big jim

Must admit class 37s are give or take for me, driven them since 2006 but can't get hugely excited about them, never have, nice to get a new one or something special admittedly but they are just MEH! to me, give me a 47 instead of one any day however if you'd have said 4 years ago that I'd be driving them again for colas I wouldn't have believed you (or 08s, 60s, 70s and HSTs for that matter) Also model wise I do have more 37s than anything else too

I've never been a hardcore fan of 37s and I've never 'bashed' as it were, just don't get it I lost interest in the railways around the 90s (beer and girls took over) so didn't experience the 37s along the coast apart from them passing work in connahs quay and I started in the railway just after they ended (but not long before 47s started on the Manchester services) 47s were 'my loco' as that's what I saw most along the north Wales coast as a kid so I do have a soft spot for those but I wouldn't go out chasing them round the country

One thing I do know is at Claydon, the current run round loop from Aylesbury is currently the east/west line so they are going to build the embankment out futher and lay the loop on that so you will have an up/down line and a loop on the south side of the line There some pics in my thread of a class 66 stood on the disused line just beyond the gates at the Bletchley end of Claydon loop, that was the first train on the closed bit since 1993 and I had to move it there to clear the track circuits for the run round, just to get that there (20m beyond the gates) was a major undertaking with a lot of tree felling, and track fettling, the sleepers were still ropy though! (O/T..Nice theatre in Aylesbury though Lms, saw cilla there in panto the year it opened)

as an aside richard has comissioned a twin pack Dapol PO wagon set for "madeley colliery" i meant to grab a pic of them last week while i was in the shop but forgot

The ballast undercutter is certainly an interesting model I've worked on a fair few worksites but never seen one in the flesh, weathered up it should look good on the back of one of the previous low loader models

just a few iphone pics from last night, tyseley to stratford, back to rowley regis, up to banbury, back to bordesley (all at 30mph) and away to derby maiden solo voyage on the north warwick, nice and sedate run there and back tyseley lost the headlight at spring road so put the emergency one on, luckily the DBSO carries one that is always on charge rowley regis the lead coach is an ex royal train one op stop at dorridge and that was it piccie wise, as i say all the way to banbury and back to derby and done, that SHOULD be my last day in this year with annual leave but watch this space!

looks like snoop dogg's boudoir

Last time I saw 37798 it was looking very tatty on the northern belle on the north Wales coast!! I passed it at colwyn bay while I was driving a 175, I'm sure there was a royal 47 on the back (Heads up tonight Marcus I'm heading near your house with 37601 to rowley and back)

I googled tixford and noticed it was nowhere near old Dalby but never gave high marnham a thought, never been there, only heard it by name Yes it is hugh phillips in the other pic

seems to be, crossrail, hitachi etc use it, we have to be locked in at the north end when they are running, funny to be in rural nottinghamshire and see a crossrail 345 unit flying past, even weirder on the double track section to run alongside s-stock (although im used to that from my chiltern days on the MET)

north end of the line beyond plumtree

just a couple from yesterday, 37601 in the middle of nowhere on the test track during a break and a vid from Watford Jn

popped in to topp trains today, there has indeed been some nice 2nd hand stuff in, picked up a couple of Hornby MK3s ready to convert to NMT coaches and an impulse buy of a pair of Hornby oil terminal tanks and unloading rig, hopefully i'll have room for them when i rebuild the layout! good shop, good prices

the sinfins used to scream up there with the 56 on, even empty

proper camera last night, derby to manchester via stoke and macclesfield, 30mph all the way from colwich to slade lane and back! it was quite funny as there is a late night london-manchester pendolino that stops at stoke, macclesfield and stockport to set down only so tends to depart early from those stations, realtime trains shows him as leaving stoke some 45 early, guess who he caught up between macclesfield and stockport so had to trundle along at 30mph, bet the driver was cursing me! couple of 40s on the RTC into the station and piccadilly and back to derby hope mick has laid his track on deadmans lane as level as it is at the far end of this train! old dalby on monday

consolation picture from last night

its right next to the whistle board for the foot crossing just beyond willington crossing too, wonder how long before they try to get that removed? nice uphill grade from north staffs jn too, i certainly give my loco's a workout whenever i head along there

it must be something about the chilterns! in the turnback siding at gerrards cross we were told we couldnt take units to the end of the siding as there was a high court injunction taken out by one of the residents of the big houses in the cutting above that prevented us having units running in the turnback so trains had to stay at the station end of the siding also to top it off if we did go in there for any length of time (i think the max we were ever booked in there was about 45 mins) we had to shut the units down, but in the winter you could leave the lead coach running to provide heat in the cab which involved getting down outside the unit and starting the engine locally of course im having great pleasure since the rulebook change last week blowing the horn right up til midnight now!

Unfortunatly there has been a loco swap so merl isn't going to Manchester tonight, 97304 instead

forgot my camera last night but had to go down to watford to meet my train where i sat on board until we got back to rugby where i took it on to derby watford jn quite a lot of freight about at midnight, got a few vids that i'll splice together into one video when i get a chance, alos the sleeper came in with a 90 on the front and 92 on the rear and over to St Albans abbey from there i sat in Mentor for the ride back to willesden, sat in the captains seat which is located in the roof area looking at the pantograph through a little window, quite interesting and hypnotic watching the pantograph doing its thing at 90mph, also somewhat un-nerving at the same time thinking if i dewired it would be a right mess and i'm only sat 10ft from it (behind triple glazed glass and protective mesh adimttedly), we did pick up a fault at one point where the wire ran right to the edge of the carbon/contact area of the pantograph, that was flagged up immediatly for attention by the on train technicians

Provided there isn't a loco swap today I should be taking merl to Manchester tonight http://www.realtimetrains.co.uk/train/H37124/2016/12/09/advanced

Forgot to upload these yesterday, did a derby to rugby transit with 37601 and 37604, just a couple of iPhone pics and a video https://youtu.be/IdUQ6cp_vg8

i think it should become the RMWeb 'pet loco' be nice next year if the collectors club day is at a mainline connected railway if we can get 'merl' to attend

Wondered how long before you noticed that!

wot no 47 or 70? im not quite as bad as you (i think) 2 37s, 2 47s, 2 66s, 1 70, cant wait for the Hornby colas 60 and Bachmann 70 next year and of course 37099 (hint hint mr Bachmann!) the real 099 is currently sat on the RTC, dont know what its next working is unfortunatly