LMS2968

From memory, the resident diesel would haul 14 loaded MGRs from the loading point to the exchange sidings; on Thursdays it was under maintenance and the tankie (only No. 7 when I saw the operations) would haul seven loaded - but at a much faster speed than thee diesel could achieve. For some reason, Fred Larner decided to increase this, one wagon at a time. He eventually managed 11 loaded. It didn't seem to me to be going very much slower, but it was a lot louder!

Yes, I've walked a few miles eastwards from Pateley Bridge while visiting friends there. The trackbed is still very visible in places.

Yes, but count the fingers!

From memory, every passenger train comprising more than two coaches was required to take banking assistance up the Lickey, so this wasn't an uncommon occurrence. You do wonder though, since Lickey bankers did not couple on to the train they were 'assisting', just how big the gap was between the train and the pannier at the summit!

Must have been fun getting them through the washing plant sideways!

I do have the printed version but that is definitely worth knowing!

They certainly look the part; I'm very impressed. One minor point if you buy one and are adding the details: only 2945-54 had steam heat at the front end, while 2968 had it only in preservation.

You mean all the rattles and bangs as bits fell off!!??

Cylinder drain cocks - known to enginemen as 'taps' - are manually operated by a lever in the cab, usually via a simple linkage but sometimes by a steam valve (Stanier pacifics used this due to the length and complexity of a linkage). The position of the lever was the indication, and the cloud of steam at the front end was another clue. There were separate decompression (or cylinder relief) valves at the front and back of each cylinder to deal with any excess pressure within the cylinder, but water doesn't move that quickly, and neither the taps or decompression valves will always open fast enough to prevent damage.

I assume you do not have a job which entails dealing with the general public on a daily basis!

I live about a mile from there, having moved to Abram during 1977. Steam was still in regular use every Thursday as that was maintenance day for the diesel which normally worked the line. There were two diesels, but to my knowledge one of them never worked while there. You wouldn't recognise any of it now. The track remained in place for many years after the colliery closed, but now all is gone and it's beautifully landscaped. Thanks, Apollo.

I remember reading that a Scot was taken off its train (at Buxton?) with a hot box. The fitters were preparing to drop the wheelset out and pulled the coupling rods off the crankpins, at which point the wheel fell to the floor. Fortunately, no-one was in the way, but sheared axles following a hot box were far from unknown. Fortunately, FS's didn't progress that far.

Possibly the longest lasting are the remains of the first Parkside station, opened by the Liverpool & Manchester Railway on 15th September 1830. It closed (to passengers) in 1839 with the opening of the second station a quarter mile eastwards. As well as a station, it was also the only place between the termini where locos could obtain water. The photos show the now overgrown but recognisable stairway from the (now) A573 Parkside Road on the Up side; and the site of the station with a fair bit of the infrastructure left. The monument to William Huskisson MP, run over at this by Rocket on the opening day, is also seen, it having appeared a few years after the event. Vegetation is a problem when photographing here.

I don't think I should comment!

Yes, that was the point. Maintenance records of every loco were kept at its home shed. If a loco underwent a repair at a different shed, they had to know where to send the details of what and when was done.

Been there, Dave, and it's not a nice place to be. Best wishes to you, and a speedy recovery for your Mum.

The Super Ds were intensely disliked by Midland (and L&YR) men: if Frank Webb had ever heard of ergonomics he made certain they never sullied his engines. They were very uncomfortable for both driver and fireman to work, but their main problem over the Peaks was their attrocious brakes. The drivers through their LDC managed to get the Ds' maximum load down to the same as a 4F. The Ds would easily take a far greater weight up the inclines but were no better at stopping at past the summit and on the down grade.

That signalbox was from Edge Hill No 4 (Viaduct Junction) which was on the viaduct west of the shed. It was on the north side of the junction between the line crossing the Chat Moss line via the girder bridge which appears in many photos of the shed, and the the southern section of the Circle. The connecting box to the East was Olive Mount Junction. This line went out of use quite early: I think it was gone in my time in 1973 but could be wrong; it was a long time ago and the were a lot of tracks around Edge Hill. Wapping Cutting (as opposed to Wapping) still had tracks when I saw it last year but they were to Crown Street only (for running around) and had not seen a train for quite some time (inside the tunnel, the lights were still burning, though).

Yes, the terminology was extended to what became the 08s, which Hornby made, but Hornby Dublo's 0-6-0T was the Southern R1, unfortunately available in two-rail only. What were they known as down south of the Thames?

It depended on where the railwayman was based, and 'Jinties' was used by them in some areas, but generally not on the Midland. Similarly 'Jocko' was a general term for a shunter rather than the 3Fs in particular, but in some areas it would be a Jinty anyway, hence the application. 'Dobbo' and 'Humpy' were others. The L&YR 0-4-0STs are often what are meant when people refer to a 'Pug', but there were others, such as the Caledonian locos of the same wheel arrangement. This is shifting the topic quite a bit, but nicknames for various classes, used by railwaymen and spotters (they weren't always the same) could be diverse and very, very interesting, especially when the same name was applied to different classes by the two groups of people!

I thought that too but, like you, wasn't too sure so didn't mention it. I meant to say in my earlier reply that I was talking about the class generally and not at Rowsley in particular, as the workings in that area are not my particular interest (L&YR!). The two (main) types of reverser each had their particular advantages over the other. The lever type (pole to enginemen) was much easier to use when shunting as it was just full forward or full back in one quick movement. It's problem lay in running on the line, when it would be necessary to 'notch up', to reduce the piston stroke during which steam was admitted to the cylinder, by shortening the cut-off. This was done by moving the lever nearer to the mid-gear position, but with unbalanced slide valves, which these engines had, the steam pressure above the valve caused a lot of friction to the port faces. The effect once the catch locking the lever in position was released was for the valves to stop and the movement derived from the valve gear to be transferred to the lever, which would then throw the driver from one end of the cab to the other. It was necessary to fully close the regulator and allow time for the the admitted steam to clear before releasing the catch to overcome this. The screw reverser didn't suffer this problem and the cut-off could be altered with the regulator fully open; it also allowed an almost infinite variation of cut-off settings, unlike the rather crude notches of the lever. I heard that the Jinties were fitted with screw reversers for banking up Camden. It was necessary to shorten the cut-off part way up and with a lever and the necessary closing of the regulator, the Jinty would drop back from the train and then have to recover the distance. That was something I read a long time ago and, while it makes sense, I can't say it's correct.

They did indeed work trains along the line usual to a loco of that size: local passenger and trips, banking, ecs. etc. A few were fitted with screw reversers and some, possibly from the earlier batches only, with condensing apparatus.

God, that is just so depressing. So much had vanished since my days at Edge Hill, and so very much more has disappeared since that video wa made. I think I'll just go off and have a cry!

I have to admit, it leaves my Hornby Dublo station a bit wanting! An amazing piece of work, gentlemen, it seems almost sacrilege to paint it, but needs must I suppose. Brilliantly done, as always.