talisman56

The 2-coach local sets 'R' (later 'P') (22-29) were high-window stock, except for the BCKs in 23/28/29 which were low-window.

In BR days, 469 was formed BSK-SK-SK-FK-SK-BSK, using 4048/2351/2350/7665/2349/2789. 2789 was a D.2113 high-window 1935 stock BSK, installed in 1945 as a replacement for 4049, which was damaged beyond repair in September 1944. I have sent Dapol two eMails regarding the non-prototypical appearance of 4049 in BR days, but obviously they have ignored them...

I suppose that's one way of stopping people from using it...

In the 50s and 60s 3052 was the 'chosen one' when TPTB decided that a BEL unit would be the chosen to transport various members of Royalty (up to and including HRH the Queen) to various functions, including race days and Portsmouth Naval Reviews. One example reported below: http://www.guildford-dragon.com/2014/10/30/working-on-the-railway-by-bob-hind-and-his-award-winning-staff-magazine/royal-train-at-woking-1953-robert-hind/

See Gwiwer's post (#1009) above. The 1925 '3' units were new builds as opposed to steam stock conversions thus had a few less miles on the clock, and were steel-clad. The units they were converted to (S92-S101, later 011-020) lasted from 1959 to 1980. Prior to that there were a few ex-'2' trailer set vehicles converted to single car de-icing vans (converted 1949) which were MU-fitted and ran between two '3' sets in service, and two short-lived 2-car sets (S90/S91, 1957) which were converted from general '3' stock.

The later ones were converted from 2HAL and all-steel 4SUB power cars...

Diagram 3092 Van C/BY vans: 400-49 (Ashford, 6-7/37), 651-750 (Ashford/Eastleigh, 3-9/38), 751-800 (Eastleigh, 3-10/39), 931-80 (Eastleigh, 10/40-1/41) Ref. King, An Illustrated History of Southern Coaches.

My guesses: 1) Track circuits 2) Return current path bonding 3) Something else to do with the conductor rail breaks at that location

Prototype weathering... you'd never get away with it on an exhibition layout... What's the purpose of the third rail in the centre road in that photo?

C4845 - the unit waiting on the left is no. 251...

A few Southern films... The Merchant Navy of Venice Schools for Scoundrels The Greyhound of the Baskervilles

Is it the tree/mast sticking out the top of the cab? Not an L&Y aficionado so otherwise not a clue...

The second DBT behind 74008 is one of the rarer, earlier versions of the Brake Tender, seen in more detail in this photo found on SEMG http://www.semgonline.com/diesel/pics/jle_Bktdrs01.jpg

Correct, except that the last lot (21263-21275) was to D172 and went to BR(S).

There must have been more than that because my records show 21246/47 (from ER, 2/62 but didn't stay long before returning); 21251 (ex-LMR 3/65) and 21263-75 (new between 2/64 and 5/64) being on BR(S) books... <Slaps head> <Trots up to study and retrieves Hugh Longworth's reference tome on Mark 1 and Mark 2 coaches> Mark 1 BCK 21000-21275 produced between 1954 and 1964 in 14 lots - the last three of which were fitted with Commonwealth bogies from new instead of BR1 bogies - to two Diagrams: D171 12 first, 18 second; D172 12 first, 24 second.

C0997 - quite likely a special as the only first class on the train is the two compartments in the first vehicle, a BCK...

Grab the bargain while you can - there are two free extra sets of wheels on the 'Schools' class...

Looks like an improvised set of trap points to me...

A bit of a 'storm in a teacup' report on BBC Points West this evening, as the villagers of Brinkworth complain about the design of the new bridge over the railway near the village...

...and we thought selling empty boxes was a high point in eBay madness...

Looks like it's a new formation laid out before installation so the PW crew can see what they are dealing with. The white 'paint' looks like a protective coating to avoid damage before installation.

You'll have to tell us what you were wearing that day...

The only things that aren't awesome are the various coloured wools from their own Angora Goats, for some reason. It'd be really awesome if they came off the back of the Goats ready-coloured...

There are lies, damn lies, and statistics... and now, apparently, think-tank reports...

The SR followed LSWR practice and arranged the corridors so they alternated down the set, but stopped short of having 'handed' Brakes. The 'Ironclads' were the last SR stock constructed with 'handed' brakes, for use in sets with an odd number of vehicles. With an even number of coaches in a set, the corridors will alternate OK, but with an odd number then there will be two neighbouring vehicles which will have their corridors on the same side. The usual arrangement for a 3-set was to have the first-class in the CK to be arranged next to the lower-numbered BTK (corridors on opposite sides) and the other BTK would have its corridor on the same side as the CK. With 5-sets and higher, the situation quickly got messy and sometimes two of the inner vehicles were same-handed rather than the higher-numbered BTK and its neighbour. ...And once they started to include open vehicles... In pictures from the late-30s onwards, show that some cases the inner vehicles of high-window sets were arranged so that the corridors were on the same side and therefore with one of the brake vehicles, the other one, of course will have the corridor on the opposite side to the rest of the set. Whether this spread to the low-window sets cannot be confirmed, as the corridor windows are the same height as the compartment windows on the other side (most pictures concentrate on the train with the loco in prime position, and the coaching stock is very much in the background and it is very difficult to distinguish a corridor window from the compartment windows at a very shallow angle of view). When introduced, the Bulleids followed basically the same principle but as the BTKs were semi-open there wasn't the same problem with alternating corridors with the brake vehicles.