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A brief return to the Water Orton to Carlisle freights. I’ve yet to recover my books from storage. I have though a picture of Hornby 92167 about to commence the journey from my layout of Water Orton. I’m sad to say the layout has now gone pending said house move. The tender would have been filled quite a bit more than here though!

A photo just found, very topical given the recent weather. The WD and 8F on freight departure lines. I could be wrong but unlikely to travel far light engine…most likely they will travel through the station having left freights in the yards. They would then use the crossovers at East Junction, and travel back to Saltley.

Iain great to see an update on this fantastic layout best wishes Brian

I believe this may be the class 25 working mentioned. I’ve tried to work out the four figure headcode 4 fast freight S scotland 67 train number. In any event on the fast lines at Water Orton heading towards Derby and North East

I recall a similar picture in the book From the Footplate, the route of the Devonian . I have the book but is in store pending house move. If I recall it has one of the Saltley trio of 9fs in the same spot as the black five awaiting departure . I’ve just been reading an entry, on another blog, by an ex Saltley footplate crew member. In diesel days a class 45 or 25 was rostered. There were two trains daily, booking on at 0300 hrs to staff the 03 50 departure from Water Orton. The second 15 00 for 1545 departure, arriving at Carlisle at 23 40. The departure from Carlisle was 16 03 arriving at Washwood heath at 23 33 hrs.

Briefly returning to the famous freight over the Settle line. I believe in steam days it was the 4 50 pm departure from Water Orton yards. This was my home village. I have included a photograph of what I believe is the train about to commence its journey. The tender filled to capacity, not the case on arrival, some hours later! Terry Essery comments in his book there were no fat firemen!

Hello John (s) Its good to see locomotives being run, on your layout John. My own version of the RSH tank Hams Hall no 13 has been retained by me, together with a Peckett no4 . They await the new layout I also, classed the Deltics in my spotting days, cabbing one at Waverley in 1971. I’m sorry to say the East coast Pacific’s had all gone, by the time I was travelling around the country spotting , in the late sixties and early seventies. My reduced collection is again growing, a Midland flatiron awaits a replacement comet chassis and High level motor gear assembly. The Fowler 264t set providing the frames. Santa left the Heljan HS4000 Kestrel as mentioned, and hopefully by the time of my birthday late January I will have the Heljan E2001, I have on order. My remaining stock has been in a storage unit for some months, a visit to it just prior to Christmas revealed I had retained more than I thought! No surprise really. It was like being reunited with old friends. Speaking of which A Happy , safe and prosperous New Year to you and your loved ones Brian

Speaking of research I have left my mortal remains to medical science…..they are currently contesting the will !

Merry Christmas to all, and a Happy New Year, hopefully in our new house. I’ve just recounted to John R, how in the name of research I used my body to establish the height of platform lamps situated at Cheltenham Racecourse station. We were on the Santa special yesterday, my wife son daughter in law and three year old grandson. I have bought a pack of working platform lamps for Coleshill. They are too tall. I discovered by standing next to two samples of the real article at Cheltenham yesterday. My 5 ft 10 inches rounded off to six foot that they appear to be in two sizes approx ten feet, or 14 feet. My family tried to disown me, but in the end agreed to make the visual assessment. The conclusion of this exercise, I will need to adapt the height of them for Coleshill being the smaller version. Trying not to damage the wiring. Thank you all for continuing to read this, and for any contributions made. photo of our locomotive Foremark Hall added. John will confirm , the GWSR is a delight. Brian

Merry Christmas Manna to you and your loved ones best wishes Brian

A photo from the Warwickshire Railways archive. Flatiron and 2F at Saltley. I couldn’t resist the two shots of more modern times at New Street as well

I can’t help myself, having downsized my collection recently…a Heljan HS 4000 awaits opening under my Christmas tree.This was purchased partially ,to cheer me up after our house move has stalled. More appropriate for this thread another pick me up purchase. A Midland Flatiron.It was bought as a non runner. Nicely painted and lined. It will have my preferred comet chassis high level motor and gears fitted sometime in the new year. Posed for now alongside Coleshill. They were regulars on this line.

Hello John, on the subject of push pulls, the latest BRIll December edition has a photo of the Annesley Dido workmens train. It has two ancient clerestory coaches one of which appears to my uninformed eyes, push pull fitted with driving end windows. The engine propelling it, is a N7 69691, again a type I’m not used to without googling the information. Just done so ,….ex GER type , as you and your other Eastern readers knew without checking unlike me! best wishes Brian

Nice to see it earning a living John.

