Innholdsfortegnelse for June 2021 i Rail Express

BACK in British Rail days, when a class was to be withdrawn there was a standard formula for seeing them off to retirement. The decision was made, withdrawals would start, there was a series of farewell railtours, a final run, and then that was that – history. Privatisation has made all of this much more fluid – in agood way for enthusiasts – as now when they disappear from one place, there is a chance they might pop up elsewhere instead – like the famous ‘whack a mole’ analogy. HSTs are a prime case in point. After big send-offs from inter-city services with GWR and LNER, many sets were repurposed for more regional workings in the West Country and Scotland, while others were snapped up for railtours, test train work…

SERVICES on Great Western Railway, LNER, TransPennine Express and Hull Trains were disrupted from May 9 after hairline cracks were found in the chassis of Hitachi-built Class 80x series trains. Worst hit seemed to be the bi-mode sets, which carry underfloor diesel engines and fuel tanks, while the slightly older GWR fleet was also affected more. An Hitachi Rail spokesperson said: “Inspection has identified cracks on the lifting points under the carriage of some Class 800 trains. Safety is our number one priority and as a precaution, the decision was taken to halt the entry into service of our intercity fleets pending inspection.” May 9 saw widespread disruption and most services cancelled, although sets were released back into traffic after being cleared by inspection. Hull Trains managed to run a…

EXTENSION of the electrified Dublin Area Rapid Transit system (DART) has progressed with the appointment of Arup as design consultants for the DART+ Coastal project. The project includes electrifying from Malahide to Drogheda, plus capacity enhancements between Malahide/Howth and Greystones. Other improvements include upgrading power supplies, telecoms, signalling and track layouts; elimination of road level crossings; and alterations to Fairview and Drogheda maintenance depots. Two other associated projects, DART+West (Connolly to Maynooth/M3 Parkway) and DART+South West (Heuston to Hazelhatch) are subject to a public consultation process. The building of an underground cross-city DART line had been dropped in 2011 because of funding issues. However, it was announced on April 17 that the National Transport Authority had appointed consultants to investigate possible routes for the line between the Connolly area and…

GREAT WESTERN GB Railfreight’s No. 66748 was busy in April moving stored EFPC pool HST power cars, all ex-SXBL. On the 13th it collected Nos. 43086 and 43196 from Nemesis Rail, Burton, for a 0V20 trip to Long Marston, Warwickshire. Having deposited this pair, it then worked a 0C20 light engine move to Plymouth Laira with Nos. 43056, 43087, 43193 and 43197. The following day (14th) it returned to Long Marston to continue the transfer of Nos. 43086 and 43196 to Laira, along with Nos. 43069 and 43078 and a pair of Mk.3 standard class trailers (see also Coaches news on p32). HN RAIL TYPE 4 No. 47843, purchased from Rail Operations Group at the end of 2020 along with No. 47847, has been partnered with a set of Class…

THE stay of Railway Support Services’ No. 08580 at the Axiom workshops in Stoke-on-Trent covering for Thomas Hill 4wDH No. 184V/1967 was very brief as it lasted only a week. The ‘08’ was moved on to Asfordby (Leicestershire), on hire to GBRf as part of the operator’s new four-year contract to operate the Rail Innovation & Development Centre (Old Dalby) for Network Rail. Its replacement at Stoke was Thomas Hill 4wDH No. 264V/1976 Helen, hired in from the Chasewater Light Railway until No. 184V is available again. No. 08580’s move to Asfordby was closely followed by No. 08922, which had been at Chasewater awaiting a move to Garston to take up shunting duties for DRS. With that contract not yet ready, it was moved to Asfordby instead. With the move…

