LNERGE

I have an EFE Rail J94 and I can’t remember if it came dcc fitted or not. Is it possible to identify this decoder and can I fit a stay alive?

11 hours ago, russ p said:

 

That's the picture Richard.  I know Bob (Robert in the article) his book is fantastic. 

When you look at it ,it doesn't seem to offer much advantage over miniature ploughs on a loco.

Visibility round it must have been awful.  A bug bear of mine as network rail don't manage vegetation but I'm supposed to learn out to see road ahead at night with a 66!

Hi Russ

I’ve reported vegetation locally after I saw a branch cause a flashover across an insulator. Nothing happened until about two weeks ago ( about nine months after reporting) Now it looks like there is a scorched earth policy on SBR1. 

My plough so far. 
 

21 minutes ago, russ p said:

 

Evening Richard 

They were supposed to be the same as independents but were terrible 

There is some pictures in a book I have of one derailed on the whitby branch

Don't know who thought it was a good idea as 08s don't ride well anyway.  They were slightly before my time so I didn't work with them so I don't know what speed they were. I sincerely hope they weren't 45mph like the BR standard independent ploughs 

There is mention of the Whitby ploughing here..

https://features.rcts.org.uk/diesel-dilemmas/snowplough-class-08s/

We had a day out to the GC gala at the weekend. I always like to buy something but all that caught my eye was a pair of kitmaster 08’s at £1 each. 
 

I’ve always had in mind to make one of the snowploughs if I ever came across one of these. 
 

A trawl through the internet doesn’t produce much showing them actually in use, in fact the only thing I found seemed to indicate they were more of a liability than anything else. 
 

Were these meant for clearing depots and sidings? The wheels with their balance weights but no connecting rods must have made them ungainly ponderous beasts when out clearing main lines. 
 

The large independent snowploughs had some restrictions as to locomotives that could propel them. Was there similar restrictions for these ploughs?

7 hours ago, rloades said:

Thank you LNERGE. Unfortunately we didn't have many of us on site on Saturday, sorry we missed you! Dave had other commitments and I was still flying back from Poland for work.

 

Here's this week's update.

I was there with my nine year old wingman. To be able to see the different types of wagons actually moving is fantastic. It helps no end trying to explain what it is all about.

One day i hope the railway i'm involved with will be able to run a demonstration pickup freight. Currently we have four locations such a train could pull into to shunt/be overtaken etc. I've done my bit and provided Intermediate token instruments to aid shutting trains away. All we need is someone to start restoring our wagons (this is in hand)

Sort of involved a level crossing..

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/64448930

The mixed freight looked superb on Saturday. I didn't see any obvious activity at Quorn or anywhere to part with money.

https://www.newarkadvertiser.co.uk/news/four-forces-fail-to-find-record-of-crash-at-level-crossing-9294343/

I’m expecting to see a nice butt under that converging down pipe in due course. 

Here is a pair of 15’s doing the Welwyn shuffle. Now about to make the third pass of the platforms crossing from the down fast to up slow..

I have looked at my photos and I didn't take any of the buffers I'm afraid to say.

On 26/12/2022 at 20:08, LNERGE said:

This has caused me to dig out my Kestrel and hook it up to some empties...

 

 

 

I finally got round to shooting a movie of my Kestrel…

https://www.flickr.com/photos/32297024@N08/52610423136/

I had another go just now. CV50 set to 60 has got results. 

I’ve had a fiddle with them and no change. 

I’ve just dropped an MX600R into a loco and fiddled with the CV’s as I’ve done for all the others and it behaves somewhat differently to my expectations. I’ve done a reset and programmed it again. Same results. 
 

CV’s 3 and 4 set to 40. It works as expected from the controller. CV27 is set to 1. Any sniff of asymmetric signal and it stops dead. Remove the asymmetric signal and it accelerates at the rate set. It is a more recent purchase. Has anything changed? Looking through the list of CV’s nothing else has caught my attention that may need tweaking. 

Even the binliner to Forders Siding used to hum considerably. It used to run round in the platforms at Bedford too. The containers were pretty much fully enclosed apart from a bespoke cover over a small hole in one end if I remember correctly. Those containers are crying out to be modelled. Anyone 3d printed any? Don’t fancy the smell being recreated though. 

There was the remains of one near New England, Peterborough for a while. A start had been made cutting it up with a gas axe. They had cut the barrel as far as it's near full load of set concrete and left the rest.

edit to add..

I’m hoping this will flush out a picture of it

14 hours ago, RailWest said:

Perhaps you should keep taking the tablets...:-)

But the token cupboard is for key tokens?

1 hour ago, Michael Hodgson said:

 

First one I've seen with a chimney!

The legths i will go to keep a token instrument cosy..

1 hour ago, 5BarVT said:

And frequently used for crossings I seem to recall.  But I can’t remember whether that was a WR feature or ScR.

Paul.

This one was Brandon MCB before i butchered it into it's current guise

I have a significant collection I can photograph if needed. There are quite a number of variations. GEC and Westinghouse are vaguely similar but Lawden locs are quite different. 

There is mention of it here..

 
https://islingtonlife.london/discover-islington/local-history/a-short-history-of-waste-and-recycling-in-islington/

It's a fascinating bit of railway. Originally connected to the ECML at Hatfield and worked as a single line alongside the main line. It was completely track circuited from Hatfield to Ayot. There was the facility to pass a freight at Welwyn Garden City via a bidirectional loop. Beyond Ayot the single line was protected by key token working. The section being Ayot to Harpenden. I have not seen evidence of auxiliary instruments at Blackbridge or Wheathampstead but it would not surprise me to find there were. Just short of Blackbridge there was an occupation crossing with loud sounding bells worked by track circuits and some simple selection circuits so the bells only rang with a train approaching the crossing. The bells had an ingenious proving circuit so a signalman was alerted if one didn't ring. I'm not sure which box it was repeated to but I assume it was Ayot.

In latter years the single line to Hatfield was dispensed with and the train was shuffled back and forth at Welwyn Garden City to gain the up lines. This is a picture of the shuffle in progress. The stinking wagons would have to pass the platforms three times to.get from the Luton Line to the up lines.