The Rail Enthusiast thread

[Mad Doug Biker]

Watching an '86 or '87 going over Beattock whilst it fizzed and arced in the cold, frosty winter night was a sight to behold. It was beautiful and something no smegging diseasal or kettle could have done (unless something had gone badly wrong).

I also saw '90s' do the same.

 

[BrumJim]

Watching an '86 or '87 going over Beattock whilst it fizzed and arced in the cold, frosty winter night was a sight to behold. It was beautiful and something no smegging diseasal or kettle could have done (unless something had gone badly wrong).

I also saw '90s' do the same.

I get your passion, but:
1. Wait for a 93 to fizz and arc its way up Beattock in the first cold frosty winter of service, and surely you will gain the same affection?
2. Your list also included 'Warship, Western, '37', all of which are diesels.
3. Used to like 90s too, until someone told me that they are just 87s in a fancy dress.
4. I'm with you on kettles.

 

[Mad Doug Biker]

I get your passion, but:
1. Wait for a 93 to fizz and arc its way up Beattock in the first cold frosty winter of service, and surely you will gain the same affection?
2. Your list also included 'Warship, Western, '37', all of which are diesels.
3. Used to like 90s too, until someone told me that they are just 87s in a fancy dress.
4. I'm with you on kettles.

1. The diesels bit is a grey area, they can do things a leccy can't and vice versa, but there is a disparity between how diesels and electrics are viewed by most enthusiasts and will talk about it all in same way you have, so I was merely redirecting it back.

2. As for a '93 on Beattock? I doubt I'll get haulage behind one like I did the old electrics, complete with a droplight window and no tabarded twonk harrassing me all the time about having my head out the window.
The days of just being able to stand in peace and watch as your '86 or '87 crawls between signals or similar, lights glinting along the side and the pantograph arcing, crackling and fizzing, lighting up the surrounds like it's day, whilst listening to every single subtle nuance of the 'siren' ringing sound... Are sadly gone.
I am also not a kid any more anyway.

I also have had some absolutely cracking high speed runs too of course and one of my last runs was behind the first '87 into Paddington in 2018. 100+mph in a Mk1, head out the window like old times... Bliss.

3. There is nothing wrong with '87s and my only regret is that they didn't make '90s' sound more interesting.

4. I was a bit unfair to myself there as I really have nothing against steam and rarely use the 'kettle' word as I generally don't like it (I was drunk).
I have driven steam locos before so I have real respect for the crews and so on.
I think I simply meant that electrics can do what steam and diesel can't (but of course this alternates between forms of traction, so a steam loco can do what neither a diesel or electric can do and so on).

 

[Mad Doug Biker]

I also used to take the sleeper to London quite a lot and although quiet, I did gain a respect for the '90s'. I have seen them glide through the night, arcing almost constantly because it has been so cold, lighting the countryside up in a ghostly blue/green light. It was quite beautiful to watch from the old Mk2 droplight, although the constant buzzing, crackling and fizzing of the pantograph was somewhat disconcerting at times!

I remember seeing 87016 do the same (albeit not on the sleeper) one night into Glasgow Central. It was quite a spectacle and one of my all time favourite runs. 😍

 

[Andy in Germany]

What?! Diesels were ten a penny and needed sod all imagination to like. 😝Electrics were for us more sensitive and imaginative peeps, something you clearly knew nothing about.
The noise alone was a major part of my childhood, watching the coming and goings at Glasgown Central and the fact I was a WCML boy through and through - my Day was not complete unless I'd seen one ,(class 86 or '87).
The fact that I also grew up with the '303s'/'311s' helped.

A lot of it was also down to the names - Lancaster Witch, Meteor, Planet, Comet, Fury, Phoenix... Hardwicke, Sir Henry Johnson, Starlight Express, Crown Point, Abraham Darby... Elizabeth Garret Anderson, Wulfruna, LSE, Aldaniti!... Patriot, Britannia, City Of Glasgow, King Arthur, The Knight Of The Thistle, John 'O' Gaunt, Iron Duke, Earl Marishal, Velocity, Lord Of The Isles, Wolf Of Badenoch, Hal 'O' The wynd, Cock 'O' The North... Stephenson.