Correct to April 25, 2021 Allocations 10301/05/18/21/30 HQ/SAXHCF/HLHQ 11319-22 HQ/SAXH-CF/HLHQ 12061 off registration – sold 12137/64/67 off registration – sold 12210/11/15/22/24 HQ/SAXHCF/HLHQ12304/10/15/16/23/24/26 HQ/SAXH-CF/HLHQ12434/52/61/77 HQ/SAXH-CF/ HLHQ 40713 SCEC-SCXH 40751 off registration – preserved 42049 off registration – scrapped 42504 SCEC-SCXH 46011 off registration – scrapped 82200/01/20/27/30 HQ/SAXHCF/HLHQ Sold Belmond: 11094, 12012/19/26/27/35/41/46/56,12115/51/59 Eastern Rail Services: 12017/36/43/94 PNP Events Ltd: 10680, 12061/79/90, 12137/46/64/67 Preserved  Cambrian Heritage Railway Ltd: 40751 Colne Valley Railway: 40706, 41088, 44058 Northumbria Rail Fleet: 42356 Stored/stopped locations Assenta Rail, Hamilton: 11094, 12012/19/26/27/35/41/46/56,12115/51/59 Ely: 40705/40; 41099, 42116/28/86/91/92/93,44077/80 Laira: 42094/95 MoD Bicester: 82307/08 Disposals  C.F Booth, Rotherham: Arrival dates: March 29: 11430; March 30: 12439. Cut dates: March 26: 41092 J.R. Adam & Sons, Glasgow: Arrival dates: April: 40622, 42007, 42145, 42564 Raxstar, Eastleigh Works: Cut dates: April 21: 40739; April…

TYSELEY-BASED Vintage Trains has revealed its 2021 programme, and no less than four of tours are booked to have two Class 20s involved. However, as a note of caution, some trains will see the ‘Choppers’ – Michael Owen’s Nos. 20142 and 20189 – spend a fair amount of their time at the rear of the excursions. Those booked with ‘20s’ are ‘The Jolly Fisherman’ (August 4) from Tyseley to Skegness, and the ‘Saint Tudno Express’ (August 11) from Tyseley to Llandudno. Both these feature double-headed Class 20s in charge and fares from a bargain £49. The ‘Western Adventurer’ (August 18) sees No. 47773 leading and a single Class 20 on the rear from to Bristol and Weston-super-Mare, and there is a similar arrangement for ‘The Scarborough Belle’ (August 25) from…

THE Plym Valley Railway took delivery of newly preserved No. 31190 on April 6, the ‘Goyle’ having been transported by road from the Weardale Railway, where it had been located since 2017. It will undergo an assessment to determine the work needed to return it to service. The Brush Type 2 has been purchased privately from RMS Locotec, having been put up for sale last year after the firm was bought from BARS (British American Railway Services) by the Proviso Holdings group. The arrival of No. 31190 at the Plym Valley fills a void left by the departure from there of two other main line diesels in recent years: No. 50017 Royal Oak, which returned to the main line following its purchase by Boden Rail Engineering in 2014; and No.…

CREWE ‘47’ RENOVATION BODYWORK repairs are being carried out on No. D1842 (47192) at Locomotive Services Ltd’s Crewe depot in advance of the loco’s repaint. Work on one side had been completed by late April. LSL is undertaking the work in return for Crewe Heritage Centre having provided two traction motors from No. 87035 Robert Burns for use in Nos. 86101 Sir William A Stanier FRS and 87002 Royal Sovereign. VIRGIN LIVERY FOR ‘87’ CREWE Heritage Centre’s No. 87035 Robert Burns is losing its BR blue colour scheme in favour of Virgin Trains colours, as carried by the loco in the late 1990s, prior to withdrawal. ELR CLASS 121 DMU TRAILER UPDATE THE restoration of the East Lancashire Railway’s Class 121 DTS No. 56289, which has been out of service…

■ TRAFFIC AND TRACTION: The Sperry train was active during late March with an unusual working being undertaken from Dublin North Wall yard on the 22nd. GM No. 076, which was light engine at the yard, was required at Inchicore. In order to free up a path, the opportunity was taken for No. 076 to pilot Portlaoise-bound No. 073 and the three-vehicle Sperry train as far as Inchicore. After attention at Portlaoise PW yard, the Sperry train returned to North Wall. No. 082 was in charge on March 28, when the train revisited the Drogheda area later the same day before returning to North Wall. Freight traffic continued to be buoyant. Locomotives used on Ballina-Dublin Port IWT container trains included Nos. 072, 076, 079, 216, 218, 220, 223 and 226.…

