TheSignalEngineer

Another series was P--- which was used for parcels trains and other NPCCS such as the Templecombe to Derby fruit and veg train.

I don't know how they were worked out but appear to be based on the traffic divisions. Western Lines were W, Central Lines C and Midland Lines M. Trains on the Bristol - Birmingham line carried M---, with odd numbers for Down trains and even numbers for Up trains.

Probably 1935

Kohlapur at Tyseley in 1969. I keep finding interesting bits in the background of my old slides. Note the container in the 5-plank, then behind that the gem of a Porthole SK and CK in maroon livery. By the roof of the SK it looks almost ex-works. Next let's have the same for an LNER loco.

They were nearly as wide-ranging as Saltley drivers,. I travelled to Weston-Super-Mare, Aberystwyth, Chester, Leicester and York in them on booked services

A Stove R in maroon at Bristol c1969 https://flic.kr/p/ZG29rJ You can forget the maroon ends, these only came in with spray painting of rolling stock in the mid-1960s.

Modelu make 3D printed rollers for use with square wire. Haven't tried it yet but I'm going to experiment with it when I've designed my rodding run. http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/114943-modelu-figures-components-october-2017/page-5&do=findComment&comment=2769349

I don't know of any taller than Dalston, the biggest I climbed when I was a young trainee in the 1960s was around 60 feet. I believe my Grandfather had some 70-footers on his district when he was a Lineman.

Unperfumed hair spray is available. I bought some from Superdrug.

I recently bought some small copperclad sheets from an electronics supplier for the first time in a while and was surprised at the current price.

I need another autocoach but I am not interested in another flush panelled one. I have two Hawksworths and an old airfix one awaiting modification. My preference would be a 4mm version of the new Dapol 7mm Diagram N in early BR state. My line used 70ft ones but they are a bit long to use on a model in a confined space.

Oxidation can take place between the rail and the fishplate, causing a thin film which causes high resistance or at worst no contact. Fishplates can also relax over time leading to poor contact. I use solder at non-insulated joints and multiple connections to the rails. I've not had any problems with that method and keeping the rail head clean.

Problems with capacity at Piccadilly are more to do with Platforms 13/14 and the line to Deansgate rather than the terminating platforms. There will be more than enough terminating capacity when Ordsall Chord takes TPE-Airport service moves from the East Lines to the Styal Lines involving reversals out of the dead end platforms. Conversely it will make Platforms 13/14 even worse as the DafT seem to think they can avoid providing more capacity on the MSJ&A lines but still run an extra 3 or 4 trains per hour each way through there.

Going back to the 1960s in the North-east, see this post http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/126591-iron-ore-train-without-brake-van-1950s-west-hartlepool/page-1&do=findComment&comment=2868782 The places where working without a Brake Van was permitted were shown in Table H1 of the Sectional Appendix rather than in the Local Instructions.

Not sure if this one was used in the thread on modelling a traditional parcels train, but it's around your period, Ivatt Class 2, GUV, Mk1 BG and LMS BG [46490 at Dudley (pjs 360) by geoff7918, on Flickr

Parcels trains were fully braked. As long as the automatic brake was working on a certain number of vehicles counting from the back of the train the van could be anywhere. Piped only vehicles could not be used at the back end.

I have two streams to my collection based sometime after introduction of late crest but before SYP on diesels. The Devon and Cornwall Branches from childhood holidays is not too big (as yet) but like you my West Midlands steam in the same era seems to have run away with me a bit. Given that my line is on the route to Dudley Zoo, was used for running in turns from Stafford Road Works and saw a lot of Enthusiasts Specials in those days it gives me the opportunity to run many 'foreigners' I fancy as well. Now where can I get my hands on a 15xx pannier and a 97xx Condenser?

My wife talks in those terms. If she complains about my trains I could try pointing out that B=10T where B is a decent bike and T is a new loco. Probably just safer to buy them and say nothing though

I cleaned the wheels and pickups without improvement so connected direct to the pickups and had it lifted in the cradle but it was still the same. B to B was slightlt tight to gauge but not out of square and enough clearance to turn freely. It ran OK at a scale speed above 30mph but at low speed the motor turned at an up even rate even when off the rails. Probably the worst runner I have ever had straight out of the box. Hopefully it was a one off.

Terminating at Wolverhampton is probably as bad as at New Street. That's why they used to stop in Platform 1 then run to Oxley to change ends at one tme. Terminating at New Street was always frowned on. Terminators were often booked for the Magical Mystery Tour via Handsworth Park to Vauxhall and Duddeston and then being held in Monument Lane Loop until their platform was vacant.

A few pints of burning midnight oil hasn't improved the running of my W14W. At low speed there is still a distinct judder and the lights flash in time with it. Light pressure on the flywheel cures it on the test bench, so it looks as if it is unbalanced or the armature is a poor fit in the bearings. I don't think anything is going to cure this one easily.

According to J H Russell the air horns on the sides of the cab were provided after complaints from PWay staff about the quiet approach of the new railcars. Pictures from around 1936 don't appear to show visible horns on the Nos. 8-16 series as built. They were possibly behind the grille under the nose. Some later pictures show horns under the nose and on the cabsides. The latter could apparently be heard about three miles away. Russell's book has a picture of No.11 in 1938 with no horns visible at the bottom but cabside horns fitted. By this time the bogie covers had also disappeared. Regarding tail lamp brackets, these were definitely an afterthought. They were added after an electric tail lamp failure. Russell quotes this as happening in 1939, but pictures in his book show No.11 with a lamp bracket captioned as April 1938. Electric tail lams appear to be blanked off at first, then later removed. The steps over the buffers were added to assist with reaching the lamp bracket, as were two handrails below the cab windows, but not necessarily at the same time. Taking the pictures in Russell's book as a starting point I would put No.11 as pre-1938, No.12 c1938/9, No. 8 c1943, No.10 c1948/9. As for W14W it depends on which side you look at. From photos I have seen, number to the left would be c1950-55, to the right would be c1956-60.

For those not modelling GWR lines, W14W got about a bit. It did Birmingham to Buxton via Ashbourne in 1952 on a Birmingham Locomotive Club Charter. E R Morten managed to photograph it at Topley Pike. http://www.davidheyscollection.com/userimages/erm-topleypike2-jpg.jpg Edit. Not quite sure which one of the crowd in the cab was driving.

The back projection used in the classic shot of Alec Guinness on the doorstep was taken from Argyle Street, directly opposite the tower of St Pancras station. The houses at the right edge of the shot are still there.

Have Dapol done the same number trick as W55000?. Both numbers on W14W are at the Guard's compartment end. Checking on pictures I have found so far in 1952 both sides carrried the number to the left and in 1958 on both sides it was to the right.