Lower Thames Yard

[Tallpaul70]

Morning All,
Having explained in an earlier post how I intend to run my layout sessions I thought some details on one of them would be of interest.

The first session covers the four hours 5am to 9am and the first two hours (one hour in real time) go like this:-
Remember there will not be Main Line tracks in this layout, only Reliefs and the Branch!

0506:- a class 9 empties arrives on the down relief from Acton headed by a 28xx. It takes a left turn into the down relief loop and draws forward to the signal. As they left Acton at 3.20 and have little shunting to do before leaving at 05.40 the crew take breakfast (frying sounds)

O510:- a 57xx LE from Slough passes through on the down relief heading for Twyford. It had slowed in case the 0506:- had not cleared into the loop but on seeing clear signals speeds up to loud exhaust.

0515:- the late running (due 0500) up milk from Whitland behind a Castle thunders through the relief line whistling loudly.

0520:- the slightly late (due 0510) 0430 news and milk empties from Paddington to Westbury draws in on the down relief behind a Hall. It is allowed 5 mins to drop a GUV from the front of the train into the up siding. The driver must take care not to buffer up to the brake of the goods standing in the up loop!

0527:- a late running (due 0515) coal train hauled by a LMR 8F crawls into the up relief loop to drop a raft of wagons into the coal sidings It will leave on time at 0606 but at 0557 pulls out of the loop to wait at the up relief platform signal.

0530:- a Slough 61xx arrives on the down relief LE to collect a set of Suburban coaches from the branch siding to form the 0600 to Paddington. This engine is facing Reading (Slough engines usually faced London) because its next duty from Paddington is a fast timed passenger to Oxford!

0540 :- the down mineral pulls out of the down relief loop and clanks on its way.

0600:- the 540 Reading to Princes Risborough Parcels arrives in the up relief loop hauled by a 56xx. It drops some vans into the neck of the coal sidings then moves across to the up siding to collect the GUV left there by the 0430 Paddington to Westbury. It has to run round the GUV using the crossovers between the up and down relief lines. It then pulls forward into the branch platform recently left by the 06.00 to Paddington and runs round its train via the up relief.

0610:- another Slough 61xx arrives on the down relief LE, this one facing London. It passes onto the branch heading to power the 0730 Bourne end to Paddington.

0620:- the Princes Risborough Parcels storms away up the branch.

06.25:- the first up 3 car DMU of the day arrives from Reading on the up relief heading for Paddington.

06.30:- Class 5 from Westbury powered by a Hall arrives in the up relief loop to wait the passing of the 0650 Aberdare

0634:- the 0620 Slough to High Wycombe local 61xx hauled arrives in the branch platform and leaves up the branch at 0638.

0640:- starting noises are heard from the 3 car DMU in the down siding. No doubt the crew arrived from Slough on the High Wycombe train.

0645:- the DMU starts its manoeuvre to gain the branch platform ready for its 0658 departure to Paddington.

0650:- Class 8 from Aberdare to OOC powered by a 9F passes through the relief line

0655:- the 57xx shunter that earlier passed west towards Twyford returns through the up relief line heading for Taplow.

0658:- DMU leaves the branch platform for Paddington.

So in summary:-

In one real time hour I have handled 14 trains, 7 of which have looped or carried out multiple movements.
Time for a coffee I Think!

Before you all reach for your WTTs and pick me up on discrepancies, there are one or two compromises and one or two Rule 1s in the above.
No prizes for spotting them!!

Cheers
Paul

[Tallpaul70]

Hi All,
Had mixed luck this morning:-

Was good to liberate an example of the latest Bachmann WR Toad from AGRs shelves. Justified the purchase on the grounds that it is in weathered grey!
Yes, I know I could weather one of the half dozen or so I already have, but my excuse is that I need to have one pre weathered to measure my efforts against. (Don't hold your breath waiting to see my efforts, there is along queue outside the wagon works and the works is on a one day week (if you are lucky!!).

