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APOLLO

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    We're all doomed

    in Wheeltappers

    Posted

    Yesterdays alien news

     

    There are strange goings on in a quaint Northern town
    Which the folk there are trying to keep quiet
    It’d cause a sensation but they’re playing it down
    For they’re frightened of starting a riot
    ‘Cause they’ve pit men with arms that are thirty feet long
    And their heads are as smooth as boiled eggs
    And the man who sells pies has got three great big eyes
    And the rugby league hooker is green with six legs

    CHORUS: For the Martians have landed in Wigan
    And they’re wearing flat caps on their domes
    And they’ve paid all their subs to the working men’s clubs
    ‘Cause Wigan reminds them of home

    Now the Martians had lost all their bearings one night
    ‘Cause the compass had gone up the spout
    As they landed on t’slag heap the captain said, “Right
    We’re home lads, so let’s all pile out”
    Well they soon realised that they’d made a mistake
    So some digs for the night they all booked
    Where they’d trotters and hotpot and fresh Eccles cake
    And when they tasted black puddings, those Martians were hooked

    CHORUS: For the Martians have landed in Wigan…

    Now the Martians play bingo and speak local lingo
    Like, “Sithee,” and “Ey up owd flower”
    From the pier every day you can go t’Milky Way
    Or a UFO trip round Blackpool Tower
    So next time you’re passing through Wigan, look out
    And remember the things I have said
    Beware of the ones who have clogs on their feet
    And aerials stuck out the tops of their heads

    CHORUS: For the Martians have landed in Wigan…

     

    You see them round town every Friday & Saturday night - Can't miss em !!!!!

     

    Brit15

    • Like 4

    What's going on at Huyton & Roby stations ?

    in UK Prototype Questions

    Posted

    Had a day out in Liverpool bank holiday Monday.

     

    During the recent electrification of the Liverpool - Manchester / Wigan lines the section from Huyton through Roby to just short of Broad Green station was four tracked, with brand new platforms built / refurbished at Huyton & Roby stations. 4 tracks were laid, but the northernmost track was never connected at either end though the platforms were finished along with working lights, information panels etc. Electrification masts are also in and ready for wires over this track. This was a couple of years ago.

     

    On Monday I observed that the brand new platform walls & edges are being demolished right onto the new rail -  a right unsightly mess !!!. I can only think there is some issue of clearance as both new platforms at two separate stations are affected. I also noticed new pointwork piled onto the track at each end so I presume the actual 4 tracking is imminent.

     

    Can anyone enlighten as to what is going on ?. Seems to me to be a massive waste of money building new platforms twice.

     

    Brit15

    Modern Car Engines

    in Wheeltappers

    Posted

    Well I presume the fuel consumption is spectacularly poor, and I'm not sure 11.5 seconds 0-60 is 'quick off the mark' is it...?

     

    Interestingly my Golf GTI has an advertised combined MPG of 34.9, over the last 3,500 miles (since it was last serviced) it's been 38.1 mpg. Occasional runs at a steady pace can be as high as 42mpg, with the very occasional spirited drive seeing something in the mid 20s.

     

    Quick enough for me - wont beat your Geeee Teeee Eye - but I'll be at the side of you again at the next set of lights, quite relaxed in my "Flying Armchair" !!!!!

     

    MPG - around 18-20, 21 max on a run. Doesn't bother me I only do around 500 miles / year - sometimes less.

     

    Most comfortable car I have ever had, that's just one reason why I have kept her since 1982. Anyone else had a car that long ?

     

    Brit15

    • Like 1

    Modern Car Engines

    in Wheeltappers

    Posted · Edited by APOLLO

    My 1973 Rover P5B V8 Saloon was designed to use 5 star petrol. I have never put a gallon (or a litre) of 5 star in her tank since I bought her in 1982.

     

    She has run ever since on the cheapest petrol I could find, 2 star leaded and now I use just unleaded, always from Tesco / Sainsburys / Morrisons etc. I do however add (sometimes) a lead free additive (if I remember !!).  No problems other than slight pinking under heavy load (I've adjusted the ignition to reduce it as much as possible), She's done this since 1982 though so no worries,  MPG ? - don't ask !!!!

     

    She seems to start / run BETTER with modern unleaded than with leaded.

     

    By the way I've always used the cheapest (supermarket) fuel in all of my cars and never had any fuel related problems (touch wood !!).

     

    Brit15

    • Like 2

    Wright writes.....

    in Modelling musings & miscellany

    Posted

    Agree Focalplane, Mother Nature can be very beautiful, and also very cruel, sometimes both at the same time.

     

    We are lucky in the UK that we are (mostly) spared from her most vicious manifestations.

     

    Thoughts with those over in south Texas tonight. Good luck folks.

     

    Brit15

    Self-driving' lorries to be tested on UK roads

    in Wheeltappers

    Posted

    Tried to get to Cheshire Oaks shopping outlet yesterday (Ellesmere Port near Chester)- The M6 was chokka south of Warrington (severe delays a bit further south), and M56 same, so at last minute we decided to turn left on the M56 past Manchester Airport to (the dreaded) Trafford Centre. Traffic was  fine on this bit, and approaching the Trafford Centre via the M60 from the south is far better than the other way (our usual route), parking is easier to find also. However on leaving to join the M60 north it was just absolute Chaos - well it was 5pm on a bank holiday Friday on what is stated to be one of the busiest stretches of motorway in Europe !! (what else could I expect ?).