THIS book takes a photographic journey around the major rail centres of Sheffield and Doncaster, from the former Woodhead Class 76s to the East Coast ‘Azumas’ of today. Taking inspiration from the classic ‘Baker’ rail atlas in the 1970s, the authors set about recording the complex rail scene in the area, which has changed dramatically over the past five decades. The photos are laid out in the publisher’s standard picture-and-caption format, with mostly two images per page and most are in colour. There is a great selection from the 1970s up to date, covering the large number of classes and the types of work on which they have been employed throughout this time. The rundown of the ‘76s’ and ‘Deltics’ are covered, as are open days at Tinsley and Doncaster…

FIRST released in 2016 as a special edition model for Locomotion Models, the Rapido Trains ‘OO’ gauge APT-E model is set to make a return this year, with a second run being distributed through the Rapido Trains dealer network. Agreement has been reached with Locomotion Models to allow the reissue of the model, which proved very popular the first time round. It was the first model produced by Rapido Trains for the UK market, and was met with wide acclaim upon its release. The model will be supported by an additional trailer set and on-board digital sound in one of the two versions. None of the limited edition packaging and paperwork supplied with the Locomotion Models special edition is included in the general release. Based on gas turbine technology, the…

DAPOL has issued images of the liveries for its next batch of ‘OO’ gauge Class 68s, including two in DRS livery with ‘Compass’ logo and two in Transpennine Express (TPE) colours, likely to be very popular given that release of Accurascale TPE Mk.5 stock is just around the corner. No. 68027 Splendid and No. 68031 Felix are the chosen TPE liveried locomotives, while DRS examples are represented by No. 68016 Fearless and 68018 Vigilant. Analogue locomotives cost £159.99, DCC-fitted £189.99, and digital sound locomotives £260, the latter being available only through the Dapol website, to be found at www.dapol.co.uk/shop/preorder/OO-Gauge-Preorder/Class_68_Preorder…

BACHMANN'S new Southern Region third rail Class 410 4-BEP beautifully complements the successful 4-CEP EMU, but has been a long time in development considering most of the ’OO’ gauge 4-CEP tooling could be used for three of the four vehicles. Complete new body tooling was required only for the Trailer Buffet vehicle. A 4-BEP enables modellers to correctly represent pre-1983 long-distance Kent Coast services with a buffet unit formed in the train. The featured model represents 4-BEP No. 7010 finished in 1970s BR blue and grey livery, a Phase 1 4-BEP from the No. 7003 to No. 7012 series. The Phase 1 units were fitted with Mk.4 bogies from new until the need to improve the ride of the Trailer Buffet saw No. S69009 of set No. 7010 experimentally fitted…

HELJAN is no stranger to the Class 86, having released a Class 86/2 a few years ago, showing faith in an area of modelling which has been relatively neglected until recent years. The brand new model of the Class 86/0 or AL6 follows on from the Hornby Class 87 and Bachmann Class 90. Despite Dapol’s efforts to produce some items of OHLE in ‘OO’ gauge, little exists in the way of ready-to-fit catenary portals and catenary, an essential part of modelling overhead electric railways – a situation one hopes will change now more AC locomotives are becoming available, and are proving popular too. The new Heljan Class 86/0 model, which has a completely new body shell tooling, was already showing signs of selling out at the time of writing, particularly…

THE Rail Delivery Group has not been a strong advocate of allocating paths to freight trains at the expense of passenger services, but that has now changed following publication of a report commissioned from Deloitte. The study found that a single path for an intermodal service can be worth as much as £1.5 million annually, and that rail freight operations as a whole bring an annual benefit of £2.45 billion as a result of reducing congestion and carbon emissions. Experienced rail operators have long contended that denying network access to freight trains while running poorly loaded local passenger services does not make economic sense. Network Rail forecasts some very substantial increases in rail freight haulage over the next 25 years, particularly as electrification reduces operating costs. The main beneficiaries are…

