Innehållsförteckning för November 2019 från Rail Express

THE Scottish Parliament has approved reopening of the Levenmouth branch in Fife at an estimated cost of £70 million. The six-mile line runs from Thornton Junction to the town of Leven, which originally served the port of Methil. Although closed to passenger services in 1969, it was retained for freight operations until 2001 when it was classified as out of use under Network Rail procedures for short-term network change. As a result, the formation is intact with bridges remaining in place. The timetable will provide through trains to Edinburgh with a journey time of 70 minutes. The population is currently the largest in Scotland without a rail service, and there will be an intermediate station provided at Cameron Bridge – where Diageo operates a grain distillery producing whisky and spirit…

VIVARAIL is to supply five trains to replace the elderly Class 483 EMUs on the Island Line between Ryde and Shanklin. Based on the Class 230 DMUs already in service, the new two-car trains will run on third-rail DC electric and be known as Class 484 (pictured left how they should look in service). The first is due to arrive on the Isle of Wight for tests in summer 2020. Track improvement works will follow in winter 2020, which will include a new passing loop at Brading to allow an even half-hourly service to run. Vivarail’s trains are based on former London Underground ‘D’ Stock (of 1978 onwards), but the Class 483s are ex-LU Stock dating back to 1938. The restrictive clearance in Ryde Tunnel has always limited what type…

50 YEARS AGO... NOVEMBER 1969 IOW RUNDOWN Steam had finished at the end of 1966 and Class 485/486 EMUs (ex-London Underground 1923 Stock) took over on the remaining line from Ryde Pier Head to Shanklin in March 1967. But from November 30, 1969, further rundown saw conductor-guards were introduced on all trains, from which date ticket offices were closed for the winter at all island stations. Despite all that, the line has clung on for 50 years – even opening new stations at Lake in 1987 and Smallbrook Junction in 1991 – and has recently been given a boost with the announcement that Vivarail Class 230s are to take over (see also Headline News) – opening the possibility of through running on to the Isle of Wight Steam Railway or…

THE A1 Steam Locomotive Trust, owner of A1 ‘Pacific’ No. 60163 Tornado, is dropping its plan to acquire a set of displaced Mk.3 carriages to run as a charter set behind Tornado and the still-under-construction Class P2 Prince of Wales. The news was to be announced at the A1 Trust’s annual convention on October 12. The carriages, currently operating with Greater Anglia on the Norwich-Liverpool Street route, are shortly to be replaced by new Stadler-built EMUs. The entire GA Mk.3 fleet – more than 12 carriages – were given a refurbishment by Vossloh Kiepe in 2014/15 that included the following improvements throughout for both First Class and Standard carriages: plug points; LED lighting; new carpets, tables, seat covers; upgraded controlled emission toilets; and the re-painting of the carriage interiors and…

THE Chatham Dock Railway in Kent is home to Andrew Barclay 0-4-0 No. 357, one of a batch of 20 built in 1941 for the MoD, and which has had a full and varied career. Initially used at Longmoor (Hampshire), the loco was shipped from Southampton to Cherbourg (France) in September 1944 and went into 102 Transportation Stores Depot at Bayeux. In August 1945, it was renumbered No. WD70042 and allocated to Merelbeke (Belgium) before returning to Britain in June 1946. In 1951, it became No. WD823 and was one of six locomotives sent to the Middle East later that year, returning in 1955 and allocated to Bicester Central Ordnance Depot. In May 1961, it was renumbered again to No. WD859 and served at a number of British MoD sites…

A LATE push by volunteers at the Telford Steam Railway saw both Ruston & Hornsby LSSH No. 525947 Rusty and Ruston & Hornsby 88DS No. 382824 Hector made ready for the railway’s September 15 diesel gala. Rusty had its hydraulic torque converter pump overhauled, the fuel filters renewed, and a general service. Hector had been undergoing a major overhaul after standing unused for eight years and, whilst mechanically completed, there was still some paintwork to be done before the event. Losing its fake BR livery, the loco now carries blue with yellow lining and the fleet number No. VL6 of its previous owners FH Lloyd 7 of Wednesbury, where it started work in 1955 (the colours being identified from paint remains uncovered during the restoration). Unfortunately, Rusty failed just before…

