thegreenhowards

I think that my 1953 wtt shows two New England to Ferme Park ‘pick up’ goods trains. One stopping at the more northern stations and the other at the more southern ones. I’m away at present so can’t check but will report back in due course. That would fit with John’s theory above.

I think I have the ‘box set’ of hobbies. Apart from railway modelling, I can claim Munro bagging, following QPR, restoring and running an MGB, running an allotment and, of course, 1:1 railways - particularly English Electric and Alco diesels. Of those, I’m ashamed to say that it’s normally railways which I mention last to a new acquaintance. It normally gets met with a roll of the eyes or complete disinterest but occasionally someone is fascinated. it’s just as well I’m retired and have an understanding wife! Andy

They are excellent books. I only have vols 2 &3 as they are the relevant ones for the ECML in the ‘50s and I bought mine when they came out from the Bluebell shop. Enjoy yours. Vol 2 is very complex and it takes a while to get your head around what worked where and when and in what form it was finished at that stage. I have copious notes on a piece of paper attached to mine!

I did manage a couple of hours running in the loft on Monday but since then Ive been too busy to post anything. Anyway, here is the first move of Monday’s session - N7, 69637 arriving on the branch train, a D210 artic twin. here it is after arriving. …and waiting to depart having run round. The video shows the departure.

I think a loco with no lamps looks naked, so I’d rather have the wrong lamps than none at all. But i do agree that slavish fidelity gets in the way - look no further than the whole coupling debate! However, I do like constructive criticism on here and I welcome debates about which lamps are right as that is how one learns As above, please don’t apologise Roy. I find this train a bit strange so its interesting to discuss which lamps it should have. We all know a pick up on a branch line is the one lamp code K. But a pick up on the mainline seems to be different according to the WTT. I’ll change them if anyone can produce photographic evidence!

Roy, Normally I’d agree with you. Class K is the classic branch pick up good with a lamp over the right buffer (as you look at it head on). However, the WTT for Peterborough- London seems to show the pick up goods as a Class H as I’ve shown it. This helps me as it’s the same head code as the mineral trains so I can get away with gluing them on! I may be wrong so if anyone has definitive evidence to the contrary, please shout. Andy

Indeed. I went to see Hamilton yesterday afternoon which was excellent. When I got home at 10pm I tried and it was very slow. But it seems better this morning and I’ve managed to delete those duplicate posts. I don’t have any new material, so I’ll shortly head into the loft to record some more.

It seems to have done a duplicate post again today even though I was very patient and didn’t press post or refresh again. No wonder it’s slow if lots of posts are being duplicated!

Duplicate post

Next train to feature is the up pick up goods headed by WD 2-8-0, 90428. I meant to take a picture of the train on the viaduct but seem to have only managed the video so you’ll have to look at that to see the whole train arriving. Once it arrived at the station the rear of the train is left in the up lay back. Once I got into the shunting, I realised that I hadn’t run the pick up since I ballasted the ‘pick up’ side of the station. One point was jammed solid even though I swear I checked them all after ballasting. And another had a broken wire from when I tidied up under the baseboard meaning it didn’t fire at all. Anyway, after a days pause wile I sorted that out, the pick up duties were performed. Here it is picking up the empties. Having dumped the empties back on the rest of the train in the layback, The full coal and vans/ open for the goods shed we’re then left .and the train reassembled ready to depart from the up lay back siding. The video shows the train crossing the viaduct and then one of the shunting moves. Any comments on the operating procudeures for the pick up would be appreciated. PS. Sorry about the duplicate post yesterday. RMWeb seems to be running very slowly for me and I must have hit ‘post’ twice. I will delete the duplicate when it speeds up.

Duplicate post.

Another view of the viaduct today. This time it’s A3, 60110, Robert The Devil on the down Talisman. Sorry about all the background clutter. It’s very tight in this area and I’m afraid that, as far as I’m concerned, life is too short for photoshopping beyond a basic crop! Here is the video…with similar background clutter.

My latest project is a Gresley D.227 65’ Sleeper First. This is a vehicle I’ve fancied making for a while but could never work out how to do the windows on the berth side which are very different from the D.157. I’ve previously produced the D.157 by cut ‘n’ shutting 61’ SLF Kirk sides. However, Jonathan W of this parish kindly put me in touch with Roy Mears and he drew and laser cut some sides from plastic for me. What a great hobby this is with people prepared to share their skills. To my shame, I lost the sides over the Summer and only found them again when tidying up Gresley Jn for my recent running. Once found, I cracked on with them while I was self isolating with Covid, and this us the state of play. I have put one if my D.157’s behind to show the difference in window arrangements. The corridor side is identical as shown below. The ends are from 247 and the roof is MJT. I struggled to get the coach together as the sides were quite floppy and the epoxy leaked a bit so I will need to do some touching up I haven’t started on the chassis yet, but I expect that will be copper clad with MJT bits.