Not so good were my efforts to book an advanced ticket for Ally Pally.
I'd forgotten in the last year that I had registered with the site, so wasted time trying to register after choosing ticket. Then when site told me I was registered wasted more time as couldn't remember password. Then got to paying only to find basket had timed out! Hadn't realized basket had a time running down!
So gave up, try again tomorrow!!

Still a few amusing comments on posts on this site has restored my good humour.
Keep smiling!
Cheers
Paul

[Walkingthedog]

Wouldn’t be surprised if it is cancelled the way things are going.

[Tallpaul70]

Wouldn’t be surprised if it is cancelled the way things are going.

Lets hope the large increases in cases over the last couple of days represents a peak!

Will probably wait until early next week to try to book a ticket, and see how the cases develop!
Ticket comes by email so not urgent yet.

[Walkingthedog]

Is a great show.

[Tallpaul70]

Yes, it is good.
However, there is talk of limiting sporting fixtures to 500 attendees, so as a result shows such as Ally Pally and York, might get the chop!
There is a big government meeting with sports organisations on Monday, I think I will wait until we see the outcome of that before I book my ticket!

Cheers
Paul

[Tallpaul70]

Good afternoon All,

The running of the railway in the 60s could be very complex, but we should remember that such complexity always had a reason, because complexity usually implie cost and always, even before the modern craze for cost cutting came along, the railway did not incur cost for no good reason.
A case relevant to Lowe Thames Yard is the Maidenhead Shunting Engines.

Simplistically Maidenhead had a shunter from 0930 until 2100. However this period actually involved three different engines and defined (in the WTT), but in practice varied, periods of Passenger /parcels, and goods shunting.
So the process of shunting and changing shunting engines was as follows:-

The first arrived 0930 from Slough. It shunted passenger/parcels until 1200 when it turned to goods shunting
It then swaped with the engine on the 1325 from Bourne End arriving 1343 which departed for Taplow at 1353
The engine from the 1343 arrival then shunted goods until 1930 when it departed to Slough shed
The engine that picked up the 1325 from Bourne End arrived at Taplow at 1357
It returned through Maidenhead with a local goods arriving at 1537 where it was allowed 5 mins to take water before leaving for High Wycombe at 1542
Finally the engine off the 1850 passenger from High Wycombe which arrived at 1923, shunted its coaches to the branch sidings then replaced the shunter that left for Slough at 1930 but primarily shunted passenger/parcels vans until leaving at 2100.

I suspect that this complexity was to allow for crew change overs and coaling of engines, but others better versed in such practices than I can probably enlighten us?

Cheers
Paul.

[Tallpaul70]

Hi All,
I thought I would explain the operation, makeup, and how I intend to model one of my favourite trains that operated in the early 60s through Maidenhead.
This was the 0540 Reading to Princes Risborough Parcels.
I have always liked Parcels trains and this one is the eccentric practicality of the trains of the era at its best!
It had a good mix of vans, which I will come back to in a moment, and its U turn at Maidenhead is a delight!

It started at Reading at 0540, having gathered vans arriving from a number of starting points, and arrived in the Goods line at Maidenhead c 555 where its loco detached with any vans for Maidenhead, before picking up a GUV left by an early down parcels train. It waited until the 0600 to Paddington had left the Branch platform, and then pulled forward into it. The Loco then ran round, and departed up the High Wycombe branch at 0620.

