Jim’s “out and about with GBRf” thread

[Mallard60022]

66187 pic - what's the wagons chaps?

P

[Fat Controller]

66187 pic - what's the wagons chaps?

P

Arbel 5-unit articulated car carriers, working either from Cowley or Garston with export cars.

[big jim]

and so to today, first trip down the heart of wales line, i went from shrewsbury to llandridno wells today as to do the whole line there and back would take me about 10 hours!

 

caught the 09:00 off shrewsbury which was 150208, a unit i have driven myself a while back, so long ago it was in scotrail livery!

 

 

the driver picked up the token at craven arms for the run over to knighton which is the first token exchange point, lovely little station, fantastic architecture

 

 

and on to llandridno wells, an absolutly stunning line what i have sen of it so far, knucklas viaduct is a beauty, on arrival at llandridno wells the driver gave the token back but could not get release as there was a train in the section ahead which turned out to be this

 

 

i had planned to have an hour in llandridnod and catch the same unit back but i chanced my arm and asked the driver of the 37 if i could ride back to shrewsbury with him, which he agreed to!! 

 

so off we went, in the down direction there are crossing where you have to operate the barriers manually, either by a pull chord or plunger, the first being just outside llandridnod, the next being at dolau where i jumped down for a picture

 

 

and on to knighton where the driver swapped tokens so another pic was in order

 

 

eventually onto craven arms where we were held for a couple of passenger services on the mainline, so again a few more pics

 

 

 

the signal leaving the branch

 

 

and into salop

 

 

 

and back home to crewe, where continuing the test train theme the 67 i photographed yesterday in toton on the managers train, 67015,  was now top and tailing this with 67016

 

 

 

so a summary of the HOW line, not as bad as i first envisaged, the maps i have make it look a lot more involved than it is as they show all the foot crossings, over bridges, streams etc, it very much put me in mind of the cambrian with its open crossings, single twisting line, it was nice to see it from a "freight" as well as a passenger service.

 

back to it again tomorrow, might go on to llanwrtydd tomorrow

 

 

 

 

 

[Fat Controller]

When I last used it, it was a two-car Swindon Cross-Country unit..

So what are you learning the road for, Jim?

[newbryford]

 

and back home to crewe, where continuing the test train theme the 67 i photographed yesterday in toton on the managers train, 67015,  was now top and tailing this with 67016

 

 

 

 

 

 

Nice yellow stuff Jim.

First pics I've seen of Mentor back out on the mainline since it's big rebuild. (yet another one to do...........................)

 

Cheers,

Mick

[Mallard60022]

....and there's me cleaning grotty toilets............ar*e!

[The Stationmaster]

Jim - have they swopped round 'Up' & 'Down' on the Central Wales Line (they used to match the 'Up' & 'Down' at both ends)?

 

And although I've posted it in the past here's a view at Dolau in earlier times - from a n 'Up' train (towards Craven Arms and after singling but before level crossing modernisation came along -

 

[big jim]

Jim - have they swopped round 'Up' & 'Down' on the Central Wales Line (they used to match the 'Up' & 'Down' at both ends)?

 

just checking you were awake mike!

 

it indeed the up heading towards craven arms, in my defence the arriva maps i have don't actually have the directions on there, i've just had to refer to the sectional appendix to clarify, also checked up on the route availability along there, 47, 56 and 66 are all banned so it looks like a 37 refresh may be in order depending what jobs we i cover down there, however "heavyweight" 37s are also banned so that rules out 37800 and 37886!

 

a few pics from today, forgot to put the memory card back in the camera this morning so only a few phone pics

 

first up is the chirk to baglan empty logs passing through salop behind 66850

 

llandridnod wells signal box museum, apparently it was relocated from futher along the craven arms direction of the line

 

my return train heading into the platform

 

the hut on the right is the token exchange point, where the driver gives up the llandridnod to llanwrtydd token and collects the llandridnod to knighton one

 

another day at it tomorrow, im going to go on to llanwrtydd tomorrow

[roundhouse]

Here is the box in its previous location plus the lack of track in the station.

 

Taken back in 1986 from the DMU going Southbound.

 

 

 

 

[big jim]

was it for the HOW line that the dmu's had the headlights fitted?

[The Stationmaster]

was it for the HOW line that the dmu's had the headlights fitted?

Yes - when it was reduced to what was effectively Light Railway status headlights were required, there were also portable sets ket for use on Class 37s although the number of loco hauled trains was limited and we had to speak to the Railway Inspectorate every time we wanted to run one.

Edited September 25, 2013 by The Stationmaster

[ianwales]

Hi Mike

 

I think you will find the fitting of headlights pre dated the downgrading to light railway status and had more to do with the number of ungated crossings on the line, certainly in 1970 when I was in the first year of secondary school the class 37's used to work the HOWL freights and they, and the Swindon DMU's,  were headlight fitted even then in pre TOPS days while by the time I got on to the HOWL as a relief signalman the LRO had taken effect and the Llandovery freight was worked by the class 03's shared with the BPGV line.