We’re nearing the end of what I can run from the fiddle yard without resorting to cassettes (which for those of you who forgot was the point of this run through). I thought we should feature the viaduct for a final visit of a few trains so here is K3, 61870 crossing the viaduct on a steel train. I’m conscious that a K3 is not the most likely traction for this train but I’m a sucker for Gresley power and I have too many K3s and not enough 9Fs and WDs! Here is the video.

Today we move back to the more mundane with a early to mid ‘50s outer suburban set hauled by B1, 61027, Madoqua. I tried an arty shot for this one. Not sure whether it works! Here’s the video.

I agree. My favourites and the reason I model the ECML. I have the Accurascale one with sound on order and I can’t wait to try that.

Today it’s the turn of the Tess Tyne Pullman. This is run in its early ‘60s guise with met cam cars and as yet unnamed Deltic, D9006 on the sharp end. First seen coming through the station with an assortment of trains lined up. and rounding the reverse curves. The video show it coming round the reverse curves followed shortly bu the J6 and oil tanks which followed on behind.

Today we feature the opposite working to yesterday with the Dunstable branch push pull arriving. This features ex GCR F2 E7111 as used on the Ally Pally shuttle in the early BR years. I suspect the coaches should really be in coach brown or teak but I think it’s just possible that the coaches were painted before she was withdrawn in 1950. One day I will build a second set in teak. after arrival in platform 6, she shunts over to platform one to await departure. Here is a video of her arriving.

Yes, I was slightly bemused by it! I found it in my box of stuff which I’ve bought but not yet commissioned for the layout. In the case of locos that involves chipping as a minimum and should also involve weathering, lamps, coal and crew but doesn’t always. The thing about this one is that I have no recollection of buying it or any idea when I bought it or where it came from! Nice problem to have I suppose.

I’ve done some more haulage tests on my west riding rake. I tried: A DJH A2, 60528, fitted with a Portescap A DJH A1, 60119 fitted with a GB1 motor gearbox combo. a Bachman A1, 60146 renumbered from 60130 but otherwise standard. Hornby A/2, 60501 straight out of the box All managed the train comfortably which is reassuring. The best was the A2 which I bought from ‘sir’ last summer when I visited. It was from one of the estate sales. It romped round with no appreciable drop in speed at any point. 60119 and 60501 both slowed a little on the bend and uphill section but managed comfortably. But the best news was that Bachmann A1, Peregrine managed fine as well. As with 60119 and 60501 there was a slight dip in speed on the uphill section and bend but nothing too bad. This is one of what I call the middle batch of Bachmann A1s so gives me a way forward for the train. I hope that a simple body swap with my blue 60118 will yield a blue A1 capable of hauling the train. I’ve just found a Bachmann Meg Merrilies which I’d forgotten I had, so will see if that will do the job.

Today the DMU which has been sitting patiently in platform 1 finally gets its moment in the spotlight. Here we see it ready to depart for Dunstable. and here passing the gasometers. and here’s the video.

Chas, I think Tony has summed it up pretty well. The only other regular working in Scotland that I’m aware of is the TO-RT pairs which worked the ‘junior Scotsman’ each way (one in each set) between King’s Cross and Glasgow. Regards Andy

Today’s picture I actually took some time ago and forgot. It’s 60506, Wolf of Badenoch on a Peterborough 5 set. This loco was the one I built when I went to stay with ‘sir’ to learn about kit building and is the first working chassis that I built (with a lot of help). So it’s rather special to me and despite the Hornby version probably being better it will stay in the fleet. Here’s the video.

Thanks fir the suggestion but I think that would be too solid. The NEM arrangement works because of the flex in the pocket itself. See below for a view of the gas trip wagons. The couplings on these are rather chunky but still better than most of the alternatives IMHO. I wonder whether I could permanently couple them in rakes of 4 with 0.45mm brass wire between the wagons. This would be almost invisible while still providing support in a springy way while reversing. Any thoughts? Andy

I’ve done a bit more digging on the West Riding. The ex West Riding twin FO was destroyed in the Huntingdon fire but an ex Coronation one was drafted in to replace it and seems to have lasted until it went to the Master Cutler in about 1954. It’s certainly shown as twin FO in the Summer 1953 CWN. It then came back to the ECML to do the Talisman from 1956. After the fire there was no spare and I think this is when the Thompson FO may have appeared on occasion. The permanent allocation of the Thompson FO was probably at the same time or shortly after the back of the train went Mark 1. If Hornby ever produce the twin FO in blood and custard I will have one for my rake as it will replace what is, at best, a rare occurrence. I don’t have to worry about the extra door as this rake is around the time of the fire. In terms of livery, I’m sure I read somewhere that they were all painted blood and custard before re-entering service after the war. However I can’t find that reference now and there is this footage of a blue twin on the Aberdonian which I first saw on your thread from, I think, Tom Foster. Scroll to the very end (c.25 mins). https://player.bfi.org.uk/free/film/watch-great-north-of-scotland-railway-films-1963-online?fbclid=IwAR3OY3fAw1w8VXsVj5EIo-R7DkkLIo3GfmuLp0ynVg8dGgUVmhJ5tmdnZww I hope this helps. Andy