THE Anglian ‘short set’, an on/off institution since the mid-1990s and in the hands of DRS Class 37s since 2015, has finally come to an end – Nos. 37409 and 37424 performing the honours on the 2P39/20.17 Great Yarmouth to Norwich on September 21. Three days later, No. 37403 was tasked with returning the pair to Crewe Gresty Bridge ready to be deployed on other duties. This ‘37’ had only recently been released after repairs at Loram Derby and dispatched to Norwich as the spare for the Great Anglia diagram for its last week or so of action. The large logo trio were joined by No. 57003, which came up from Stowmarket after delivering Nos. 37402 and 37405 for RHTT work on September 22. Unfortunately No. 37403 was failed en…

THE introduction of Class 801 ‘Azumas’ on the East Coast Main Line took place as planned on September 16. A pair of five-car ‘801/1’ units was initially put into traffic on the Leeds to London route, releasing a nine-car Class 800 for use on Edinburgh services. Two more pairs were introduced on September 23, and another diagram was planned to go over to ‘801’ operation on September 30. The first units to enter service, forming the 1A06/06.40 Leeds-King’s Cross on September 16, were Nos. 801109/110, which also worked the following day. Unfortunately, on the second day, a fault on No. 801109 caused the 1B82/10.06 King’s Cross-Newark to be terminated at Peterborough and the pair ran empty to Doncaster Carr. No. 801110 picked up the remainder of the diagram with No.…

THE development of new ‘O’ gauge models of BR banana vans by Dapol has progressed to livery assessment stage with the models on target for a Q4 release. Livery samples have arrived at Dapol for checking, including the featured models finished in BR bauxite at No. B880952 with ‘Geest’ labelling and No. B880876 with ‘Fyffes’ blue label brand banana legends. The model consists of a new body tooling mounted on the successful Dapol 10ft wheelbase underframe with vacuum brake equipment and four-shoe long link brakes. Compensation of the underframe, sprung buffers mounted in spindle buffer shanks; working three link couplings with springs and brake blocks fitted in line with the wheels are all features of the new models. The three-hole wheels are turned to a fine profile, allowing them to…

PROTOTYPES of the new ‘OO’ gauge models of the BBA and BLA bogie steel carriers are currently undergoing assessment by Cavalex Models. The photographs show the die-cast main frame of the models detailed with moulded plastic components, together with etched decking details in the BBA and sharply moulded coil cradles of the BLA wagon. Cavalex has determined that a few tweaks are necessary before livery samples are commissioned. It is hoped to have finished samples of both models available in time for the Warley National Model Railway Exhibition in November. www.cavalexmodels.com…

WITH the start of the new modelling season comes a slew of model railway exhibitions, topped by the large Warley National Model Railway Exhibition held in Hall 5 of the NEC at Birmingham. This year marks the 27th year that the Warley Model Railway Club has held its annual exhibition at the NEC and builds on its support of D&E modelling with layouts in ‘N’, ‘OO’ and ‘O’ gauge among the 90 layouts attending the show. In ‘N’ gauge, the Chester club is showing its ‘Cragmill’ layout which features up to date operations. Also attending are ‘Martini Junction’ and ‘Umbridge’ (opposite), both of which represent the BR blue era. In 4mm scale there are nine layouts ranging from TMD layouts such as ‘Ebbols Lane’ (Sam Bythway), ‘Franwood TMD’ (Neil Woodbine)…