     

    As usual, white vans and artics constantly changing lanes made it very unpleasant, I just idle along in the inside lane in these conditions, go with the flow - I have no death wish.I wonder how people would react to platoons changing lanes in slow moving (angry driver) conditions ?

     

    As usual its a fast race to the bottom for the average worker these days due to computerisation etc. (lorry drivers in this case). Platoons good for the environment ? Cheaper produce in shops ? - Cobblers, this type of thing is good for one thing only - lining the pockets of the 0.001% and those that facilitate them (you know, those we vote for every 5 years !!). You see these "people" quite simply never have enough - power and money that is. Their appetite for both is insatiable and will be satisfied by labour elimination.

     

    I'm not a complete Luddite but driverless trains, lorries, cars, aircraft while all technically possible today - just what will life be like for those younger people today in 2040 and beyond ?- AND the poor sods will still owe £££thousands on their student loans, and will have little or no pension - many no house of their own also.

     

    Platoons of lorries - such a sad thing to look forward too.

     

    Brit15

    Parley-vous shorthand?

    in Wheeltappers

    Posted

    It used to be the case (in some countries at least) that a postcard could be sent at a cheaper rate if you wrote five or fewer words. Perhaps using shorthand was a way round this?

     

    Food good, beer good, Bye

     

    Brit15

    Wright writes.....

    in Modelling musings & miscellany

    Posted

    Just to let folks know that I've been able to retrieve the 'lost' images. I say 'I've', but it's really Ian Wilson who did it. Talking to both him and Andy York today it looks like the card is dodgy. I'll get another. 

     

    attachicon.gifStaly Vegas 10.jpg

     

    It would have been a pity to lose images like this. It'll be appearing in BRM most likely in the autumn. 

     

    By gum that's a grim grey industrial town - the tunnel looks particularly "scary" to walk (run!!!) through. Nicely modeled though.

     

    Brit15

    Electrification - Back to Square One

    in UK Prototype Discussions (not questions!)

    Posted

    To call the Pennines "a mountain range" is a bit of a laugh really. The Swiss would see the area as their equivalent of Lincolnshire. All it would take to solve the problem would be a relatively small capital expenditure on railways. They don't even need to be that fancy. 90 or 100 mph top speed would do the job, but there needs to be capacity, which may mean quadrupling sections or - whisper this quietly - reopening lines that previous short-sighted administrations did away with.

     

    Ahh!! Poggy, but down south there's none so blind as them that can't see - especially those who meet in the big posh buildings in Westminster. !!

     

    As a Lancastrian (Wiganer) I'm getting more than a little sick of London / South East concentricaty these days. They have everything and yet they always want more.

     

    Let them stew in it- at least up here we have our National parks and wonderful scenery. Time for a northern revolution !!

     

    Brit15

    • Like 1

    Derailment at Paddington

    in UK Prototype Discussions (not questions!)

    Posted

    Every gas emergency call out team had a kettle and brewing equipment / supplies also. Like the railways the "gas board" ran on tea !!!! I had my own cup / tea bags & kit kats etc in the car - part of my "survival kit". Being duty engineer in winter meant you rarely got home until late evening. Another of my "duties" was, if the job seemed to be a long one / all nighter was to go to the local chip shop before it closed & feed us all. Many times we have worked from 5pm right through to 8am next morning, in all weathers. I'm not complaining - we were paid well and our managers were all experienced engineers who had "been there, done that", so we received very little if any grief from them, so long as we sorted the job safely, and kept the customer happy. (customer was king back then).

     

    Not like that these days so I am told !!!!

     

    Brit15

    • Like 3

    GWML Electification

    in UK Prototype Discussions (not questions!)

    Posted · Edited by APOLLO

    Found this whilst on another railway website. Published 31 July 2017, The Hansford Review, an independent review of contestability in the UK rail market, to consider third party investment in and infrastructure delivery on the national rail network.

     

    https://thehansfordreview.co.uk/

     

    PDF  https://16cbgt3sbwr8204sf92da3xxc5m-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/The-Hansford-Review.pdf

     

    It's mostly a bit beyond me, but a paragraph on page 23 caught my eye

     

    Throughout the consultation a common theme has been the lack of parity between Network Rail and third parties when it came to their ability to manage and absorb risk. With a large portfolio of assets Network Rail has the ability to oversee, manage and diversify risk across the network. Network Rail is backed by government and can absorb risk, which would potentially overwhelm a private organisation. Any attempt to push undue risk towards third parties is a significant barrier if they cannot manage, mitigate or absorb it.

     

    Third parties have also reported a perception that they are faced with a higher risk apportionment for their projects than Network Rail applies to its own. There is pressure to accept emerging cost contracts leaving all design and delivery risk with the third party, even if this is due to an error or omission on the part of Network Rail. Consultees have also cited a lack of asset information, lack of clear acceptance criteria, and unpredictable access as significant risks which hinder their appetite to invest in or deliver rail infrastructure works.

     

    During interviews with third party investors, one party cited £200 million as being the minimum size of project that warranted detailed negotiations on asset and delivery risk, due to the significant cost of employing lawyers and commercial dealmakers. Employing such skills would potentially be prohibitively expensive for smaller projects, and a barrier to negotiating a successful deal.

     

    Seems to me that big rail projects are a gravy train (!!) for everyone and their dog to jump on.

     

    Edited to add - Network rails response to the report

     

    https://www.networkrail.co.uk/industry-commercial-partners/third-party-investors/network-rail-open-business/

     

    Brit15

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