Mike_Walker

Yes but the quality of the product is born out by the performance of the 66s in every day service compared to their BR equivalents despite not getting the TLC lavished on the 59s.

Steady progress being made thanks in a large part to this so called "summer" preventing outdoor activities.

That is correct except it wasn't a GM practice but rather the norm for the North American industry as a whole.

I very much doubt the ORR would be prepared to relax the conditions of the original Exemption Certificate especially as the same conditions apply to other operators who comply fully with them. WCRC's "revised safety procedures" presumably bring them into line. We can expect the ORR to keep a very close eye on the operation with multiple unannounced inspections. The expiry date of 30 November is the same as the original WCRC expiry date. The ORR has made it clear that is not prepared to grant any further extensions or new exemptions. Eighteen years to comply with the original specification is in their opinion quite long enough.

I don't know if the section of line in question still has traditional track circuits or the more modern axle counters. If the latter, then shorting the two rails out has no effect - one of the drawbacks of axle counters and they don't detect broken rails either which TCs did. With the whole network now covered by GSM-R there is the facility for instant communication between traincrew and signaller from any position and the "nuclear" option of pressing the red button to stop the job.

Shooosh, stop giving away trade secrets... !

With a Palethorpes Sausage van (A Siphon G ? ) thrown in for good measure. Crewe never really got the hang of the stressed skin construction on the Westerns, Look along the side acutely of a Crewe-built example and you will find its a lot more "rippled" than the Swindon ones.

And you'll notice the stop arm has a cross on it denoting it's not in use plus there are no spectacles fitted. This would become the up section signal for Swithland Sidings which presumably was still being set up at the time. The distant is for Rothley.

I thought that was a superbly modelled piece of rotting timber! Now, where's the nearest branch of SpecSavers...

Another from the same source.

55020 was painted chocolate and cream for the ill-fated GW150 celebrations in 1985. In addition Tyseley based Class 117 T305 was painted chocolate and cream about the same time and that lasted much longer - long enough to make a one-time appearance on the branch on 31 August 1991 for another MMPA gala day. Young Mr Hopwood was involved professionally in arranging this. I recall it arrived some hours late - a 2-car Met-Cam set having stood in - and is seen approaching Spade Oak crossing bound for Marlow not Blaenau Ffestiniog as the blind claims. The crews had much fun displaying a different unlikey destination on every trip but the public probably never noticed. The event was organised to showcase the new Turbos, 165005 was borrowed from Chiltern for the day for display at Bourne End; it would be another two years before they started working the branch. A link Marlow to Henley running along the south bank of the river was proposed by the GWR at the turn of the 19th/20th century but ran into severe NIMBY opposition and was dropped. It was the timber traffic that led to the demolition of the old Marlow station but the traffic finished a couple of years later. Frustratingly, we've never found a picture of these trains that came from Bow Creek worked by Stratford Brush Type 2s, occasionally EE Type 3s and on one occasion a pair of BTH Type 1s which was brave move by someone! The Marlow Sand & Gravel Co.'s 2' gauge operation is likewise frustrating. I used to walk the dog down there but took it for granted and never bothered to take any photos. A lesson for all; nothing is for ever - record it while you can.

If you want an excuse for Class 50 at Bourne End then here it is! 50035 'Ark Royal' on the platform 2 blocks and on display on 25 September 1986 as part of a joint NSE/Marlow-Maidenhead Passengers' Association event. 55020 was operating a Bourne End - Marlow shuttle all day with Class 117 L417 (the first to gain NSE paint) working between Maidenhead and Bourne End. A certain well-known MD likes to claim credit for this but he hadn't started his railway career at that time although he was on the MMPA committee (poacher turned game keeper?) and is now a major shareholder in "The Ark". To say he's slightly obsessed with Hoovers is an understatement.

I think you'd find similar on many commuter routes into London; it certainly applied even on my local branch line. If the unit arrived the "wrong way round", i.e. with the van and first class not where they were expected, confusion and chaos abounded. As for the Telegraph (and other broad sheets back in the day) it was amazing how many concealed a copy of the Sun! You could spot that more easily on a open DMU than in compartments.

I do indeed (unless you're referring to our esteemed Mike @The Stationmaster). It was on 30 January 1977 and was in connection with a French film called "All Cats Are Grey" - the weather was suitably similar! Three Class 31s were used, 31421 and 31241 at the "country end" and 31118 at the London end plus three Mk1 coaches. I don't think they actually moved during the filming but I could be wrong as I wasn't there all day. The bottom picture shows them departing. It was a Sunday so there was no scheduled service on the branch in those days, that wasn't restored until June 1984.