Are we witnessing a WCML/ECML Spat? Class 86's Vs Deltics, Platform 5 books at dawn?

 

[Mike_P]

Nah! What is needed is a proper diesel harking back to the earliest ones - a 45 doing its best to straighten the track. Even after they had been largely cast adrift they could still give a good turn. One snowy January in the mid 1980s a mk 1 set had to sub for an HST on the Midland main line and the 45 hauled rake found itself on a mid evening St Pancras-Leeds via Nottingham. 1hr59 was always the time given for a 45 to Nottingham stopping only at Leicester and bang on that time it did so. The 45 uncoupled and a fresh one on the other end almost immediately scoffing the official time taken to perform such a change. And if you need something less powerful well take your choice of 1 or 2 20s.

 

[Mad Doug Biker]

Are we witnessing a WCML/ECML Spat? Class 86's Vs Deltics, Platform 5 books at dawn?

No, 'Head' bags at dawn! 😆

Nah! What is needed is a proper diesel harking back to the earliest ones - a 45 doing its best to straighten the track. Even after they had been largely cast adrift they could still give a good turn. One snowy January in the mid 1980s a mk 1 set had to sub for an HST on the Midland main line and the 45 hauled rake found itself on a mid evening St Pancras-Leeds via Nottingham. 1hr59 was always the time given for a 45 to Nottingham stopping only at Leicester and bang on that time it did so. The 45 uncoupled and a fresh one on the other end almost immediately scoffing the official time taken to perform such a change. And if you need something less powerful well take your choice of 1 or 2 20s.

Peaks? Just before my time 'fraid and besides, they were banned from Glasgow Central anyway after the overly complicated pony truck things caused one to derail. Class 40s' were the same.

 

[Andy in Germany]

Nah! What is needed is a proper diesel harking back to the earliest ones - a 45 doing its best to straighten the track. Even after they had been largely cast adrift they could still give a good turn. One snowy January in the mid 1980s a mk 1 set had to sub for an HST on the Midland main line and the 45 hauled rake found itself on a mid evening St Pancras-Leeds via Nottingham. 1hr59 was always the time given for a 45 to Nottingham stopping only at Leicester and bang on that time it did so. The 45 uncoupled and a fresh one on the other end almost immediately scoffing the official time taken to perform such a change. And if you need something less powerful well take your choice of 1 or 2 20s.

I have to admit to a soft spot for class 44/5/6s. I understand why some people were rude about them as they were using pretty dated ideas even when built, but they were my favourite type of loco when a sprog, even though they were also before my time. I remember buying a second hand one from a tiny model shop in Warrington. The model was built by Mainline, and on my railway never hauled more than two MkII carriages, but I loved it.

 

[Mad Doug Biker]

I have to admit to a soft spot for class 44/5/6s. I understand why some people were rude about them as they were using pretty dated ideas even when built, but they were my favourite type of loco when a sprog, even though they were also before my time. I remember buying a second hand one from a tiny model shop in Warrington. The model was built by Mainline, and on my railway never hauled more than two MkII carriages, but I loved it.

I did have a Bachmann model of 'LADY' to be fair.

 

[VelvetUnderpants]

Growing up in Leicester and only a five minute walk from the Beal St entrance to Leicester shed I kind of took the Peaks for granted as they were two a penny, being more of a basher than a train spotter, I managed to be hauled by all of the class 45/1's except 45147. It was working the Trans Pennine route, and I was waiting patiently for it to start working the midland mainline again when it collided with a freight train, killing the driver and was subsequently withdrawn. My Favourite was 45111 Grenadier Guardsman, as my grandfather served in that regiment in the war.

My favourite class were 40's, rather underpowered and overweight, the sound at full thrash was something to behold. My highlight were a double-headed pair of 40's that were fixed by someone in BR to work a Birmingham New St to Manchester Piccadilly. There were more bashers on the train than there were normal passengers, probably a good thing as there was no heating.