The publishers particularly asked that I cover every area of the country. After giving it some thought I decided to split the country into the main area codes used in British Railways steam days which some of the readers may remember.eg Area 34 was King’s Cross and suburbs Area 60 Inverness etc I know that these shed codes in the latter years of steam altered frequently, for example Carnforth changed from Area 11 to 24 to 10 over aperiod of 10 years. Most of the area codes used would be correct around the mid 1950s, but there are exceptions. I hope the readers will understand that with around 70 plus areas with just over 250 pictures coverage has had to be minimal.…

AN ambitious project to convert redundant Class 91 electrics for use on freight services in Eastern Europe has been unveiled by Europhoenix Ltd, writes Gareth Bayer. Europhoenix is already an expert in repurposing British motive power for use abroad, having exported Class 56, 86 and 87 locomotives to Bulgaria and Hungary. It has now combined forces with Voith, a world leader in transmission technology, to install new gearboxes in the Class 91s that will turn them from high-speed East Coast racehorses to heavy-hauling freight machines. As many as 20 of the BREL Crewe-built locos could be exported, and they would be paired up with the ‘blunt’ end facing outwards. The first locomotives to join the programme are Nos. 91117 and 91120, which were stopped in late September (see also Power…

CALL them what you will –fancy ‘Azumas’ or plain vanilla IETs – the new breed of Hitachi Class 800/801/802 trains have quickly developed their own mythology. The latest online chat room talk has suggested that Great Western Railway Class 802s could beat Class 800s to 60mph not only – as expected – with their higher-rated diesel power, but also on electric supply – for which there is no obvious reason. Counter-intuitively, a pair offive-car Class 800 electrics have a marginally better power/weight ratio than a nine-car Class 802, and a better ‘slipstream effect’, although presumably this is counterbalanced by greater drag. Finding a level run to test this theory is a problem. East from Didcot and Reading and west from Swindon are the best ones, but other trains have a…

THE North Tyneside Steam Railway held a diesel gala on September 28/29, that saw the reunion of former Gateshead depot Class 03s Nos. 03078 and 03079. The event also saw resident ‘Gronk’ No. 08915 temporarily renumbered to that of scrapped Gateshead machine No. 08008. The railway’s No. 03078 has recently been outshopped in BR blue livery, and to celebrate this No. 03079 was hired in from the Derwent Valley Light Railway (near York) – the first ever guest loco for an enthusiast event at the NTSR. Both shunters were based at Gateshead together from 1976-1988. Volunteers also converted an old tank wagon into an ‘03’ match wagon, which is claimed to be the first such pairing in preservation.…

DRS has again been tasked with providing Class 20/3 locomotives for the South Yorkshire RHTT circuit, which requires a pair of the venerable Type 1s to work the train with an additional locomotive as cover. Nos. 20302, 20303 and 20305 were collected from Barrow Hill on August 20 by Nos. 37401 and 37059 to return them to Crewe Gresty Bridge for remedial work and exams. Nos. 20302 and 20303 were then due to move to York in late September, but this did not take place resulting in Harry Needle Railroad Company’s orange Class 20/3s Nos. 20311 and 20314 being drafted in for the first day of the RHTT contract on October 2. The HNRC pair had not been seen under their own power on the main line since September 2018.…

WITH Class 800/801 ‘Azuma’ trainsets now having taken over East Coast Main Line trains to Glasgow Central from September 24, three further Class 91 locomotives have been removed from traffic since late August. No. 91103 had the unhappy distinction of being the second of the ECML ‘Electras’ to be stood down for component recovery, despite only being returned to service following repairs a few weeks earlier. Its last day was August 28. Classmate No. 91120 followed on September 23, while it was the turn of No. 91117 to be switched off two days later (25th) - these two are now at Leicester in Europhoenix colours, bound for further use in Europe (see page 10). No. 91117 powers past Cock Lane footbridge, north of Peterborough, on September 25 with the 1E18/14.00…

