Alcanman

Great pics John. Glad you've returned to Tyne Yard. I decided to pay a visit this morning to try out my new telephoto zoom lens. Took loads of pics, the 300mm lens perfect for TY. Then, to my horror, I discovered I'd forgotten to insert the SD Card! My first sighting of Colas 56s,they look great, and nice to see yard shunter 08752 returned to TY. Mal

Yesterday afternoon grey liveried Gbrf 66749 with 6F39/13:53 North Blyth - Drax at the splendidly named 'Winning' (Blyth & Tyne) 10.00am this morning and Gbrf 66736 'Wolverhampton Wanderers' is running around 6S45/9:25 North Blyth - Fort William Alcan Mal

66736 'Lesia' has arrived 40 mins early with 4N44 Doncaster Down Decoy - North Blyth. As a result, I am only able to grab this pic as the loco uncouples and runs around at Battleship Wharf coal terminal. later this afternoon 66736 powers through Newsham with 6F39 North Blyth - Cottam P. S.

Nice to see you've been back at Tyne Yard recently, John. And, of course great pics. I'm hoping to get along there soon myself. Mal

With GBRf currently providing power for most trains on the Blyth & Tyne, it's nice to catch EWS 66126 with 639Z 9.35 North Blyth - Ratcliffe P. S.

Great pics and memories. My dad worked at Bates and retired around the time of your pics. The disused sidings at Isabella provided a convenient short cut to the Isabella pub. At least rhe pub still stands, virtually everything else has been swept away! Thanks once again for sharing.

66733 'Cambridge PSB' has just arrived at the loop at Newsham with 6S45(9.25) North Blyth - Fort Willam and awaits the signal to run around. Now heading back north Mal

Great to see those old pics of the Toon, Dave. Happy days! I've been inspired by your local pics, so I finally got out today and took a few pics along the Blyth & Tyne with my new camera. (see Class 66 photos) Mal

66756 departs Battleship Wharf Coal Terminal on time with 6H89 North Blyth - Drax Meantime further along the line, 66708 'Jayne' has been waiting for over an hour in the passing loop at Freemans Crossing with 4N44 Doncaster Down Decoy - North Blyth. 12.00 noon and the wait is over for 'Jayne' as both trains finally meet.

Some Scottish 20s in the 80s 20191 at the front of a long row of 20s at Polmadie, 11th September 1982. In the summer of that year, 20191 had spent time on the West Highland line, working Fort William - Mallaig passenger trains including the 'mixed' which conveyed TTA tank wagons. 20137 and 20007 at Haymarket also 11.9.82 Mal

Thanks. I guessed it was the 'The Shops' (541-0015) as it was the only structure that had a central door opening, so I've gone ahead and bought that one.

Having reversed at Newsham, 66737 with 6S45(9.25) North Blyth - Fort William heads back north. 10.00 am and the sun is shining! Mal

Looking good, Gr G-F. The layout has a nice flowing, spacious look to it. Just wondering if you could let me know which Pikestuff kit you you used in first pic - the left hand structure with the large central door opening. Looks to be exactly what I'm looking for for a project. Mal

Thanks Phil. See my reply in the other thread.

Amazing co-incidence, Phil - the first pic is almost identical to the one that I was looking at in Rail Modeller Express, including the DBS liveried 60! Thanks, Mal

Nice pics of Tees Yard, Phil. Just wondering if the small wagon repair depot (which opened in 2012) and fuelling point are still there? I was looking at a pic in Rail Express Modeller (2013) of the facility and thought it would be a good subject for a small layout. Mal

Agree, and somehow the colour photos make the scene look even sadder than black and white pics. Thank for sharing, Dave. A nice memory for me. When I visited in the summer of '66, I seem to remember taking the train to Ilkley then a bus to Skipton. Mal

ESU have started a series of videos on Youtube entited 'ESU from the workbench' which promises to be very interesting for those interested in dcc sound and related matters. Here is the first video introduced by Matt Hermann. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F-Riv9UU9nA Mal

I've recently discovered some 47 pics from the 1980s. 47703 'Saint Mungo' at Eastfield 1982 A 47 at York with an interesting consist of what looks 6 HBAs, 1 Polybulk and some Interfrigo type refridgerator wagons. A 47 at Carlisle in one of the east end (Newcastle) bay platrorms Mal

Nice pics of Grassington, Dave. Very timely as I'm going there next week. I didn't manage to go there back in the day but did manage to visit Skipton where 75019 was 'on shed'. Mal

More great pics from the Rhine Valley. Thanks for sharing, Dave When I visited in 1998, trains on the east bank were mainly freights with a few local passenger trains. I took the train from Boppard to Bingen then crossed to the east bank of the Rhine by ferry to Rudesheim. Apart from the trains, the highlight of the holiday was the 'Rhine in Flames' firework display on the river with a huge flotilla of boats travelling from towns and cities on the Rhine. Local passengers trains meet at Rudesheim and a V200 on a special Mal

Always great to see local pics of Blyth and also Edinburgh Waverley where I spent a lot of time in the 1980s. Thanks for sharing. Mal

I agree with Giles and would add that when I first started using static grass a few years ago I bought online, only to find that the colours shown on websites where very different in reality and often included a mix of colours, some of which looked terrible. I then started buying at exhibitions with much more success. So my advice is, try to see the product before buying. Mal

Great local pics Dave. Reminded me that it's about time I tried out my new camera. My ambition is to try to get a pic of a train on that bridge or the other one nearby which crosses the River Wansbeck. Mal

I wasn't aware of the name of the bridge, thanks for the info. Here's another pic from the bridge. Mal