Correct to April 25, 2021 Depot/pool codes GBHH GBRf Class 66 Heavy Haul low ratio geared Allocations 08308 MRSO-RMSX 08523 MRSO-RMSX 08573 MRSO-RMSX 08588 MRSO-RMSX 08648 MRSO-RMSX 08756 MRSO-RMSX 08762 MRSO-RMSX 08788 MRSO-RMSX 08809 MRSO-RMSX 08847 MBDL-RMSX 08871 MBDL-RMSX 08873 DDIN-RFSH 08874 MBDL-RMSX 08936 MBDL-RMSX 43048 EMPC-ICHP 43050 COTS-SBXL 47812 LR/GROG-CS/AWCA 47813 LR/GROG-CS/AWCA 47815 LR/GROG-CS/AWCA 47848 LR/GROG-CS/AWCA 57302 XHHP-XSDP 57311 XHHP-XSDP 66017 TO/WBAR-WQ/WQAA 66037 TO/WBAR-WQ/WQAA 66057 TO/WBLE-WQ/WQAA 66100 TO/WBBE-WQ/WQAA 66207 TO/WBAE-WQ/WQAA 66589 FD/DHLT-LD/DFIM 66793 MBDL-GBRT-GBHH 90020 CE/WEDC-WQ/WQAA 90024 CE/WEDC-WQ/WQAA 90034 WQ/WFMS-CE/WEDC Sold  West Coast Railway: 47812/13/15/48 Returned to France 66211 Stored/stopped locations  Crewe ETD: 90020/24 Eastleigh Works: 57302 Great Yarmouth: 31452 Haymarket: 43030 Kingmoor: 57311 Laira: 43056/69/78/86/87,43193/96/97 Toton: 66017/37/57, 66100, 66207 Disposals  J.R. Adam & Sons, Glasgow: Arrival dates: April: 43140 Leicester: April 12: 37146 WCR, Carnforth: March 31: 37710…

DB CARGO SEVEN locomotives were stored WQAA in April: Nos. 66017, 66037, 66057, 66100 and 66207 at Toton and Nos. 90020 and 90024 at Crewe EMD. ‘Euroshed’ No. 66211 has finally left the UK and returned to France after waiting more than three months at Dollands Moor. It had originally departed Toton on January 1 after repairs, arriving at the Kent location a week later via Crewe and Wembley. DIRECT RAIL SERVICES THE XDSP storage pool for locomotives deemed likely to be put up for sale has increased by two to 23 with the transfer of No. 57302 at Eastleigh Works and No. 57311 at Carlisle Kingmoor, both previously stored XHHP. By the time this issue appears in print, it is likely that all five of the Class 66s on…

DVT MOVEMENTS ACQUIRED by Rail Operations Group towards the end of 2020, Mk.3b DVTs Nos. 82307/08 left Long Marston behind No. 37510 on March 29, moving initially to Worcester. The following day, the EE Type 3 and DVTs formed the 5Q74/10.49 Worcester-Bicester. Meanwhile, two of Network Rail’s DVTs, Nos. 82111/45, were taken from Derby RTC to Long Marston by No. 37240 on March 29. A third vehicle, No. 82129, had been due to be included in the consist but remained at Derby. JACOBITE 2021 COACHES WEST Coast Railways dispatched its two rakes of stock to Fort William on April 12 and 14 in readiness for the 2021 season. The first move comprised Nos. 5032, 5239, 5419/53, 9391 and 99318 plus support coaches Nos. 35508/17 and 94225, while on the second…

UK Railtours, the company that railtour supremo John Farrow owned and ran until his sad death last year, is celebrating his life with a commemorative special to run on August 18, called ‘The John Farrow Salute’. Countless thousands of railtourers have much to thank this jovial, knowledgeable impresario for. He ran many tours from the 1970s with the Lea Valley Railway Club, then Hertfordshire Railtours and latterly UK Railtours. John passed away on April 19, 2020, while being treated at the Royal Free Hospital. The special uses John’s favourite locomotive, ‘Merchant Navy’ No. 35028 Clan Line, and will run on its ‘home’ route for most of the day’s itinerary. Starting from London Victoria and picking up at Clapham Junction, Staines and Woking, the destination is Sherborne in Dorset.…

