big jim

From a train drivers point of view the crossing is a pain in the bum on a 97, it’s 5mph across it (or equivalent kph) and every time I’ve driven toward it from llwyngwril direction the ertms has bought me to a stop despite only being within the braking curve As discussed many years ago it’s an unusual Crossing in so much as it’s an open crossing with barriers (AOC-B) I wonder if there will be accompanied pedestrian access across the crossing as they did an onibury a few years back to allow people to get over the line to meet the local buses which were on diversion

Regards the Barmouth bridge work I see that the crossing in fairbourne is closing for 5 days next week, I’m puzzled as to how people are going to get in and out of the village, the only other road in via the Llwyngwril end by the old toll house isn’t exactly built for 2 way traffic and anything bigger than a van perhaps @wombatofludham Can enlighten us?

Well I’ve got jury duty for 2 weeks coming up so I can’t work even if they asked! only one from yesterday, a very wet hams hall with 66759 which I took to bescot before working it on a rail drop at Birmingham international

yep, it always felt a bit hairy with a pair of 37s on the plp train at full chat, I remember a driver who was conducting me down the welsh marches holding on for dear life and saying ‘i don’t like this’ on the 90mph bits between Hereford and Newport!

Not covered for accidental damage unfortunately and the excess is the same cost as the TV! ive ordered a new one (that I’m going to take accidental damage cover out on!) meanwhile, someone made the charity a cat house for a local feral cat that visits us regularly, I took it out of the car last night and within seconds Lola was inside staking her claim, she won’t come out unless it’s for food! and a zoom in of those eyes!

Nope!

Some from last night, worked a Stone train between stockport and stoke as the driver didn’t sign it stockport, biomass train passing through then my train arrived and I got off at stoke possession tonight near Birmingham international then was a week of annual leave but have been asked to work a few trains into Donnington (Shropshire) at the back end of the week

money talks, well less money anyway!

the gennys and plp are 100mph max, it’s only the UTU coaches that are 75mph max, again subject to short formation speeds

I think that may be a mistake on my behalf, it’s actually loco hauled MK3 coach 977994 which has an unbraked bogie which if like UTU coaches means the other braked bogie has enhanced brakes however the conference car conundrum continues........ I just happen to have this sat in my bedside cabinet (as you do!) It’s a bit of a strange one as it lists the various coaches that can be worked in the NMT and it says “975814 conference car - no notable features” However in the train speeds section it says “if 975814 is not in the formation then speed is restricted to below 10mph below line speed” The same rule applies to 977994 Too i suppose it could be open to interpretation, as in, 975814 is not there hence the train is now a 4 car formation and as keefer says open to rule book speeds however why single out the conference car when any vehicle removed would make it a 4 car set resulting in a speed reduction (10mph below line speed down to 30mph)

One of the foster cats pushed Dominic’s TV off his cabinet earlier, I’m not a happy bunny to say the least, it was his main 16th birthday present 4 months ago! Luckily the cat in question has a home so she’s going on Tuesday before she destroys anything else!

Now I am upset, been waiting for military manouvres to come down to a decent price for ages and got it last month for around £130 from rails, the kernow link above has it for £99 which is a steal when you consider its only £5 more than the NCB 03 next to it and you get 3 wagons, a controller and an oval of track and siding!

Totally agree with what you are saying rule book wise yes it’s a reduced speed because of the short formation however the conference car missing from the NMT formation has a different set of stand alone rules too, even if the formation is made back up to 5 vehicles with the spare coach it has to run at reduced speed due to the enhanced brake on the conference car not being available (or something like that, not driven it for over 2 years now!)

conference car missing so has also to run at a reduced speed

it is a fiat though, will rust away in a week! (says him with a mini)

How about boxing the car into ‘a garage within a garage’ put a stud wall opposite the bins (along the length of the car) but stopping short of the existing back wall and running along the front of the car, giving you an L shaped room the issue I’m seeing with the space (regardless of boxing the car in) is that it’s a thoroughfare for things like the washing machine and bins (I don’t know if it’s the only exit to the rear or side of the house) but I can envision a layout being there being prone to damage or as you eluded to previously dust and dirt if the doors are left open or used regularly regards the wooden battening, the beauty I had was the garage shell was a blank canvas that needed the insulation to make it a ‘habitable space’ your walls look like you would need to be taking things like boilers, pipes, electricity supplies/sockets off and relocating them before you even got down to fitting a frame, do you need it, it’s not like you are changing the use of the area as I officially did so had to put the batons and insulation in, do you feel warm in there at present? Could you extend the central heating to get a radiator in there maybe? another option regards the floor, how about putting an ‘edge’ on the floor around the area where the car will be parked, say with wooden batons then insulating and laminating the area outside of the ‘car park’ which could stay as concrete, that way the car wouldn’t damage any flooring but the outer L shaped working/walking area is more pleasurable under foot? You could simply park the car outside, go unwashed and fly tip to get rid of the car, washing machine and bins, but that’s option 2!

Those 2 pics are quite old now, for the last couple of years there has been a requirement for any safety notices, labels, stickers, numbers etc to be seen hence the patch washing of those areas on my train, similarly the cab windows closest the wagons are cleaned Every couple of days just incase there is a need to run the train round incase if a failure, no good putting the filthy side outside then now being able to see anything! Just one from today, waited at international for a Pendolino to pass

I took them for a spin from derby with a 67 and 73 top and tail to crewe and back once!!

it’s different but such a dirty job, I go through 2 or 3 jackets a season as the grime is impossible to get off clothes properly, if you boil wash the hi-viz the reflective strips all come adrift

i suppose you could, I think that’s what DRS do in kingmoor, ours are hand/jet wash cleaned, I cleaned one last year when I was sat bored in Bescot One morning!

I was going to say, look at the locos on the RHTT train they are the same livery, then I realised they weren’t! only a couple from today pendolino 350 units and the RHTT in Stafford waiting to move into the sidings for a while with the other driver last day of it tomorrow

Is that looking from beaconsfield direction towards Wycombe? (whitehouse tunnel)

Ah yes, forgot they were screw in type couplings, mine have haven’t been out of their boxes for about 5 years!

It makes a change from the same old standard liveries though anyway, RHTT again today into rugby and stafford

They have NEM pockets so just take the outer kaydee’s off and replace with tension locks? sold now anyway