 

Ian

[The Stationmaster]

Hi Mike

 

I think you will find the fitting of headlights pre dated the downgrading to light railway status and had more to do with the number of ungated crossings on the line, certainly in 1970 when I was in the first year of secondary school the class 37's used to work the HOWL freights and they, and the Swindon DMU's,  were headlight fitted even then in pre TOPS days while by the time I got on to the HOWL as a relief signalman the LRO had taken effect and the Llandovery freight was worked by the class 03's shared with the BPGV line.

 

Ian

An interesting point Ian.  The 1973 SA shows the requirement for heaflights and that they must be dipped when approaching all public level crossings.  At that time there were 3 open crossings without road traffic signals on the CWL and while they were far from unique in South Wales (there were a total of 16 such crossings in the area at that time) they were the only ones on a passenger line.  So you might well be right although dim memory suggests there might be a bit more to it than just that (crikey, it's 40 years ago - almost exactly - since I was an asst AM at Swansea High St!).

[big jim]

regarding level crossings i was streetviewing pantyffynon earlier as the station building looked quite impressive from the air and the crossing there threw me a bit, no signs, barriers etc but is signalled either side

 

had a look in the sectional appendix and there is no special instruction for there, the appendix shows the crossing as being a MCG type which again threw me a bit so i had to look in the rulebook what type it was and it stands for Manual Crossing Gated (although the definition is not actually shown in the rulebook!) but looking at the streetview there is no sign of a hut, i'm wondering if the guard operates the gates (but that would be shown in the appendix)

 

no doubt it will all become clear when i go over there

[ianwales]

Hi Jim

 

The crossing gates are worked by a crossing keeper based in the old station building on the instructions of the signalman in Pantyffynnon box.

 

Ian

[big jim]

a few more from me, had a couple of days of proper jobs and today it was back to the heart of wales line

 

started in crewe.....

 

 

 

 

 

and onto shrewsbury where the 153 was waiting to head down the heart of wales

 

shrewsbury box

 

 

and onto llandridnod where the unit corsses with the northbound one, the drivers also swap over here

 

llandridnod station buildings

 

153 heading off to swansea

 

into knighton where the driver exchanged tokens, lovely looking buildings here

 

and into shrewsbury where i had a bit of time before my train back to crewe so i got a few pics 

 

 

 

 

 

i then had a look on realtime trains and spotted there was a charter booked through shrewsbury on the avoiding line so i wandered down to abbey forgate to photograph it...

 

abbey forgate box

 

 

signal gantries on the approach to shrewsbury

left to right (plat 3, through road, plat 4) (bay plat 5, bay plat 6)

 

and then this came round the curve, "Earl Of Mount Edgecombe" on a herefrod to tyseley run

 

 

 

 

 

and then i caught my train back home!

Edited September 28, 2013 by big jim

[big jim]

tidied up a couple of the pictures above, what do we recon. trimmed them down to get rid of that annoying spot in the corner and added various filters using photoshop express on the ipad

 

 

[Mallard60022]

That GUV behind the loco is a water 'tender' I believe.  Great pics mate - thanks. You have sold me for a trip down this line.

p

[Talltim]

A great way to get some active service out of a GUV

[The Stationmaster]

Crrrrrrikey, those signal brackets at Salop have been well and truly ruined haven't they - glad I got my pics of them a goodly time ago when they were still proper signals!

[big jim]

Crrrrrrikey, those signal brackets at Salop have been well and truly ruined haven't they - glad I got my pics of them a goodly time ago when they were still proper signals!

ruined in what way, the walkways and ladders?

Edited September 29, 2013 by big jim

[The Stationmaster]

ruined in what way, the walkways and ladders?

Yes, definitely overdone and make it all look top heavy, far better the way it was in my opinion - 

 

[big jim]

it's the plethora of "modern" lamposts that annoy me in shrewsbury, you don't really notice them until you are trying to find a good angle to get a photo from!!

[big jim]

back to the sinfins today, unusually running on a tuesday, there are 2 more this week on thursday and saturday which i will be doing too......

 

arrving into crewe from grangemouth at 05:30

 

did the usual thing of dropping the tanks off and going for fuel then into derby station to await the return time to sinfin, this came in again, different 20's this time though

 

luckily the signaller held me at the signal exiting the 'pilot road' so i managed a couple of shots from the yard side first

 

 

 

then i ran back into the station yard where i managed to get some shots of the 20s at the other end

 

with the s-stock cropped out it could well be the 80s again!

 

 

 

and off it went into litchurch lane

 

 

HST doing driver training, all it did was trundle up and down the pilot road with half a dozen man in the cab!

 

 

and that was that!

[250BOB]

No.....that wasnt quite all Jim.......you forgot to mention that your mate in Uttoxeter was out taking a picture of the new footbridge erected over the weekend at the station.  Then taking the opportunity to video your goodself passing through with the Tanks.

Good to see you Jim...be it only briefly.

Bob