AS part of the fall-out of the Llangollen Railways current money troubles, Class 08/11 lookalike 0-6-0DE No. 1901/1951 Davy is up for sale. This was one of a small batch built by English Electric in the late 1950s specifically for industrial use, and it was based at the ICI (now Brunner Mond) plant at Winnington, in Cheshire. The sale listing gives a guide price of £7000 but does point out the locomotive is leaking oil and will need a full bottom-end overhaul to get it running. The Tanat Valley Railway took delivery on April 27 of the two locomotives it recently purchased from the Great Western Railway Preservation Group at Southall: Ruston Hornsby 165DS 0-4-0DM No. AD251, and RH 88DS 4wDM No. 416568. Meanwhile, AB 0-6-0DH No. 486/1964 Meaford No.4…

WHY NOT REUSE OLD EMUs FOR RAILTOURS? GIVEN that many railtour prices for even basic trips are somewhat extortionate these days, could Class 317s, 321s and other redundant EMUs be used for no-frills budget tours in the same manner as Easyjet does in the aviation industry for example? The ‘317s’ would be ideal for long-haul trips under the wires to places like Cambridge, Norwich, York, Carlisle and even Scotland. They are gangwayed throughout, have toilets and First Class facilities, and could be ideal for use by tour operators on low-cost excursions, in a similar manner to those in the 1950s and 1960s when BR’s Southern Region would roster 12-car 4-SUB and 4-EPB units for cheap trips to the seaside at Brighton, Margate and so on. I must admit I would…

IN a fairly cautious summer announcement, Bachman swept the cover off another reworking of a ‘OO’ gauge locomotive which has been part of its range for more than 20 years. The disc headcode Class 24 has been fully retooled from the wheels up to meet the high standard set by the new Class 24/1 with four-character headcode boxes released in the spring of last year. Four different models are announced, including the popular Railway Technical Centre No. 97201 Experiment (32-444) in original BR RTC livery. The range includes models representing the locomotives from early condition to BR rail blue, starting with BR green No. D5094 with late BR crest (32-443); BR green with small yellow panel as No. D5036 (32-415); and BR rail blue with full yellow ends as No.…

A NEW run of ‘N’ gauge Class 50s has been announced by Dapol, including No. 50149 Defiance in Railfreight livery as applied for its late-1980s freight trials and in preservation too. Revised Network SouthEast is applied to No. 50018 Resolution and large Logo livery to No. 50046 Ajax. The model is quite technical, with advanced lighting controls and a refined drive system which, during tests with a review sample, demonstrated smooth and controllable performance without the noise of earlier Dapol mechanisms. The models are offered in conventional analogue for £149.95, DCC-fitted for £179.95, and as a Dapol exclusive with DCC sound for £255. Pre-ordering for the DCC sound model is available at www.dapol.co.uk/shop/preorder/N-Gauge-Preorder/N-Gauge-Class-50-Sound-Fitted…

HRA AWARDS GOES VIRTUAL LOCKDOWN restrictions meant the Heritage Railway Association’s annual awards event had to be held online for 2021, with a simultaneous broadcast on Facebook and You Tube on the afternoon of April 28. Despite the pandemic, however, several categories saw a record number of submissions and shortlisted entrants. Three awards went to modern traction. The Morgan Award for Preservation was won by the Mid-Suffolk Light Railway, for its ‘Shredded Wheat’ locomotive; the new Diesel Locomotion Award was won by the Class 50 Alliance for 30 years of Class 50 preservation; and the Rail Express-sponsored Modern Traction Award went to the Engineering Team at Island Line, Isle of Wight (see also pages 82-85). In addition, Ian Smith of the Middleton Railway won The Railway Magazine Lifetime Achievement Award.…