 

[Mike_P]

There was one 45, cannot remember which one now, that I could identify at first sight no matter how far away it was. No idea why, I presume it sat on the track a bit oddly through greater wheelwear. The 45s, and 20s on summer Skeggies, were antidote to the awful, as they were then, Swindon Cross Country 120 DMUs. Unfortunately the latter were tasked with the train from Birmingham that allowed for a connection at Leicester into the St Pancras-Leeds train. In the dark with the dimly lit carriage rocking from side to side I often thought it could pass as the inside of a DC3!
Daily amusement at Nottingham would be generated by how late was the 47 hauled Harwich-Glasgow (eventually) European; the usual excuse on those days of regional divisions would be operating difficulties on the Eastern Region. If it was very late its visit to Sheffield would be cancelled so that it could use the freight curve at Dore to save time although it must have caused chaos at Carstairs with the Edinburgh portion at the front. The one day it appeared on time was quickly countered by remarks of it being 24 hours late!

 

[Mad Doug Biker]

There was one 45, cannot remember which one now, that I could identify at first sight no matter how far away it was. No idea why, I presume it sat on the track a bit oddly through greater wheelwear. The 45s, and 20s on summer Skeggies, were antidote to the awful, as they were then, Swindon Cross Country 120 DMUs. Unfortunately the latter were tasked with the train from Birmingham that allowed for a connection at Leicester into the St Pancras-Leeds train. In the dark with the dimly lit carriage rocking from side to side I often thought it could pass as the inside of a DC3!
Daily amusement at Nottingham would be generated by how late was the 47 hauled Harwich-Glasgow (eventually) European; the usual excuse on those days of regional divisions would be operating difficulties on the Eastern Region. If it was very late its visit to Sheffield would be cancelled so that it could use the freight curve at Dore to save time although it must have caused chaos at Carstairs with the Edinburgh portion at the front. The one day it appeared on time was quickly countered by remarks of it being 24 hours late!

I cannot comment about Peaks, but 47555 absolutely stalked me - No matter where I went, it'd be there waiting.
By all accounts, other enthusiasts experienced the same with, prompting theories that there were actually at least 12 of them!

It was considerably worse than my other regulars, like 37409, 37410, 37423, 37424, 37430, 56104, 86247 and 86425 (or was it '430? The one called 'St Edmund' anyway).
There was also a '47 called 'St Columba' and another named 'Severn' that had their moments over the years as well as the '47/8 called 'Thomas Telford'. Aaarrrggghhh!!

 

[Andy in Germany]

I had a half hour connection in Karlsruhe on Monday, so I went and lurked around the ends of the platforms.

Karlsruhe often has several locomotives from different companies stabled around the station. SNCF owned 185552-7 was helpfully sitting in a bay platform so it was easy to photograph.

 

[Mad Doug Biker]

I had a half hour connection in Karlsruhe on Monday, so I went and lurked around the ends of the platforms.

View attachment 697579

Karlsruhe often has several locomotives from different companies stabled around the station. SNCF owned 185552-7 was helpfully sitting in a bay platform so it was easy to photograph.

Never really been into the French things, but I can see the same design family there with locos from other countries, including Germany.

When I first went to Karlsruhe, it was 'real' German locos too i.e. back in the days when every country had their own designs and not just the internationally homogenous types we have now, like above.

Give me those old DB electric locos like the '103s', '110s', '111s', '120s', '139s', '140s', '143s'*, '141s, '150s', '151s', '155s'**... '181s' etc, any day!!



*, ** - Both classes still mostly in the old East German livery at the time.

 

[Andy in Germany]

Never really been into the French things, but I can see the same design family there with locos from other countries, including Germany.

When I first went to Karlsruhe, it was 'real' German locos too i.e. back in the days when every country had their own designs and not just the internationally homogenous types we have now, like above.

Give me those old DB electric locos like the '103s', '110s', '111s', '120s', '139s', '140s', '143s'*, '141s, '150s', '151s', '155s'**... '181s' etc, any day!!



*, ** - Both classes still mostly in the old East German livery at the time.

I have to admit to rather liking the 143 and 155s, especially as I travelled hundreds of Kilometres behind 143's. I loved the way that they were basically flying bricks, as if streamlining was an example of bourgeois decadence. "It will be square comrade! down with the curves of capitalist oppression! The very atmosphere will submit to glorious soviet engineering!"

Mind you, at least they worked, which was more than could be said for a lot of their stable mates.