plarailfan

http://www.flickr.com/photos/42670985@N05/5240997218/in/faves-41294071@N02/ Can electrics be included in this topic ? The reason I ask, is this, deputising for a Hull Trains 170 unit and seen here, passing Elland Road football ground, Leeds.

You might find an isolated incident of a loco, hauling just one coach. The best I can come up with is hauling a two car DMU which had failed. DMU sets were a dying breed by the 1990's, with most of the remaining sets centred around Glasgow and Manchester, so "modellers licence" might be rquired for this one !

http://www.flickr.com/photos/41294071@N02/5430833764/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/41294071@N02/5430832556/ Here are a couple of Trans - Pennine DMU combinations I posted on flickr. Incidentally, never seen any photo's of it, but a 5 car Trans - pennine 124 unit worked the lunchtime Huddersfield to Clayton West for a couple of days, during a supervisors dispute around 1978. The guard locked up most of the coaches, as a Calder Valley set, or two car Met Camm were usually provided.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/41294071@N02/7496556152/ Here is Mr Motorman in action. Everything in this video is currently readily available on the internet, although, supplies have been patchy on occasions.

My Tomy, battery powered, toy trains can work with a Mr Motorman radio control pack. The battery fits inside a green barrel / receiver and goes in the locomotive battery compartment. It's toylike, but great fun and as a bonus, some trains have a basic, prototype sound to accompany the motion.

Bearing in mind Mallard weighs around 126 tons, and this five axle, ERF artic, would (legally) carry less than 30 tons, there's a massive overload problem here http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/221122691662?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2648 more to the point, It doesn't quite look right anyway !

Not forgetting the 95p extra, for UK postage - £6.45 altogether - unbelievable !!

Just in passing, during the 1980's Morley tunnel was closed for quite a few consecutive weekends, while some refurbishment work took place. (cue bustitution and frustrated passengers) A story was going around at the time, that some preparation work was taking place, for future electrification. I don't know what the alleged preparations involved, maybe someone on here knows ?

I recently went to see Pete Waterman's layout, and he has one of these loco's fitted with a sound chip - it sounded a bit like a class 37. (This is O gauge modelling) There's loads of clips, showing Pete's layout on you tube.

Hull is a well used station, that hasn't been mentioned in these plans I'm afraid. The proposals already put forward in the last few days are fantastic news. Even though we are currently in a recession, many services on the Leeds - Manchester route, are already full and standing with commuters and off - peak, leisure / shopping journeys. At one of my local stations - Dewsbury, when a fast train departs, passengers immediately start arriving for the next one, which is 30 mins later, so hopefully, the swift acceleration of EMUs will allow a more frequent service for these customers, without disrupting the, currently, very intensive timetable. (Although the 185's are very quick off the mark)

As an aid to anyone doing research, I've started this group, if anyone wants to add photo's, please feel free. http://www.flickr.com/groups/1533814@N24/ Many thanks.

It's been confirmed that the line from Leeds through Cross Gates, to the ECML, at Colton junction is to be wired as part of this scheme starting in 2014. On my local BBC1 "Look North" news last night, Alan Whitehouse was going through the details while film footage was shown, of class 319 units, so perhaps these will be drafted in, until some new build arrives ?

Yes, it's both routes. Standedge line first, with the route through Summit tunnel expected to follow sometime afterwards. Presumably the often discussed, (in the railway media) four track section through Dewsbury station and the re-opened single track Standedge bore, will be done at the same time the electrification works start.

I went to the West Yorkshire, METRO event at Low Moor, in connection with building a new rail station there. The staff running the display, told me the Leeds - Manchester, Calder Valley line, is supposed to be electrified, once the route via Dewsbury has been electrified - and that is supposedly starting in 2014, so the Calder Valley is still some way off. Interesting times !! Edit - sorry Woodenhead, we both seem to have posted these around the same time.

Perhaps a prospective buyer should be careful buying from this seller, their after sales service would appear to need upgrading http://feedback.ebay...ms=negative_365 Currently running at 5,000 over the last twelve months, Is this the worst seller for neutral and negative feedback I wonder ?

I noticed a Del Prado "Brighton Belle" coach made £9 recently, perhaps the UK models in the series, are becoming sought after. Thing is, they are 1:160 scale, so technically, too large to mix with the usual 1:148 British outline r-t-r models.

As a UK, 44 ton, artic driver, I feel brassed off, putting three hundred quids worth of Diesel in the lorry, - it only lasts a day doing tipper work, or a day and into the next morning, on curtainside work. (There's a fuel facility in the yard, but obviously, that's no good when you are hundreds of miles away from base). £300 is nearly a week's take home pay for me, yet the truck guzzles that amount in one fill. It makes my blood boil. The boss ain't very happy either, margins are so tight now, that he can't afford to subcontract work out anymore during the Christmas rush, - instead of constantly passing on ever increasing fuel prices, he has absorbed some of them, to keep the work with his regular customers. Oil is getting harder to find, and it is buried, in more inaccessible places, with more risk involved, collecting it. It's time a viable alternative was made available. When I was at school in the seventies, "everyone" teachers / books / media, said different fuels would become available, to replace oil... Time is running out. In the meantime though, it would help, if tax on fuel was reduced, especially now we are in a recession and there's a "penny pinching" squeeze on wages and pensions.

Some models now :- 1) The awful, oversize N gauge Lima Deltic. Around 1977, I saw a club member try one on the exhibition layout at a scale 250 MPH - it crashed into the first overbridge it encountered, as the model was so overscale, lol. 2) The Tri-ang shorty, red plastic coaches, issued in the sets with the Princess steam loco. Nine out of ten coaches seem to have warped into a banana shape over the years, and are a common sight at local toyfairs for around £2 each. 3) Continental outline, wagons, rail cranes and goods vans, in BR livery. (Lima springs to mind, but there are others) 4) HO models pretending to be OO gauge (playcraft, Lima, Lilliput, etc, etc) with the disclaimer, "suitable for OO/HO" on the box / packet 5) N gauge "sizes" 1:148, 1:150, 1:160 - high time everyone settled on just one scale, so everything fits together properly and looks right. Simon.

I miss Deltics, class 25's, and the Trans - Pennine 124 units (they were so noisy) Job security - a job for life was still readily available. West Yorkshire trolleybuses, then later on, Leyland Atlanteans and the original, National 1's, of which I eventually went on to drive a few ex Manchester examples (fantastic) Weren't 1970's Sunday's peaceful and relaxed, without all the supermarkets, shopping centres and retail parks.... Coupling up to the missus without worrying about equipment failure and collecting the tablet.

Thanks for your replies folks. My friend has now had the heart check at the stipulated hospital, which turned out to be "private" i.e. not an NHS hospital, but also, he has been asked to go back to the same hospital, for a second visit, to walk on a treadmill, and have an ECG heart scan, which costs "customers" one thousand pounds. My friend can't afford to throw money around like this, so I don't know what will happen. The fees, and cost of travelling to the first two appointments alone, have cost over a thousand pounds already In addition, the weeks are ticking by, and he had been hoping to go to Australia during August

I like the Railworks class 20 add on, the sound is excellent. I bought this disc in a box, but I think you can buy it on a download, off the internet. I feel tempted by the class 86 add on, I think that one is only available as a download though. I've seen all sorts of prices charged for the various Railworks disc, in a box. it definately pays to shop around.

Here's a link to 1562, at Crewe. Quite a mess, http://www.flickr.com/photos/stefancabaniuk/3576215983/

Another photo here http://www.flickr.com/photos/barrytaxi/4538963886/