Smallwonder

No, sorry. Obviously not all sleeper carriages, but beyond that I can't say.

The next batch are from the first photos I took. Old second hand camera, poor skills and poor light. I have added only the best of them. Many are just too blurred / dull / poor. Firstly, what I think was the SPRS Santa specials in December 87 when it used to run round the Edinburgh suburban line, starting and finishing at Waverley. Portobello Junction. Shorter then, I seem to have struggled to see over the bridge. I remember it being very cold that day. Possibly by Peffermill. Or possibly by Turner. Departing Waverley. The next two are at Glasgow Central on 20 Feb 88. Probably taken on a trip to the Glasgow ModelRail exhibition. There more recently, I caught the last train at night that serves Paisley. I seemed to be in the singing carriage. 47658 at 0940. Possibly on a Carlisle service via the G&SWR. 87030. WCML bound. In the summer of 1989, 87030 pulled the Nightrider service from Euston to Carstairs with my family and me on board. We had seats It being much cheaper), but there was a lot to see at night in those days. Waverley 27 Feb 88: 47651 about to head to EC with ECS. 47651 is back from EC to head an Aberdeen service. If I'd gone over for a closer shot I would have missed the foreground filler tap and platform side cabling details that may interest others. I think I probably couldn't face the walk round, rather than any fear of invading what I now know to be MillerhillBoy's patch and possible ejection by Brute force...

Not much time today as hosting tomorrow. These are the only two photos I have scanned that I haven't posted. WIll need some free time with the scanner before I can add more. Crane at Craigentinny 1988. 47??? at Waverley in late '88. I haven't written its number on the photo (seem to have stopped doing that around this time), so will have to work my way through my record cards at some point to see what it was. Any guesses in the meantime? Merry Christmas.

Sorry Andrew it's a typo. You're quite right; it's 47401 as I had even written on the back of it. Will triple check in future.

No photo, but an odd coincidence. Have just been putting things up the loft. In an idle moment while my wife was sorting through a bag to pass up to me I grabbed a random copy of "Rail" from my pile which is conveniently near the hatch. Jan 89. Turning to "Traction Talk" I read this in the Scotland section of Class 47: "Carstairs-Edinburgh shuttle services were in the hands of 47500 Great Western on October 18 (1988), and 47574 Benjamin Gimbert GC (SF) on the 25th and 26th." So looks as though 47500 made it after all. Hope you didn't renumber in haste. You could always repaint at leisure...

Waverley 26 July 88 26003 assists with East end remodelling. 0905. Fresh livery did not last long. By April 89 it was in coal sector livery. 37113 at 0930 heading East. It returned later, together with 37401, 26001 and the stock for the 1203 to Euston (a service that joined the Glasgow portion at Carstairs). Triple headed ECS. Which loco had the honour of hauling the train I hear you ask? 26001, though inexplicably I don't seem to have taken a photo. Feeling snubbed, 37401 and 37113 attached themselves to 47378 and headed West in a light loco move. 47604 arriving with the Royal Scotsman at 1110. Tail end of the Royal Scotsman. Very white platform edge and a paint-pot. Coincidence? 37407 having backed on to the Royal Scotsman to take it West. 1130. Note the scrawled on shed plate under the lamp. Buses on the bridge. Tour buses sit there awaiting passengers so that is one bridge that justifies a bus.

Brilliant modelling. Shows that you don't need to compromise on realism in N gauge.

Another view of 37009 as it departs Falkland Yard on 19 July 88. 47227 at Falkland Yard at 1700 on 20 July 88. Ten minutes later we see 26026 on Ayr MPD. Were red point levers confined to Ayrshire? 47597 about to leave Waverley at 1500 on 24 July 88. Taking its outsized "9" with it. For once a nicely composed shot. 15 minutes later my skills revert to normal. 47524 and 47714, the former with a silver roof, so my notes would have me believe.

Early additions today. Following the Kyle trip (above) we're briefly back to Waverley before heading West. 47470 (IS), another in a non-standard livery, arrives at Waverley at 0950 on 4 July 88 with the "West Highlander"; not sure if it was a private charter. The other guy will have a better photo. 47401 heading to EC with ECS five minutes later. "Condemned" at Falkland Yard. 19 July 88. 37009 departs Falkland Yard northbound with a freight at 1930 on 19 July 88.

