55. No Codes
By Brian Macdermott
If you run your trains without headlamp codes, there is a prototype! Michael Mensing photographed 2-6-2T No.4571 starting away from Widney Manor station at the head of the 7.53pm Knowle & Dorridge-Birmingham (Snow Hill) local on 16 May 1957. The loco was not displaying a headlamp code. (Source: Railway Observer)

56. Long Train Names?
By Brian Macdermott
Early on Sunday 4 October 1959, B1 4-6-0 No.61379 Mayflower (in a very clean condition) was noted travelling to King’s Cross at the head of a special train, which included two kitchen cars. The train carried roof-boards saying ‘The Ancient and Honourable Artillery Company of Massachusetts Express’.
Is this the longest UK train name ever? (Source: Railway Observer)

57. Wandering Coaches?
By Brian Macdermott
The first Western branding of a standard BG (gangwayed brake) for parcels traffic appeared on 81240 (Aberystwyth and Manchester Victoria). However, it was observed during the summer of 1959 travelling between Manchester and Penzance. (Source: Railway Observer)

58. Summer Saturdays in the West
by Brian Macdermott
The Saturday 1.40pm Kingswear-Paddington (first part of the ‘Royal Duchy’) was reported as being regularly hauled by a 9F.
9F 2-10-0 No.92207 worked the 12.05pm Paddington-Plymouth on 15 August, and, on the same date, the 3.45pm to Fishguard was taken by 92229.
The 47xxs had, apparently, not been seen very often that summer. However, there was a fine sight at Exeter on 1 August, when 4706 was on the 1.25pm Paddington-Kingswear, passing 4704 on the 3.20pm Kingswear-Cardiff. Both locos were green.
On 27 July, the up ‘Torbay Express’ was hauled by D807 Caradoc and the down by D808 Centaur.

59. 4F to the Rescue
by Brian Macdermott

On Monday 3 July 1961, the 12.52pm York-Bristol failed at Mangotsfield North Junction, with D28 at the head. The train eventually arrived at Mangotsfield 45 minutes late with Bristol 4F 0-6-0 No.44523 acting as the rescue loco, tender-first. (Source: Mangotsfield Railway Circle newsletter, The Mail.)

60. Variety of Locomotives at one location
by John Cherry
A. Being on the principal Great Central route between Nottingham and London, and on the cross-country link to Banbury, Woodford Shed could often offer a mixed bag of locomotives. On 23 June 1963 the photographer recorded the following which, when related to today’s models (and some forthcoming items), is a railway modeller’s delight.
WR 2-8-0 No.2893 from Didcot was one of the last of the class and was seen on shed with classmate No.3806. These are the type fitted with the cab window – soon to be available from Hornby. In addition, the earlier type of 28XX was also present with Banbury’s 2845 – again, a brand new model to come from Hornby.
However, that was not all. J39 No.64727 (Bachmann) was stored on shed. Also present were WD 2-8-0 No.90218 (Bachmann), 'Royal Scot' 4-6-0 No.46169 The Boy Scout (Hornby), 9F 2-10-0 No.92104 (Bachmann) and, finally, B1 4-6-0 No.61018 Gnu (Bachmann) of York.
A lovely cross-section of locomotives of all types currently available to the modeller gathered in one location.

Keep your eyes open on the GWR between Exeter and Penzance. The GWR are doing trials on a mini-hst (2 + 4).
The carriages are not the usual HST stock but MK3 coaches with the doors altered to sliding doors. At the moment it is running in GWR green livery  with one engine being Old Oak Common. A.t the moment it is stuck at Longrock for repairs to one of the carriage doors. This means you can run a 4 car HST on your layout. If I can grab a pic of it I'll post it up.

 Video of it here     

Thanks Mick, 
That is exactly the type of thing I would like to see more of in this column,especially as I only have a finite number of them! As it is, you have reminded me of the following! Regards  Trevor

…

62  Short HST consists

A couple of New South Wales Countrylink XPT's ( the Australian HST equivalent.) have also run with reduced consists and only one loco/powered end. 

63  Variety of Locomotives at one location  Pt 2

by John Cherry


On a very sunny day in June 1959, a photographic session by the lineside at Putney produced the following array of locomotives working freight traffic: 43019; 44297; 33009; 33015; 30449 ‘Sir Torre’; 48306 and 30699.
All perfectly feasible, but, more importantly, all these locomotives are available to us as ready-to-run models. The 700 Class 0-6-0 No.30699 could be obtained from OO Works.
Putney is a suitable location for modelling (even in a fictitious way) whereby such locomotives could be correctly run together.