■ TRAFFIC AND TRACTION: An outdoor evening music event near Balmoral on August 24 saw significant extra traffic for the railway, with timetabled services augmented by extra trains. The Belfast Great Victoria Street (GVS)-Balmoral-Lisburn section saw an intensive shuttle-type service during the late evening and early the following morning. Fourteen trains were dispatched from Balmoral between 22.30 and 00.24. Destinations included GVS, Lisburn, Portadown and Larne Harbour – the latter had started at Portadown. Extras also ran from Lanyon Place and GVS to Bangor, and GVS to Coleraine. Footexes from Adelaide Halt to Bangor (dep 22.00), Portadown (22.02) and Carrickfergus (22.09) were scheduled to run on September 5 and 9. A Fire and Rescue service exercise was undertaken at platform 3 at Carrickfergus on Sunday, September 8. A 4000 Class…

A welcome re-issue for ‘N’ gauge modellers is the Graham Farish OBA open wagon, decorated in Railfreight red and grey livery (373-361). The extended end tooling has been used for this model, which carries the number DC110652. The DC prefix indicates the model represents one of transferred to departmental use. The detailing of the body is very good, with clear planking and strapping detail on the drop side doors that will take a wash of grime to bring out the relief. Planking detail is repeated on the inside of the body too, with planking evident in the floor, with turnover bolster detail, and on the inside face of the drop side doors. On the underframe is a good level of detail for the brake equipment, although the calliper detail and…

VERSION 2 of the Dapol ‘OO’ gauge Class 73 Electro-Diesel or ED was released during the summer, featuring improvements in current collection and a revised circuit board with improved switching of the cab and running lights. It also has improved lighting control through the 21-pin DCC interface socket when operated with DCC compared to the first release of the model. One of the models was reviewed in the last issue of Rail Express Modeller: No. 73109 Battle of Britain 50th Anniversary which was finished in the first version of Network SouthEast (NSE) livery. Modellers wanting the later version of the livery with larger body side numbers and the more prominent NSE legend can use the Dapol model for a refinishing project which retains as much of the original livery as…

After all the events and publicity in the media over the last 12 months, connected to the 40 years since the end of steam on British Railways, I was delighted to be given the opportunity to put this book together, showing how the railways have changed in the 40 years since 1968, with particular emphasis on the 1980s and 1990s. Whilst the public’s appetite for steam in preservation and on the main line shows no signs of dwindling, it is to the great credit of Network Rail and many others that steam can still be seen over most parts of the country, especially at places such as on the East and West Coast main lines where the 125mph railway exists. The public’s expectations of train travel in 2008 is quite…

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Bibliography. Much of the information contained in the captions has come from the following sources. 1. The Allocation History of BR Diesels and Electrics Roger Harris 2. Traction Recognition Colin J Marsden 3. Railway Track Diagrams Quail 4. British Rail DMUs and Railcars Brian Morrison…

AFTER a two-month spell in storage at Ely Papworth pending transfer of ownership from Angel Trains to the National Railway Museum, power car No. 43002 Sir Kenneth Grange was moved to Locomotion at Shildon on September 20, writes David Russell. The last-minute move enabled the power car to appear at Locomotion’s 15th anniversary event, although there was no time for it to be unloaded beforehand, so it was displayed outside on a low-loader. The gala on September 21/22 also saw No. 66788 named Locomotion 15. Following the event, No. 43002 was unloaded and placed on undercover display alongside the prototype DELTIC. This was a temporary arrangement, pending its movement to the NRM in York and official entry into the collection, which is planned to take place before the end of…

THE general story of the 1500V DC EM2 express passenger electrics built for the Manchester-Sheffield-Wath (MSW) ‘Woodhead’ electrification scheme in the early 1950s is well known. Just seven members strong (pre-TOPS Nos. 27000-27006), they were declared redundant in 1968 and sold to Nederlandse Spoorwegen, the Dutch national railway operator, in 1969 where they gave excellent service until retired for asecond time in 1986. However, it could have been a very different matter had British Railways continued electrification at 1500V DC rather than switching to 25kV AC as the new standard. Electrification of the former Great Central route over the Pennines, via Woodhead Tunnel, had been mooted for years before the first comprehensive plan was published by the LNER in 1936. Calling for nine express passenger locomotives, plus 69 for mixed…