ISLAND LINE DELAY SOUTH Western Railway has announced that, due to problems with the delivery of the new fleet of Class 484 EMUs, reopening of the Island Line has been delayed. Rolling stock manufacturer Vivarail was due to deliver all of the five two-car units to the island before Easter, but complex software issues meant the refurbished trains are yet to be delivered. Once they are, SWR will begin the process of operational testing, safety assurance and training required to bring them into service. The reopening of the Island Line has now been pushed back to later this summer, but no firm date has yet been set. In the meantime, SWR has said it will run more replacement buses. ST IVES PULLMAN WITH the UK hosting the G7 summit at…

BESIDES those credited elsewhere, this issue has been made possible by the contributions of the following readers, to whom the editor is most grateful: Martin Cook, Rosemary Cutting, David Dockray, Steve Donald, Peter Foster, Chris Gee, Barry Gill, Stephen Ginn, John Hales, Fraser Hay, Ryan Hayward, Brad Joyce, Gordon Kirkby, Stuart Kirkby, Mike Lalley, Peter Laithwaite, Thomas Mills, Jay Monaghan, Greg Mape, Graham Nuttall, Rod Orr, Keith Partlow, Chris Playfair, Colin Pottle, Karen Richardson, Steve Sienkiewicz, Paul Smith, Jamie Squibbs, Tom Stobbs, Andrew Stoppard, Jack Taylor, Mick Tindall, Martin Turner, Ethan Wilson, and many more.…

Correct to April 25, 2021 Allocations 144005 SBXH-MBCS 153302/74 HQ/SCEC-CF/HLHQ 196010 newly delivered HQ/EJHQ 196107/11 newly delivered HQ/EJHQ 197001 newly delivered HQ/HLHQ 315826/51 IL/EBHQ-HQ/SAXU 317657/72 off registration – scrapped 317890 off registration – scrapped 321346/49/52/53/54/60/64/66 IL/EBHQ-HQ/SAXU 321422/25/31/35 IL/EBHQ-HQ/SAXU 701023 newly delivered HQ/HYHQ 701505/06/08 newly delivered HQ/ HYHQ 707007/08 WD/HYHQ-SG/HUHQ 720504/68 newly delivered HQ/EBHQ 720542/47 HQ-IL 730003 newly delivered HQ/EJHQ To be renumbered and reformed 150003: 150116+57209 150004: 150112+57212 150005: 150117+52224 150006: 150147+57224 Formations 170622: 50522+56634+79522 Now in nine-car formation 345029/40/44/63 Now in passenger traffic 345026/40/44/63 720542/47 Sold Loram: 144005 SWR: 442402-04/06/08/10/11/13-15/17-20/22/23 Preserved Fagley Primary School, Bradford: 55808 (144008) Telford Steam Railway: 142004/58 Stored/stopped locations Allely’s Yard: 62969 (319455) Bournemouth: 442402-04/08/10/11/13-15/18-20/22 Brush, Loughborough: 71797,62916, 77341 (319426) Crewe LNWR: 197001 Crewe South Yard: 365511/39 Donnington RFT: 196001, 196111 Ely: 317348, 317885, 365512/28/30/38…

CLAYTON THE testing of Clayton’s new Hybrid CBD80 locomotive No. B4659/1 at the Chasewater Railway continued throughout April as it underwent rigorous trials of the software and the hardware. It was then joined in late April by the second CBD80 No. B4659/2 for further testing. With a packed order book and more enquiries all the time, the company has now outgrown its current workshops in Burton-upon-Trent and are looking to relocate to bigger premises nearby. ED MURRAY ROLLS Royce Sentinel No. 10220 Harry Potter was taken straight from the Chasewater Railway to Beaver Metals for scrap after plans to return it to traffic were dropped. LH SERVICES SHUNTER No. 08669 left the Barton-under-Needwood workshops on April 8for a new duty at Wabtec Doncaster. Its place at the workshops was taken…