25 June 88 - Bad news for some regular viewers; we're not headed back to Waverley just yet. Still stopped opposite Inverness TMD while 47461 is removed. Allows for some further shots: 47492 in Intercity Scotrail livery. Love those doors. A better angle on 37046 (IS) reveals 37416 (IS) behind. L to R: 47481 (CD), just washed and fuelled, 47518 (IS). We're about to resume our journey. 37261 (IS) now at the front as we head through Dingwall, near the Drouthy Duck pub which I distinctly remember seeing from the train. I finally made it in there about twenty years later. 37261 by Loch Garve, 1310. 37415 (IS) at Garve headed for Inverness. 1315. We saw it at Muir of Ord five hours later heading a service away from Inverness as we returned. Still barely a splattered midge on it. Avalanche shelter for rocks I believe, not snow. Odd that rocks would need to shelter though. 37260 at Kyle Of Lochalsh, 1530. For all you coachfans my notes record it as being at the head of "Mk2Ds for Glasgow". Skye behind. And sky behind that. 37414 (IS) about to take to the front of our train to return us to Inverness. Something makes me think that would not have been the coach we were in... The end of the line. Hopefully not for the daredevil wallwalker. No photos from the return journey, but 47460 (IS) pulled us home from Inverness to Edinburgh which means we: were hauled by 47460 and 47461 and saw 47462 at IS as we passed at 1835 (no photo); were hauled by 37261 and saw 37260; and were hauled by 37414 and saw 37415, 37416 and 37417 (the last not photographed, but seen at Muir of Ord at 1235 with "the Highland Prince" headed for Inverness). So those are my grouping period photos...

Start of a journey today. 25 June 88 Arriving early at Waverley has the advantage of catching two sleeper services (not sure if one was heading further north) both with non-standard liveried 47s. 47522 (SF) and 47586 (ED, with full yellow end, but small logo and number) make a 6am arrival worthwhile. I saw 47522 at Waverley 5 times that year. 47461 (IS) at the head of The Skye Boat Train (an SRPS Railtour). Newly acquired aerial, the new must have accessory. c.0930. 47461 pulls hard on the climb to Drumochter. Head out the window, sunshine and snow still to be seen. Happy day. Arriving at Inverness at noon. "Snowplough ADB 965237 roller bearing air braked". Inverness with four 47s to be seen. 47570 (ED) and 47518 (ED) are on shed. Shed design skills did not improve with time; at least not cosmetically. 37046 (IS) on the fuel line at home. First time spot for me.

Waverley, when my photo timing was still suspect. 37080 (ED) 7 May 88 47564 (BR) on the 0914 to Blackpool. 47462 lurks behind. 4 June 88. 47462 overcomes the embarrassment of its new monobrow aerial and comes out from the shadows, 4 June 88. 43066 (NL) 4 June 88 47484 (OC) with ECS. 4 June 88. "Crane + JCB" state my informative notes. East end remodelling - 7 June 88 47640 (IS) 7 June 88. 1930.

I can't contribute to the coach chat, but if anyone is interested in some late 80's freight and departmental train formations I saw at Millerhill and drew (!) (film being expensive to me then) I could upload them to an appropriate thread sometime. In the meantime some more Waverley photos as blurred as my memories: 47665 (ED) 5 April 88 - 0845 47467 (IS) - 5 April 88 - 0900. Later hauled the 1125 to Inverness. 47665 (ED) - 5 April 88 - 1015 47663 (ED) - 5 April 88 - 1142 relief to Kings Cross 37308 (CF) (later 37274) - 7 April 88 heading West with ballast. 37033 (IS) - 7 April 88 - heading East after depositing some wagons laden with rails which it brought form the West. 47461 (IS) - 7 April 88 - 1125 to Inverness 26005 (still in old railfreight grey) then passed through on a trip working with a couple of TTAs, heading East, but the photo just shows the headlights so I've not attached it. 47588 (CD) on 2 May 88 having plenty of time to run round its train (the 1011 arrival from Aberdeen, departing for Plymouth at 1044) .

3 April 88 A Sunday out to Bo'ness then Grangemouth shed (when when you could just wander about inside and outside the shed). 27005, then in preservation with the SRPS. J94 near Kinneil 37408 (ED), 37118 (ED) and 47197 (CD). At rest. 2.05pm. L to R: 37021 (ED), 37188 (ED), 37408 (ED), 37118 (ED) and 47197 (CD) L to R: 37118, 37408 and 26015.

