Claude_Dreyfus

Fast forward 18 years, and 66087 sprints past Pulborough with a Littlehaven to Eastleigh engineering train earlier today. It was in a bit of a hurry - running about 10 minutes early.

These look very impressive...well done. That DU84 is very nice, and those handrails have worked out well. Have you sourced a chassis for the DU65? A good start may be either Tomix/Tomytec or Tsugawa. Example of the Tsugawa chassis below...but I expect this example will he too short. https://m.ebay.co.uk/itm/Super-Mini-Size-Motorized-Chassis-TU-9A-Tsugawa-Yokou-14046-N-scale-/202114568084?_mwBanner=1

Link works fine... Interesting topic.

My first bold. ...but does not absolutely guarantee this. I recall a senior ASLEF official taking about 'cast iron guarantees'...which this is not. Trains do currently run without an OBS (services which previously had a guard) and presumably continue to do so in the future. Ill informed or not, the perception is that we are in the same situation as we were a year ago with the ongoing dispute with the RMT and Southern; but now the ASLEF drivers have had a nice big pay rise. Happy days indeed! In the meantime, the RMT are still striking (today and yesterday, although the effect on Southern services is less than negligible), only now smarting as their members are now mainly On Board Supervisors. And there is no guarantee of a second staff member on the train. The ASLEF strike was hugely disruptive, so would always have been in Southern's interest to sort out. Owing to the lack of impact from the RMT strikes, I suspect Southern are going to pretty much ignore them from now on.

73128 at Horsham on the Surrey/Sussex circuit - 1st November 2017

I like the weathering on the roof...a cracking bit of modelling. Balloon car 723 taken from the Blackpool Tower.

Bus and train. Next, how about a combination of the two - a railbus?

A few pictures from today... Ropley Tilley Yard South Cocking - LBSCR US Switching Titherleigh Freidrichstrasse Overall view A view from Freidrichstrasse

Thanks Rob, it was good to meet you again...and Tom. We all had an enjoyable day - so I am pleased you enjoyed it also. Pictures from the day to follow...

Very impressive progress. I was at the Three Bridges Open Day the other week, and managed to get a few pictures of these units close-up; see attached thread below. I have a few more if they are if any use. http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/127147-railweek-2017-three-bridges-open-day/

A bit of Thalys action at Brussels Midi - November 2016

A pair of E186 TRAXX locos at Rotterdam Centraal - April 2017

Blue class 73 (73201) action on a blue train - trailing another Blue 73 at East Croydon - December 2014.

A pair of 377 units passing just south of Pulborough - December 2014

I love MOS Burger - their kaisen kakiage (tempura prawns and veg in a rice bun) is a thing of greatness...

Just leaving Pulborough - December 2014

377471 at Horsham - April 2014

A little bump. If you are in the area, I'd recommend dropping by. We have two truly exceptional visiting layouts, which can be viewed in an informal atmosphere... A great opportunity to look at some quality modelling and talk trains.

A Tomix KiHa40 at Kanjiyama. Next; how about something multicoloured?

An Azusa Kaiji unit pulls out of Tokyo Shinkjuku. What's the link? Well the Asuza sets were named after the Azusa river, which runs the length of the Kamikochi valley near Nagano.

A few from Three Bridges today. 700015 stabled beside the Thameslink depot. 700114 arrives at Three Bridges with a service from Bedford Normally used on suburban services, the class 377/6 gets the opportunity to spread their wings at the weekend on London - Brighton fasts. 377625 heads a southbound service at speed. 700041 arrives with a Brighton service

One of the events for this year's Railweek was the opening of Three Bridges depot to the public. It proved a popular event, with plenty of visitors. It was not a conventional open day - there were no visiting trains, or much in the way of stalls or the usual paraphernalia. Just the depot, and 5 class 700 units. Units 700120 and 700123 were open to the public, with the cabs open for supervised visits. 700128 was the subject of tours through the servicing pit beneath the unit; not every day you see the underneath an EMU. The stars of the show - 700009, 700024, 700120, 700123, 700128. Internal views of 700123 Inside the cab of 700123. Each cab was supervised by a driver, which added to the interest as he explained the various controls. The 700s are much simpler trains to operate than the 377s, and the cab ambience is considerably better (the driver particularly linked the larger windscreen). A view down the depot walkway between 700120 and 700123 The tour beneath 700128 was a highlight. It was nice to see an effort was made labelling the various key components... I believe this is a jack This is an interesting bit of kit. Essentially it is a diagnostic centre, in direct communication with the trains themselves. It give the engineers a running commentary on the state of the fleet. Today, only one unit had a serious fault; 700009 - and that unit was within the depot awaiting attention. It is a Siemens tool - apparently the new Eurostars have the same software. The stores: Wheelset New Pantograph Bogie Outside of the depot, there are a number of stabling sidings. One group is tucked away behind the engineers depot. These are shorter sidings, only long enough for the 8 carriage sets. 700015 was present today. All in all a very enjoyable and popular day. Would be interested to know if anyone else from on here attended...

This is certainly on my list of places to visit. Thank you for posting the pictures.

73128 and 73213 at Three Bridges - 14-10-2017