Some years ago i visited Port Talbot steel works and they told us that if the load in the torpedo wagons solidifies (which it does occasionally apparently) the cure was to cut them open and pull the two halves apart then weld them back together again. When asked what the do with the solidified contents the answer was "don't ask". Suppose you could do the same with a milk tank although a large pat of butter might be easier to dispose of.

We also had a pair of WCRC 37s topping and tailing a Branch Line Society tour come to Bourne End some years ago. Can't remember the exact details but can find out if anyone's interested.

Being devil's advocate; could it be that in these difficult times manufacturers are seeking to maximise earnings from existing tooling with relatively little expense rather than commit to the large sums now required to tool a completely new model? Just a thought...

The recent so called "summer" has provided an ideal opportunity to make some progress. The bank along the back behind Pottery Cottage was the only major scenic feature required. Pretty traditional, balsa formers to support a lattice courtesy of old cereal packet then several layers of plaster bandage and topped off with a layer of filler. Now for some fun with static grassing to , hopefully, bring it alive.

Anything that is not current practice would need to go through the full certification process. The pully driven dynamos used to provide electricity and battery charging on Mk1s are notoriously unreliable particularly at low speeds - ever been on a railtour or heritage line where the lights don't work? The CDL also has to be linked into the braking system so that if the doors are not correctly locked the brakes can't be released so it's all a bit more involved than building door locks.

What amazed me was that plod turned up so quickly!

It's actually one of the small wheeled (4' 1 1/2") 2021 class, the buffer beams protruding above the footplate being the giveaway. The 2721s had 4' 7 1/2" drivers.

Originally hand operated but latterly steam operated.

And the end of the line for EMD. After the SD40-2 and its cousins it was all downhill. Don't mention the SD50 even if parts of its control systems wound up in the 59s. When we (SPV tour) visited GMDD in London Canada in 2001 they were quite open that the Class 66s had saved the company from closure - at least for then...

Absolutely. I find it strange that EMD didn't want to produce locomotives for BR in the 1970s as the required number was too small. There are many examples of EMD export orders comprising small numbers of bespoke designs. They were more than happy to fulfil Foster Yeoman's aspirations knowing that it would not lead to massive subsequent orders (no one would have foreseen BR privatisation then) and in fact it persuaded FY they only needed 4 locomotives not the 5 they were seeking - the fifth was built subsequently as a result of increased business. The first 59s were virtually hand built by EMD's development department and not on the main production line. The infamous first day failure of 59002 was later described to me by a senior EMD engineer as a huge embarrassment as it was a simple fault that should never have been allowed to escape from La Grange. FY did not reject the Class 60 in favour of the 59. They were offered an alternative by Brush but they turned it down. The Class 60 came later and was in some ways a response to the success of the Class 59. EMD bid for that order too but shot themselves in both feet in the process. FY were already impressed by EMD. Like the 59s, when purchasing the SW1001 switcher they wanted two but were told one would do. After it entered service it did everything that was asked of it. On the rare occasions that a spare part not held in the UK was required it would be air freighted from Chicago overnight ready for fitting the next day. EMD claimed they could deliver a complete power unit to the UK overnight although I don't know if that was ever put to the test. Knowing that kind of support would apply to the 59s too was a big selling point. I also understand that the price of a 59 was considerably cheaper than what Brush were quoting.

AIUI the other WCRC operations that operate under this exemption are charter trains where the tour promotor (i.e. RTC, Pathfinder, etc.) have the responsibility for providing the stewards and ensuring the doors/droplights/vestibules are adequately policed to prevent misuse with WCRC just providing the guard. The Jacobite is an entirely WCRC operation and therefore responsibility for stewarding falls on them. Whereas the others are, it appears, complying fully with the requirements of the exemption certificate, WCRC are not; hence the prohibition notice applies only to the Jacobite and not charter trains operated by WCRC on behalf of third parties. Some charter stock, mostly those formed of Mk2 and Mk3 vehicles, do have CDL and I think the entire LSL fleet has been fitted. Vintage Trains operate their Mk1s under the same exemption as WCRC but steward the doors correctly. However, time is running out. The ORR has said it will not extend further the current exemption certificates when they expire. Even Belmond are having to fit the British Pullman stock with CDL. As might have been said already, fitting CDL to vacuum-braked stock is difficult as it requires and air supply and is linked to the train braking system (If the doors are not properly locked the brakes cannot be released). There is an alternative electro-magnetic system but this requires a reliable electrical supply which cannot always be relied upon on, say, a Mk1. It has been used on the "bubble cars" previously operated by Chiltern and ATW and now the Swanage Railway but on them you do have a reliable electrical supply courtesy of the engine driven alternator.