64 Variety of Locomotives at one location Pt 3

by John Cherry


As many will know, the batch of BR 9Fs fitted with compressed air pumps was allocated, for most of their life, to Tyne Dock shed for the workings to and from Consett. As diesels began to erode these wrkings, they were reported as being seen on more conventional freight services, but photographic evidence is very sparse.


A new photo to me, personally, is of No.92063 being turned on the turntable at Carlisle (Kingmoor) in 1965. This is the first positive evidence of a Tyne Dock 9F working into Carlisle and yet another opportunity for those who model the north west area.

65 Extreme Curves on a Viaduct  Pt 1
By Bill Dodd
There was a viaduct that once carried the Midland Railway's Colne - Skipton line still in existence that has an arc (in the plan or overhead view) of approximately 35 degrees. As this column says, there's a prototype for everything, although I do recall one leading figure back in the 1960's pontificating in the model press, bemoaning the errors being perpetuated by modellers who built such curved viaducts and bridges on their layouts because, "such things do not exist on the real thing!". It lies just NNE of Great Harwood in Lancashire and carried the line, known locally as the Harwood Loop, over Martholme Lane and the River Calder

66 Extreme Curves on a Viaduct
By Trevor Gibbs
A viaduct built circa 1915 over Commercial Road Port Adelaide was built on a very elongated S curve turning nearly 75 degrees with a station at the top then converting to a long embankment and a 80-90 degree corner at the other end. It was an operational headache for the South Australian Railways and was up till the 1950's anyway with helpers needed for relatively light loads.

67 Lack of Ballast on a railway
By Trevor Gibbs
The Commonwealth Railways in Australia  was completed in 1917 between Port Augusta in South Australia and Kalgoorlie in Western Australia. Because of the terrain being desert, and lighter loads crossing the country, it was laid without ballast for the entire 1100 miles and stayed so for 20 years before it was ballasted and then gradually. So if your layout has a few yards of unballasted track on a mainline, there is a prototype…

68    Shunting Locos on Passenger Trains
By Trevor Gibbs

Long Island Rail Road specifically bought SW1500 locos for their longer distance non electrified lines. These all hauled or pushed commuter trains with very little freight on Long Island.  

South Australian Railways ran a number of local passenger trains including Works trains often with 500 (500 Horse Power  and 800 class (750 horsepower similar to BR class 20’s) English Electric locos or anything else that was available.

69    Shunting Locos on Passenger TrainsBy Trevor Gibbs

When the only mainline loco available at Pt Pirie for an up passenger train was declared a failure, a 500 class (500 HP shunting loco) was seconded to haul it until a loco could meet it coming from Adelaide… it would have been a slow trip being limited to 40 mph.
In the early 1970’s there was a special workers train of 1 car and a loco from Broadmeadow loco depot/yard to Newcastle in New South Wales every workday evening about 5 pm which was often hauled by an X200 class 0-4-0 rail tractor .. not very speedily with a rated top speed of 32 mph and seldom looked faster than 20!

70   Dummy Locos Leading Trains
By Trevor Gibbs

In the US and Canada, old cab locomotives such as F7’s or FA2’s have been used as “driving ctabins” on GO transit in Toronto and Long Island Railroad in New York while the actual road locomotive was pushing the consist at the other end of the train.

71. Dummy Locos Leading Trains


In Tasmania circa 1992, an old TGR Y class (similar in appearance to a class 20) was converted by Australian National  to a Driving trailer and used in a Bulk Cement unit train that only ran a relatively short distance of about 28-30 rail kilometres to Devonport in push/pull mode.

72 Dummy Locos Leading Trains
By Trevor Gibbs


In the 1990’s, Canadian Pacific (CP Rail) refurbished and converted several old Alco locomotives to control cabs and used them with branch line trains where only one loco was actually needed for the train and the use of a turntable or triangle was reduced or removed. For all appearances such a train looks like a couple of locos double heading.

73. Dummy Locos Leading Trains
By Trevor Gibbs

n the mid 2000’s Amtrak began using their old F40PH locos and making them into Baggage cars while keeping their driving cabins in push pull mode with newer locos obviating the need to turn the train, build special driving carriages or disconnect Head End Power. From the railfan point of view, the converted locos were given the moniker of “Cabbages” (Cabin /Baggage).

74  LIMITED ROOM FOR AN ENGINE SERVICE FACILITY?


by Trevor Gibbs
I have a model coaling tower that one of my longer locos has trouble stopping at without blocking the Turntable or an exit road. There is a picture in the Bytown Branchline files that clearly shows a 4-6-2 in Canada being coaled with a clamshell bucket loader while the engine is resting on the turntable.