APOLLO

Haydock Oil Terminal (between Wigan & St Helens) was served by the ex GC St Helens Branch and a newly built spur to the WCML at Golborne. A large terminal, with a throughput of 2 million tonnes / year. Opened in 1969, closed sometime in mid-late 70's, don't know date but was served by 100 ton tank trains, usually 40 or 47 powered. One from Heysham & 2 from Stanlow daily. (Heavy oil). Light oil (petroleum) came from stanlow by pipeline. More Info from here. http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=GoyzfRa8zQ8C&pg=PA260&lpg=PA260&dq=shell+haydock+oil+terminal&source=bl&ots=KvLGSeywma&sig=AGL8eABvNU0bi-tu-PO0RAjzKWo&hl=en&ei=PlenTYHINoiGhQfTz5XfCQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=4&sqi=2&ved=0CC8Q6AEwAw#v=onepage&q=shell%20haydock%20oil%20terminal&f=false Another one was Glazebrook on the CLC Mancherter - Liverpool line, serving British Tar Products. Also now all gone. Brit15

Good article & photos about Mottram Yard & Dinting area in Feb 2011 issue of British Railways Illustrated, It is part 11 of a series about "Britains new railway" - The woodhead route. Will we see it revived one day ? Brit15

Treacle mine ? - Bet nobody has modelled the Jam Butty mines in Knotty Ash (at the side of the Cheshire Lines dock branch) !!! LNWR North Wales coast, Cumbria, Peak District etc LYR Southport Blackpool, And OF COURSE they BOTH (together with the GC) served sunny WIGAN !! Brit15

Allready in Wikipedia 70012 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Rail_Class_70_(diesel) American built locomotive falling off a Chinese built boat during unloading in Wales - You could not make it up !!! Previous poster was correct re Brush & Loughborough - We have no longer any decent manufacturing / design capacity for so many things these days. Let's not go there replied one, no, we will not go there, ever again, unfortunately. This country is so FUBAR, and our whole future is bleaker than bleak. Just why are new 70's being bought and class 66's stored / sent abroad ? - Economics of the madhouse rule the Iron Road these days. Just my thoughts anyway. I'm sure the 70's are technically very good machines, just a shame they are not clad in a stylish & swish Kestrel like shell - then even I would (partly) welcome them. Such is progress. Brit15

Bought my secondhand copy in a secondhand bookshop in Burnham Market, Norfolk a couple of years ago for £8 !!. Also bought Decline of steam for a fiver . Fantastic, atmospheric books. Steam as I remember it. Colin T Gifford, a gifted photographer. Brit15

I'm distraught. I BOUGHT THE 20p COIN, £500,000.00 cash. Half a million quid !!!! Delivered, as stated, special recorded delivery this morning, I was ecstatic. Then the Ice Cream van came, with his silly tune. Can I have an ice cream, dad ?, asked me daughter. Yes I said, still gloating, here's 60p, handing her 3 x 20p coins. OOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHH ----- NOOOOOOO !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It's gone !!!!!

Interesting thread re an interesting route. More pictures can be seen of the accident in the book "Great Central - Main line north of Nottingham" by A.R.Kaye (Lowlander publications ISBN 0 946930 07 4). In the book he suggests excessive speed of the loose coupled train was the most likely cause. Even a shot of the train approaching Dinting with smoke billowing from the fourth wagon !. Three brilliant books on this line are Foxline (scenes from the past series) Woodhead parts 1 & 2 and Woodhead - The electric railway. A must for any modeller of these lines. I only travelled this line a couple of times, in my trainspotting days. Last time was on 3 Jan 1970, next to last day of passenger operation. How about this for a day out. (Still have tickets - total cost 39 shillings (£1.95 !!). Yes, this day was cold, snowy, and carriages unheated and misted up !!! Wigan Wallgate to Manchester Vic DMU Man Picc to Sheffield Vic E26053 Sheffield Midland to Retford DMU Retford to Doncaster D 1507 Doncaster to Retford D1103 + D9011 (ex works), double headed, both loco's working !! Retford to Sheffield Mid DMU Sheffield Vic to Man Picc E26057 Man Vic to Wigan Wallgate DMU This line was closed for a (wrong) reason. The steel industry was in decline, and plans where afoot (long before Scargill) to decimate the UK coal industry, and import coal for large power stations such as Fiddlers Ferry. This plan took quite a few years to hatch, but don't forget Woodheads major traffic was coal and steel. When Woodhead was closed. other important routes also closed, either immediately or shortly after. Godley-Stockport Tiviot Dale - Altrincham - Latchford (Warrington) route of the Fiddlers Ferry coal trains. This was an unbelievable closure as expensive CWR had been laid from Warrington to Lymm on this line just prior to closure. Many level crossings thru' Lymm village where renewed also in this period. (Gates to Barriers). Politics !!! Edited to add - just noticed the 6 wheel tanker coupled to the Springs Branch Wigan breakdown crane lettered "Not to be used for milk" !!! - Being a Wiganer myself, I'll wager it was full of Walkers Best Bitter !! Brit15

Too true. 10 years ago the WCML at the side of my house, trains used to be block on block overnight, Mondays for some reason especially. Nowadays very few trains pass midnight - 6 am. Also, during the day you can have 2 hours between freight trains. Electric locos refurbed & sold / given to Bulgaria, Rumania - This country is indeed now a joke. I remember Springs Branch having an allocation of brand new 60's, just before they closed Bickershaw colliery, (and shortly after, Springs Branch also - the reason why they where there). Class 60's Fantastic locos - with decent names too. Brit15

Nice to see investment in new locomotives - though whats the game these days - who can design the ugliest locomotive. ? The thing is a joke, visually speaking. Looks like a Bulldog chewing a wasp !! Yes a diesel loco IS a box on wheels. Sides have to have grilles, access dors etc, but the front ends, the cabs should have a bit of style about them. Very little extra expense involved. We have some very good looking modern stock. Pendolino's, & some of the latest DMU's have ultra modern design that is "swish". Our last decent looking diesel loco was the class 60, though thats a tad bland. Would you buy a car that was so goddam ugly ?. Ugly cars - (invariably Yank) -- Why not call them "Hummers" ? (The design stinks !!!). Easy to model though - just run your Bachmann class 66 at full speed off the end of your layout onto a concrete floor, you need to do it twice - once in each direction !!. Apollo

Visited Penketh Model Rly Centre (Warrington) yesterday for some Wills paving - came home with a Kestrel !! (christmas present from mrs !!) I saw the real thing twice, first time in 68 (maybe 69) whilst at school - she was northbound out of Wigan on the WCML, on a long passenger test train - one lad in class shouted "KESTREL", we rushed to the window - that was it - we were all in detention !!! Second time, a few years later she was parked outside crewe diesel depot with windows boarded up and "sold to Russia" (or similar) placards on the side. As one poster has stated - the most beautiful "box on wheels" ever built. If she was to run today her visual design is still bang on. Daft (but nice) chocolate & cream colour scheme though. I gave her a quick run before laying her up for christmas. She pulled 15 lima Mk 1's at a nice speed - impressed. Quiet too, and the flywheel(s) make her run sooo smooth. The lit headcode boxes a bit bright, but I can live with that. I think the spare bufferbeam (to allow plug in coupling) a good idea - but if you want a coupling each end, some of the fine detail will have to go. Perhaps a second spare unfitted beam should be supplied - anyway she is a beaut. A tad to late for my 1960's steam / green diesel era, but that's where modellers licence comes in. Well done Heljan. Apollo