■ DB CARGO: The period under review saw several moves of WIA five-unit car carriers into and out of the former Marcroft Engineering works at Stoke-on-Trent. On April 7, No. 85 70 4971 010-9 departed on the Arpley ‘tripper’ following its overhaul after less than two weeks on the site. Two days later (9th), it was replaced by No. 85 70 4971 014-1, which was exactly 15 days in the ‘Potteries’ before returning to Warrington and back into traffic. It swapped positions with No. 85 70 4971 043-0. Having arrived at the Stoke workshops on March 19 as FKA ‘Megafrets’, Nos. 81 70 4908 037-4 and 81 70 4908 048-1 departed the site on April 7 after container spigot modification newly recoded as FOAs. ■ ERMEWA RAIL: The French national…

RAIL Charter Services, the operator of the ‘Staycation Express’ over the Settle & Carlisle route using Locomotive Services Ltd’s newly-reliveried HST set, has released timings for this year’s trains. On Monday to Thursdays and Saturdays, the set will depart Appleby at 09.40, Settle 10.35, Skipton 11.00-11.18, Settle 11.38, Appleby 12.32 and arriving into Carlisle at 13.13. The return leaves Carlisle at 15.09, Appleby 15.52, Settle 16.47, Skipton 17.05-17.18, Settle 17.37 and arriving into Appleby at 18.28. Sunday timings are Appleby 10.29, Skipton 11.41-12.05, Carlisle 14.05/15.40, Skipton 17.41-17.55, and Appleby 19.06. Tickets have to be prebooked, and this year there is also a prebookable at-table restaurant service.…

THIS is an autobiographic account of Phil’s railway career in South Wales, something that was influenced by his ex-Great Western Railwayman grandfather. Growing up near Port Talbot in the 1950s, the book runs from Phil’s recruitment as a freight guard in 1976 through to his retirement as a signaller safety trainer at the end of 2010. The stories of his experiences come thick and fast, with each being rich in detail. Phil is honest about his career – even commenting about a rash decision to resign too soon, causing him to ‘repent at leisure’, although he was soon able to return to the railway fold. The accompanying images were captured by Phil throughout his career, including scenes of Margam depot, a variety of traction, and signal cabins across the South…

RAILS of Sheffield is close to concluding its 18000 Class gas turbine locomotive model project, with production samples being made public in April. The company is reported as being pleased with the samples and production has been authorised with a planned June delivery date. A small number of details were identified as needing attention, and the photographs are not of the models in their final form. Three models are being produced in partnership with Heljan, with finely detailed injection moulded plastic bodyshells fitted out with etched metal and moulded fittings. Three versions are available for pre-order, including one representing its 1949-1956 condition, decorated in black with silver trim. The second version covers the short 1956-1957 time frame when the locomotive was painted in BR green with an early crest. The…

A quick method for replacing the wheels of the Heljan Class 33s for both ‘EM’ and ‘P4’ gauge can be undertaken using either Black beetle or DCC Concepts 14mm diameter wheel sets. The diameter is slightly too small for a Crompton, but will allow a quick return to traffic for closer to scale modellers either to save cost or when waiting for Ultrascale wheels to be manufactured. The wide final drive gear is helpful, along with the use of 2mm diameter axles in the model, making the exchange straightforward. Simply remove the original wheels, strip off the drive gear and push it on to the new wheel set axle before assembling it with the assistance of a back to back gauge. The replacement wheel sets are simply dropped back in…

CLASS 25 locomotives built with the revised style of body shell with shoulder-mounted air intake grilles were first introduced with No. D5233, or No. 25083 in new money, built at Derby and introduced to traffic in December 1963, marking the start of another chapter in the life of the Class 25. It was an on-going development of the Class 24 which incorporated improvements and upgraded equipment as each phase was built. The Class 25/2 and Class 25/3 were no different, with changes made between the two sub-classes even though they shared the same basic external appearance. The change in body design was prompted by the problems caused by the body side air intake grilles, which became clogged with dirt and debris. Another feature ofthe first Class 25 body were the…