MidlandRed

Interesting stuff - so the WR passenger operation moved to Oxley and OOC on receipt of the Brush Type 4s from later 1963? Presumably after closure of Stafford Road.

I didn't mention other hydraulic types. These were definitely the exception rather than the rule but:- Hymek - the Lickey bankers from the mid 60s were D7021-7025, with other ones occasionally until replaced by class 37. One of these performed daily on 3M02 parcels which went down through Bescot around 9 pm. Warship - from mid 67 these were used on the New St to Paddington services. They were always class 43. They appeared to travel to Bescot, possibly for refuelling via Soho loop - my most memorable train spotting recollection is of D842 (maroon), D847 (bfyp) and D845 (green), as 0Z00 all under power passing from the Soho loop towards Bescot at Perry Barr North junction in October 67 - every visit to Bescot up to April 68 at least, shows one class 43 recorded. I doubt these ventured further north but you could certainly argue a borrowed loco (if passed for the route!!). They also appeared at Shrewsbury.

As has been said, the Stafford to Wellington line closed whilst still steam operated, possibly from the Stafford end. There is a video on You Tube of a complete trip towards the end, and showing the various loco types encountered en route. Shrewsbury to Wolverhampton was affected by a couple of key events, as well as the usual modernisation and Beeching issues - these are transfer of the WR route to the LMR in 1963 and full introduction of the WCML electrification through Birmingham, Wolverhampton, Bescot and to Walsall in March 1967. For actual locos, Paddington to Birkenhead was dieselised with Western class diesels after the Kings allocated to Stafford Road were withdrawn - 1962. Any OOC allocated ones built up to late 63/early 64 were used - my limited personal experience included the low numbered ones (eg D1011). These were replaced by either brand new or almost new Brush Type 4s from 1964 - D1682-D1690, D1695/6 and various in the low D17xx (except 1702-6 - later ER class 48s), allocated to Oxley but OOC and other ones appeared - say up to D1757 - NB the several months old D1734 (Bristol Bath Road) came to grief adjacent to Coton Hill yard when it struck wagons derailed in the yard which fouled the main line - one of the D168x which was nearby in the yard was damaged also. D1734 was the shortest lived class 47 of all. Note there was still a lot of steam on freight on the ex WR Midland area lines in the mid 60s. Stanlow to Albion block oil trains were also run by Birkenhead 9Fs until the mid 60s when replaced by class 47s. DMUs from the usual Tyseley pool of class 116 (50050-79/85; and a handful of the ex Cardiff and Bristol ones) would have appeared along with class 122 (55002-10; also 12 and 13 at times, though odd ones of these seem to have been swapped to and fro with Laira) - after closure of Much Wenlock and the Severn Valley north of Bewdley, other than as additional power cars or replacement power cars in class 116, there doesn't appear to be any reason for these to have appeared. Class 128, 55992-55996 may also have appeared. All of these went from W to M prefix in 1963. Some 116 and 122 were still in that almost malachite green colour. Class 40 were prevalent in the Birmingham area (of the WMCL allocated batches - 210-236, 255, 267-9, 287-344, 369-384 or thereabouts - so all three headcode or not variants). From March 1967, with full electrification of the WMCL routes through services from Wolverhampton Low Level to Birkenhead ceased - passenger trains generally terminated terminated at Wolv High Level - a batch of 3 car class 119 and 101 (the latter being the last 5 sets from the Lichfield - Birmingham line batch 50316-50320) were allocated to Chester for these services - they were all repainted (the 8 X 119s in blue/grey - 51085-87; 51099-51104 etc). Any Stoke or Birmingham Division class 24/25 may have appeared on freight/parcels but probably more likely after early 1967. Livery celebrities like D5021 and D5028, and some of the final batch eg D7670 and D7677 were regular performers on freight from Bescot. D5000-49, and 73-93 were Stoke Division from 1967/8. 5000 was stored after withdrawal at Shrewsbury. The local 47s and 24/25s are likely to have run any freight in the remaining bits of the Stafford line. Until the later 60s, locos tended to remain in their allocated areas - however as the era wore on so the appearance of, for instance, ER class 47 became more regular, say at Bescot. Hope this helps you.

Thanks for the correction caradoc - I got carried away a bit there - in spite of the detail points Dapol are to be congratulated on this model which really is the archetypal WR branch line train of the early modernisation era. I find their history as fascinating as the excellent class 116 thread - possibly because both classes featured in my youthful spotting days and were early subjects of inter-regional transfers owing to closures and cut backs - presumably the WR had run out of steam locos by late 1966 to show stock savings!! I also recall my older, often steam loving peers asking, apparently horrified why I was collecting 'bug unit' carriage numbers....a few were a decidedly faded green (originally almost malachite) at Snow Hill in the early 60s, which is possibly where the derisory name came from!

In the interests of accuracy, Tyseley's M55008 was also in blue syp - I discovered some photos of it buried in railcar.co.uk - there are also photos there of W55000 and also SC55015 in blue syp, the latter after conversion to class 131 parcels use. A couple of those pictures show very clearly the numbers used on those units are remarkably small (as were DMU coach numbers generally in that livery) - making the Dapol upside down W issue on 55003, blue syp, only part of the problem as the numbering looks to be more like the later style.

Thanks for the correction - I've corrected the original post as well to avoid confusion. You presumed right regarding Tri-ang and my mixing up of numbers - i have both versions but as with most of my 60s stock, they received coats of Humbrol Rail Blue, full yellow ends and renumbered to something I was more familiar with and received the BR transfers - in about 1968... a Hornby (yes the proper one - E3002) class 81 received the same treatment and became E3016 with raised numbers!! The other E3002 remained electric blue but was defaced by the addition of a syp - such is the desire of youth for all things new!!

Im not sure whether D7033 was painted at Derby or repainted elsewhere and taken there for demonstration/publicity purposes.

D7033 was the first Hymek and I'm pretty sure the first application of blue with overall yellow front (and yellow around the windows). Done in 1966 and demonstrated at Derby Works as the new 'standard' approach to this, to improve visibility of approaching trains for lineside workers. A news item appeared in the Railway Magazine at the time. As stated, the Hymeks with blue and syp sometimes had white trim around the windows, and possibly more rarely, were all over blue. As well as the Thornaby experimental front panels on class 25/0s, there was the other visibility experiment involving a selection of stock in the very early 60s (including D5578 in blue and D5579 in a version of golden ochre). Once again there is a published article on this (but I can't remember where.....)! I believe it was from this that the small yellow warning panel application was selected. Interesting that the WR used white cab rooves on DMUs until the blue era (with full yellow panel). Was it also a warning device or to keep the staff cooler? If a warning device they got filthy very quickly - especially from exhaust pipe on class 121, 122 and 128.

I think this almost certainly arrived on ScR in early rail blue with sywp, white cab rooves and red buffer beams. I saw it, I think in the summer of 1967, at Prestwick station in this condition. The give away was it was numbered W55000 (as well as only Swindon painting the cab rooves white in that early livery). I was staying with relatives at the time and went to Prestwick station with my cousin, who assured me we'd see a railbus or two - W55000 turned up instead - as a Brummie I'd been accustomed to the Tyseley class 122s so I'd never seen this one before - but not quite on the same level of exotica as a diesel railbus!! The only other class 122s I've ever heard of in this early rail blue livery were M55003 (Tyseley - seen on Leamington to Stratford) and W55015 (Laira - reported in Railway Magazine on the Looe branch) - unless anyone else knows better!