I am conscious that my recent posts concerning Coleshill have been prototype based, setting the scene and era. I will continue showing any work on the models here , but have created a separate thread for the historical stuff in modelling real locations. Coleshill Forge Mills

Don’t worry John I will probably send it to you to run on your great layout , when I next move house and downsize. Must go now and have my medication…

Hello John great to see them at work on an appropriate layout. I don’t think an A2 or A4 , ever visited Birmingham in British Railways days. My Christmas present is in storage awaiting the house move…which is imminent … Mrs Santa had allowed me a sneak preview before wrapping applied, a Heljan HS4000 Kestrel. I know as out of place , in the Midlands as the two previously mentioned steam locos. I never saw it in operation , before it was sold to the Soviet Union. You may also notice, the collection is starting to grow again. Will I ever learn! E2001 to follow, on pre order before the downsize. Saw the about to be released model, on the Heljan stand at Warley. I saw the real thing standing forlornly at Rugby about 1972.

The Bagnall is preserved, as you can see. I never saw it run, unlike the diesels which I saw many times crossing the Minworth Road at Water Orton, as seen in that photograph. It is therefore fantastic watching the similar Kerr Stuart in operation. I hope to see it in real life in due course. We are hoping to be in our new home in Tenbury for Christmas….to be fair our solicitor didn’t specify which year! Lastly out of place, here but very much at home on the Tenbury branch, photo of GWR railcar on the Bewdley bridge. Strange but true a single car did travel to Derby on a special. In addition the three car set also visited. I have models of both trains, retained so will be travelling through my model in due course.

The 2 ft railway had bagnall steam locomotives until replaced by diesel some photos

Thank you Methuselah. A Hams Hall Peckett at Titley, fantastic, and then the Bromyard Railway. You may be aware that an extensive 2 ft gauge line was operated by the Upper Tame Main Drainage Authority. It was centred at Minworth Sewage works which are situated near to where Water Orton marshalling yards, were located. The railway was dismantled in the 1980s. At its peak, it encompassed the main works at Minworth. The Western boundary of the system, was the Sutton Park line from Water Orton Yards towards Bescot. It’s Eastern one was Coleshill. A drainage/ sewage works has been built alongside the Leicester line in the twenties/ thirties. Hams Hall power station was alongside it also. Aerial photos giving some detail to the maps shown

Further map showing it in relation to the Hams Hall power station complex, sadly no more. Plus a close up of it in Midland days

More photos showing location on os maps and further photos of station

Coleshill Forge Mills. This station was situated on the Birmingham to Leicester line. The present Coleshill Parkway station now occupies the site. I am modelling the station as constructed in the 1840s. It was called Forge Mills at this time, and was situated some way , from Coleshill itself. This town is in NE Warwickshire some 12 miles from Birmingham. The station was called Forge Mills, these two features were at that location. It was also to distinguish it from the other Coleshill station at that time. That station was built on what had been the original Derby to London main line. This had travelled through Kingsbury, then to Whitacre. A large junction station was constructed there. That line then left the Leicester Birmingham line, and went to Hampton in Arden, and a junction there with the LNWR. This line was known as the Stonebridge railway. A station was constructed on this line, again some way from the town , and named Coleshill, hence the need to distinguish between the two. The line soon lost its mainline status and became a backwater. The second Coleshill station was renamed Maxstoke, and Forge Mills became Coleshill. A full history can be found in the Warwickshire Railways webpage. I have previously modelled Water Orton station, and a topic on that kitbuilding thread. ( Since renamed to Coleshill forge mills layout and stock) It was there as the building of that station and other buildings had been from scratch. A lot of kit built stock also. This layout is no more, due to an impending house move. Whilst awaiting that momentous occasion, I anticipated building a new layout. I won’t have the amount of layout space I had before, therefore the need to model an area smaller in comparison. A former resident of Water Orton, before moving and settling in the Black Country…and about to move further west to Tenbury Wells! I have many happy memories of my former home in Warwickshire. Coleshill station , was a short bike ride from my then home in Water Orton. I decided to model it, ticking a lot of the nostalgia boxes. In theory I can model it in a smaller area. Making the model has also reduced the stress of this darned house move…this is nearly done… moving hopefully just before Christmas. I have been conscious that a lot of my recent posts in my current thread involve history and place setting rather than kit building etc hence this thread. Photo of model and of real thing.

I really enjoyed speaking with Barry and yourself, thank you for a very interesting conversation, not least the reason for your moniker. Please have a safe journey when you return to Australia. The layouts you recommended I inspect, in the Hall, were indeed top notch. best wishes Brian

Hello xm607 Sincere thanks for taking the time to speak with me at Warley. I really enjoyed your models, and your description of their construction. I believe you have outlined the extensive work to the KR Fell on that thread. I have built the Judith Edge kit, and briefly owned the KR version. The was sold before, attempting similar works you have done to yours. The kit replaced it. In respect of the NBL/ Parsons locomotive, is it possible, as John suggests ,to show a photograph of this model? or does it have its own thread? best wishes Brian