WHEN the former Electric Railway Museum at Coventry was forced to close in 2017, this left two former City and South London Railway cars based there needing to find new homes. Timber-bodied No. 135 (of 1903) had already been claimed, but for steel-bodied No. 163 (of 1907) the future looked bleak. The condition of No. 163 was thought to be so poor that it was beyond restoration. However, to prevent immediate disposal, the London Transport Museum took ownership of the car and arranged for it to be delivered to Neasden depot for inspection. To identify all preservation options, the car was assessed by representatives of the LTM and also by structural conservation engineers. Although still in one piece, it was found that the car was not structurally sound and there…

TO mark a quarter of a century since London Underground ceased operating trains on the Epping to Ongar section of the Central Line, the Epping Ongar Railway hosted a ‘25 Years in the Making!’ gala on September 27-29. Brake van trips to the border with London Underground were enjoyed by visitors, with the traction provided by resident ‘Goyle’ No. 31438. Meanwhile, former Metropolitan Railway steam loco No. 1 and visiting ‘Warship’ No. D821 Greyhound operated services between North Weald and Ongar.…

LEEDS’ Middleton Railway held its ‘Works Outing’ event on September 14/15 – meaning any loco in its collection that worked (steam and diesel) got an outing over the weekend. This included historic diesel No. 7051, which was built for the London Midland Scottish Railway in 1932 and is therefore significant as one of the earliest diesels built for a British main line railway company. The loco is also known as No. 1697 John Alcock, and was the Middleton’s first ever loco when it was taken over by preservationists in 1960. Also in action was the 1935-built Hunslet No. 1786, which is named Courage after the brewery where the diminutive 22hp 0-4-0 spent its working life. This loco has no train brakes, and so can only work with another loco. Other…

CLASS 20 IF ever there was a success story from the 1955 Modernisation Plan, then it was surely the English Electric Type 1 design. During September, examples of this aged class handled main line rail tours, undertook gala appearances and returned to revenue-earning freight traffic, the latter perhaps being the most unexpected. On hire to Devon and Cornwall Railways, under the current operator Cappagh, Type 1s Nos. 20118 Saltburnby-the-Sea and 20132 Barrow Hill Depot took 16 empty wagons from Chaddesden to Barrow Hill and back on September 24 and next day formed the 6Z31/05.42 Chaddesden-Basford Hall. There the wagons were loaded with spoil and taken in two separate trips of eight wagons to the former Esso Sidings at Longport, booked to leave Basford Hall as the 6Z36 at 15.41 and…

ALTHOUGH No. 08922 had been replaced by Thomas Hill Vanguard 4wDH No. 184 as shunter at the Axiom Wagon Works in Stoke-on-Trent in August, it remained on site until the end of September. There was nothing amiss with No. 08922, but the work required for it was very lightweight, moving a maximum of six empty wagons at a time. With the RSS ‘08’ fleet in demand, it was decided to move No. 184 from Ely to replace No. 08922 as it could easily handle the workload. This released No. 08922, which was finally moved to EMD Longport in late September. This in turn allowed on-hire No. 08220 to be returned to the Great Central Railway (Nottingham), which arrived back there on September 25. The start of September saw recently overhauled…

