They were spotted and taken to the local nick for a serious session of questions / answers. They were not trespassing in any form, just taking photo's to illustrate their work.

I would also question the circulation of any layout drawings (system diagrams) no matter how old they are. This can lead to some very awkward questions being posed to the supplier of the same. Being a former supply industry employee I for one would be very reluctant to enter this particular activity - discuss it certainly, disclose plans etc - no chance!

 

I can understand the interest in the topic from anyone into SR stuff. Come to that, how many people include this equipment on modern 25kV layouts?

[Fenman]

Please be aware however that in this day and age, pointing cameras at locations such as these can be seen by some as naughty.

 

I had some students doing a project on sub-station design and layout. They were spotted and taken to the local nick for a serious session of questions / answers. They were not trespassing in any form, just taking photo's to illustrate their work.

 

I understand that not one UK terrorist has been found to be in possession of reconnaissance photos: the "fact" that of course all terrorists take recce photos is simply something we have learned from Hollywood movies (so, of course, it must be true).

 

As you say, people must be aware of the risk that they'll be bothered by uniformed people who believe Hollywood rather than the evidence. And this is not to denigrate those security people who have a difficult job to do, involving judgement calls where they will be pilloried if they get things wrong.

 

But unless we all resist unwarranted (note that word) intrusions on our liberty, we will have no-one but ourselves to blame when we find ourselves living in a British version of East Germany.

 

Paul

[Southernman46]

From bitter experience - all it takes to disable the HV side of a 1930's outdoor raft substation is a strategically lobbed bike - Al Qaieda need look no further than employing some of the yobbos that live on some of the rougher estates on the south coast !!

 

I agree wholeheartedly with the last post - many times I've been challenged for taking pictures of buses from a public place - but being physically large and business-like, I tend to dismiss these people with a "f*ck off and mind your own business" but then I do enjoy a good argument. (no comments about bring the hobby into disrepute please - these people consider us all sad lonely nutters anyway)

 

However, I do remember back in 1984 taking a photo of 73142 with the royal train bringing a Saudi royal from Gatwick to London (working for BR and being in the know). This was from the college overbridge just south of East Croydon station - literally just after the train had passed and I had had the presence of mind to tuck my Pentax ME super camera away into my coat and casually walk away, two police cars roared to a halt and 8 VERY large coppers spilled out with equally large machine guns looking in all directions (for me presumably). Definately felt to have got away with that one !!!!

[Ceptic]

Hi All.

 

Here's a fleeting glimpse of Bincombe T.P. (Track Paralleling) Hut, on the incline up to the tunnels at the summit, amid Hardy's beautiful Wessex*, South of Dorchester Junc'n, heading towards Upwey and Broadwey.

 

 

Regards, Frank.

 

* The County of Dorset's motto... 'Who's Afear'd'.

[Ceptic]

A handful of pics of a modern substation at Pokesdown. This one should be easier to model.

Approx. 48' long x 14' wide x 15' high. Measurements courtesy of Google Earth. The people with a camera in every one's back yard.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Regards.

[divibandit]

Ceptic, i thought about using Google Earth's photo gallery too but as you've shown there is often a fair bit of greenery around which doesn't help with dimensions etc, however careful observation has led me to the conclusion that the majority of SR substation buildings vary only in length, alas the same cannot be said about the outside equipment.

Steve

[Welly]

The heavy cables out of that substation at Pokesdown is an excellent excuse for having track feed above the baseboard!

[Ceptic]

Right on Steve.

 

The dimensions quoted were only an approximate guide. For greater accuracy, the Google Earth image needs to be a lot sharper and vertically overhead.

Once you can get a decent length or width measurement using GE, you can apply it to a perspective corrected pic of the same, to find the height.

 

Regards, Frank.

[Ceptic]

The heavy cables out of that substation at Pokesdown is an excellent excuse for having track feed above the baseboard!

 

Good Idea, Welly.

You cuold possibly put your conroller inside the building, with just the fwd./rev. projecting from the rear ?.

 

Regards.

[grahame]

Actually I think these structures would be a challenge to model convincingly, the concrete texture, the weathering etc but will make a very nice corner filler on a 3rd rail layout.

 

Like this? (in N gauge);

 

 

 

 

 

 

G.

[Ceptic]

Like this? (in N gauge);

 

 

 

 

 

 

G.

 

 

Stoney Lane by Graheme Hedges, as featured in this month's Hornby Mag. ( Dec.'09 ). It's been headlined previously in other magazines too,

Spiffing layout Graheme. Astonishing detail and atmosphere, all round, especially in 'N' Guage !!

 

Out of interest, whereabouts is the substation that you based your model on ?.

 

Regards, Frank.

[Ceptic]

Hi

Here's a shaky pic. taken yesterday at the Southampton MRS Show at Eastleigh.

It features a 4mm./ft. 'Cathedral' style sub-station as described by Southerman46 in his earlier post.

 

 

Just one of the outstanding attractions on this superb layout built and exhibited by the Basingstoke and North Hants MRS. A couple of others being a working Routemaster 'bus and a viewable 4mm. scale cinema, showing Buster Keaton in 'The General' (just the right height for the kids, if they get fed up with watching trains).

I was told that sub-station model was based on one at Billingshurst. I've tried searching for it on Google Earth, without much success. Maybe this is just the excuse I need to get the car out ? and go for a looksee/

 

Regards.

[Guest Celticwardog]

Complete, based on the concrete one in the photos

[phil-b259]

From bitter experience - all it takes to disable the HV side of a 1930's outdoor raft substation is a strategically lobbed bike - Al Qaieda need look no further than employing some of the yobbos that live on some of the rougher estates on the south coast !!

 

Its worth noting that about 5 years or so ago Network Rail embarked a a significant substation upgrade programme which has seen most - if not all the outside 'rafts' at substations removed and replaced with what can best be described as stainless steel containers on stilts. Inside they undertake all the functions of the 30s raft but ensure that vandals*, bird droppings or other environmental factors cannot affect the operation of the equipment

 

* The exception being when the copper fairies steel the earth bonding which then makes the places too dangerous to come near until it can be replaced