Waverley 28 March 88 47526 at 9.30am 47706 47593 followed by consecutively numbered 47594 47546 looks as if it's about to head home to Inverness. 26038

A poor lot today at the end of the film: 37113 at 1534 on 17 Oct 89 at Perth with a southbound Speedlink from Inverness (the 6B68 I have noted); having then been recently re-instated and acquired the Radio Highland name following the withdrawal of the original name bearer. 37057 joining the ECML from the Millerhill link with a Southbound Speedlink (6L97) at 1645 on 18 Oct 89. Millerhill 23 Oct 89. 26005 leaves northbound with a trip working at 1113, to return at 1153 (I think from EC): 26002 arrives from the north with empty MGR at 1125. Just spotted my shadow.

Behind today's door: Inverness 16 October 89 37415 on shed before heading off to Milburn Street to collect a civil engineers train. 37417 on shed. 08754 behind - later moved off for some shunting, as its makers intended. 47461 with the 1445 to Waverley Perth 17 October 89 - a couple of poor quality shots 47640 on an Inverness to GQS service 37170 bringing a ballast train off the Dundee line before running round to head north.

Waverley 30 Sept 89 08791 arrives to haul 08571 off to Haymarket. 08791 returned 40 minutes later. 47628 heads off to EC before returning with ECS to form the 1142 to Inverness which it then hauled. Aberdeen 15 Oct 89 37053 a long way from home. Did this suffer damage at both ends resulting in its centre headcode boxes (with airnorns still in the nose)? My record card tells me that I saw it less than a year earlier at Carstairs and at least one end still had split headcode boxes then.

Take a look at the Scottish Region in the 1980s thread on the Prototype Discussion section. There are a couple of photos in there somewhere from early 1980s showing how decrepit it had become.

Yes, good spot thanks. I have corrected.

Day 9 Waverley 16 Sept 89 47716 on GQS service. 47706 on GQS service (10am) 08755 - my notes reveal that the other side had a BR arrow plus Castle logo. Stabled with Motorail stock. My record states "4231 miles" which I presumably read through the window. Given it was built in 1961 could that be right? 47377 with a southbound Speedlink exiting Millerhill Yard on 17 Sept 89 at 1815. My cheap 35mm camera was not so effective when the sun was away... ... or, to be honest, when the sun was out either. 47018 enters Millerhill Yard on 18 Sept 89 at 1740 with a Speedlink service from the north. Hard to make out in the photo, but my note from a sighting the month before states "Black TI Rose [sticker] over [cabside] number".

Waverley 21 Aug 89 47562 on the 1040 to Brighton. Snowploughs in August. Tail-lamp ready to be attached once loco runs round. 47805 (formerly 47650) on the 0945 "Orcadian" which arrived from the West before heading onto the ECML for London. Niddrie South Junction 10 Sept 89 37403 tows 47210 from Millerhill towards the sub.

Still in Perth 16 Aug 89 47642 on the 1456 to GQS (from Inverness) 08762 engaged in some shunting Back to Waverley for some passengers, presumably with no idea how lucky they were, arriving from Dundee at 0904 on 21 Aug 89 hauled by my favourite, 47004 before it heads for EC with the empty stock.

Behind today's advent door: Waverley 15 Aug 89 47701 - seen that day leaving with the 0900 departure to Glasgow QS, later returning with the 1000 from GQS and then pulling the 1100 to GQS. 37402 - on the 1118 to Taynuilt (Royal Scotsman). Perth 16 Aug 89 26035 - Propelled some sort of measuring train(?) into one of the bay platforms at 1323 before pulling it back south at 1332. 37184 - With a train of tankers off the Dundee line at 1348 heading south.

Advent day 5 - and the scanner now works. 12 Aug 89 Waverley: 47413 - first taking empty sleepers to EC then, in the last photo, heading the 1040 to Eastbourne. Gateshead coat of arms above data panel. 47002 - 0845 arrival from Dundee continuing as 0855 to Blackpool (running round first). 47114 - 0858 arrival from Dundee. Not long reallocated north of the border so still carrying its sparrows (cabside plaque and bodyside door stickers).