MENDIP Rail’s latest acquisitions are now in the UK, with GBRf’s No. 66701 taking them as a 6Z14 trip from Dollands Moor to Wembley on September 24. The 35 marine aggregate-compliant hoppers, which are being leased from VTG Rail UK, are TOPS code HOA (UIC/ ERA designation Fanpps) and numbered Nos. 81 70 6774 001 to 81 70 6774 035 GB-VTGUK. The whole order had made their way to Frethun, at the south end of the Channel Tunnel, just a few days earlier. Greenbrier-Astra Rail was contracted to build the new wagons and, like previous hoppers in this family, they were built at Wagony Swidnica (the former Greenbrier Europe factory) in Poland. Notably, Mendip Rail initially indicated it was leasing 25 HOAs from VTG, with the remaining 10 to be…

THE Irish Rail 2018 Annual Report indicates that the company saw a 5.3% increase in passenger numbers to 47.9 million and fare revenue rose 7.8% to €220.9 million but the PSO (Public Service Obligation) grant was reduced by 22.3% to €89.3 million, and railfreight revenue fell from €8 million to €7.5 million. The drop in freight was mainly because of the loss of the Waterford to Ballina DFDS container traffic and lower volumes on the Navan (Tara Mines) to Dublin Port bulk ore flow. €10.6 million from operations at Rosslare Europort and other sources saw the company’s total revenue hit €280.9 million, an increase of 6.1%. However, the report states there was a total deficit of €1.1 million. Investment of €25 million in harbour facilities is planned for Rosslare Europort,…

SUMMER is traditionally when Bachmann updates both the industry and modellers with the progress it has made on its current projects. The briefing was later than usual this year, but Bachmann has a lot in the pipeline in ‘OO’ and ‘N’ gauges, with a variety of diesel and electric models at various stages of development, including the much anticipated Class 410 4BEP catering car; the Class 20/3 as operated by DRS and Harry Needle Railroad Company, alongside the new Class 121 single car units. Among the most impressive of the models that are listed in the 2019 Bachmann catalogue is the Ransomes & Rapier crane, which will be available in two different BR liveries. ‘OO’ gauge At the development stage, being prepared for the drawing office, are the new low-level…

THE development of two new Irish Railway Models (IRM) ‘OO’ gauge CIE bogie wagons has reached the livery prototype stage. A view of the fertiliser wagons, which were designed with specialised bodies for palletised fertliser and finished in bauxite livery, has been revealed. The model represents the 90-strong fleet of wagons built for fertiliser traffic from the IFI plant in Co. Wicklow to terminals throughout Ireland. It will be made available in twin packs of uniquely numbered wagons for €100 alongside a multi-pack bundle. Similar but different container platforms were built for container trains including Bell and B+I company trains and are also subject to an ‘OO’ gauge model by IRM. The model will be available in six different packs of two wagons loaded with containers for €100 plus discounted…

SEPTEMBER 1990 saw No. 73109 achieve celebrity status with its naming as Battle of Britain 50th Anniversary at Folkestone Central on September 8, 1990 following repainting in the first version of Network SouthEast livery. It was the first of the 42-strong fleet of Class 73/1 locomotives to be adorned in a livery that closely matched that applied to Southern Region EMUs, with small numerals and a logo applied along the wide white body side band. At the time of its naming, the locomotive did not sport a square framed headlight or cab-mounted radio aerials. Reports indicate that the locomotive was relatively elusive for the following six months due to technical problems. In time, it became affectionately known as ‘BoB’ by staff and enthusiasts alike. The livery, which was only applied…

THE Iwata ‘Revolution HP-CR’ is one of two airbrushes currently being tested by Rail Express Modeller for model railway painting applications. It is an excellent all-round performance airbrush which has been sent in for review by The Airbrush Company Ltd. It’s the first of the two to be put through its paces in the paint shop to test its ‘effortless coverage’ label. Iwata literature states that it provides a soft coverage with ease and with the lower air pressures typical of home spray booth compressors. It is a dual-action, internal mix airbrush with a medium head assembly suitable for model painting applications and would work for newcomers to spray painting and experts alike. Before describing its performance on a typical locomotive repainting project, a word about Iwata’s ‘Five Ways to…