Coming Along Nicely

This past two or three weeks has seen quite a bit of progress not only in the new, central, section but also at Davemoor and Gunnmere.

The station at Carswater (see top two photographs) is looking good and we will be turning our attention to the Ballast Depot before too long. Name boards and signals still need to be added to Carswater but she is almost finished now.

Meanwhile, the frontage area of Davemoor (as seen in the third photograph) has now been turned into a car park complete with a bus stop and a small Memorial Garden. 

The paving across the front of the station entrance was created using the Metcalfe Self-adhesive Paving Slabs (P0210). Davemoor still has to have lighting as well as name boards and signalling added but it is coming along very nicely now.

The main station building and the buildings on the island platform at Davemoor are all from the Bachmann range of Art Deco Station Buildings and, I think, they look very good too. They are quite different to what has been used at other stations and, indeed, all of the stations have used different styles of buildings and this, to my mind, makes for a nice variety.

Over to Gunnmere now and you can see from the fourth photograph that we have changed the goods siding here to include the Bachmann Corrugated Goods Shed (Catalogue 44-006) and the re-use of the Hornby Cattle Dock R8790. This used to be in a different location, before the layout was altered and we were not sure if we would be able to use it again but, happily, it will fit in here quite well. 

The area around and behind the signal box at Gunnmere has also been improved - and an old Tri-ang Advertising Hoarding added for good measure!

50s In The 80s

 

Here are three photographs that I took, on 35 mm slide film, of Class 50s in the early 1980s.

The first one, I believe, is 50017 Royal Oak at Exeter St Davids having just arrived with a train from Waterloo.

This photograph was taken in the summer of 1980, not long after the fleet had taken over the Waterloo to Exeter services, in May 1980.

The middle photograph is of a rather dirty 50003 'Temeraire' standing at Paddington with a train from Oxford. This was taken in the spring of 1981.

Finally we have 50037 'Illustrious' about to depart Waterloo with a train for Exeter St Davids on a wet summer's day in 1980.

Outlines of Power - Nº 4 : EE Type 1 (Class 20)

For the fourth 'Outlines of Power' article by Mike Turner, that the magazine 'Rail Enthusiast' ran during the early 1980s, we have the English Electric Class 20 with a terrific portrait of D8000 in her original BR green livery.

The accompanying annotation reads as follows:

The first English Electric Type 1 Bo-Bo, later designated Class 20, emerged from Vulcan Foundry, in Lancashire, more than 25 years ago and, amazingly, most members of the class are still around. The long-nosed diesel-electrics normally work in pairs, joined nose-to-nose to give drivers an unrestricted view from the flat cab ends. The Class 20s are powered by an eight-cylinder English Electric 8SVT Mk 2 diesel, energising four traction motors (one to each axle), and weigh in at around 72 tons.
The prototype, D8000, is now awaiting conversion to a near-permanent display at the National Railway Museum, York, and most of the others in a class, which once numbered over 220, are either in store or still at work. Their normal duties are mixed freight, engineering or MGR trains, but, at a pinch, they have been used on enthusiasts' or holiday specials.
Mike Turner's painting shows D8000 in her original green livery, and captures the spirit of this reliable, rugged and long-lived class. The accompanying technical drawings are by Russell Carter.