From Reading the makeup was:-

Engine:- (I have yet to find conclusive evidence of what was used but I am getting variety into the area’s diet of 57xx and 61xx tanks by using a 56xx tank)
Vans for Maidenhead (I am using 2, one vacuum braked 4 wheel, one WR pattern one BR pattern)
Vans for High Wycombe (I am using 3:- a fruit D, a LMS pattern vacuum braked van, and a CCT)
Vans for Aylesbury (I am using 2:- a Mink G plus a PMV)
Van (Milk in Churns) for Aylesbury (I am using a Siphon G)
Passenger Full Brake Van for Aylesbury (I am using a Mk1 BG)

From Maidenhead the makeup was:-

Engine
Passenger Full Brake Van for Aylesbury
Van (Milk in Churns) for Aylesbury
Vans for Aylesbury
Vans for High Wycombe
GUV ex Paddington for High Wycombe

There was no return parcels train down the branch, so how did the vans get back to Reading?
They return to Maidenhead in ones and twos attached to branch passenger trains including the GUV that started the day at Paddington before being dropped off by a down parcels train at Maidenhead to join the 0540 parcels train to High Wycombe which ended up on to the head of the 2010 Maidenhead to Reading with an ultimate destination of Crewe via the 2030 Greenford to Birkenhead Parcels. I have yet to find out how it got back from Crewe to Paddington, but the timings suggest two vans were needed to maintain this service each running as above on alternate days!
So the parcels vans came down the branch as follows:-

GUV to Crewe Ex High Wycombe via 1850 High Wycombe to Maidenhead
Van to Didcot Ex Aylesbury via 1825 Aylesbury to Maidenhead
Passenger Brake van to Reading Ex Aylesbury via 1825 Aylesbury to Maidenhead
Van (empty Churns) to Chippenham Ex Aylesbury via 1642 Aylesbury to Maidenhead

These gathered at Maidenhead and returned to Reading on the 2010 Maidenhead to Reading Parcels. But only the Passenger Brake van stays at Reading ready to join the following day’s 0540 Parcels.
So the van for Didcot joins the GUV on the Birkenhead Parcels, and the Churn van joins the 2240 Paddington to Penzance parcels on its way to Chippenham.

What happened to the vans from the 0540 Reading parcels not returning via the 2010 Maidenhead to Reading parcels:-
Those dropped at Maidenhead were probably picked up around 2206-2216 by the up 0842 Shrewsbury to Paddington parcels, and then returned to their starting points via various parcels trains from Paddington.
Those dropped at High Wycombe were probably returned via OOC/Paddington, and the WR main line.
Those dropped at Aylesbury were probably also returned via High Wycombe, OOC/Paddington, and the WR main line.
However, this is on the basis that their best route back to their starting point is via the WR main line Without knowing their starting points, I cannot tell whether this is a valid assumption!

If anyone has fact or suggestions for the items above that I do not have facts to support, please feel free to post the details.

Many thanks
Paul

[Tallpaul70]

Afternoon All,
In my earlier post on the 0540 Reading to Princes Risborough Parcels, when talking about the vans returning down the Branch from Aylesbury to Maidenhead, I said:-

Stock item ----------- Destination----------- Route

--Van---------------- to Didcot ------------- Ex Aylesbury via 1825 Aylesbury to Maidenhead

I should have made it clear that this van did not form part of the 0540 Reading to Princes Risborough Parcels.

In fact it may have started its days working from Didcot, but this requires further investigation.
We first have definite documentation of it on the 1138 Paddington to Didcot parcels, where it was noted that this must be an empty large 8 wheel van or two smaller 4 wheel vans!
This note suggests the van started there and did not come in from Didcot, although the trip from Didcot to Paddington could have formed the last part of the vans previous day's trip either late the day before or early the current day.

The van was dropped off at Maidenhead during a 1207-1212 stop. It then went up the branch on the 1506 passenger train to Aylesbury arriving at 1621. It was then swapped for the Empty Churns van, and the train left for Maidenhead at 1642.

Meanwhile the van was loaded, and attached with the Passenger Brake Van off the 0540 parcels from Reading, to the 1825 to Maidenhead on its way to Didcot as noted above.

This complicated routine may just have been a way to avoid an empty van running from Paddington to Didcot and a second van then being required to get from Didcot to Aylesbury empty to form the loaded run from Aylesbury to Didcot.

I hope I have clarified rather than confused this issue?
Having said all this can anyone suggest what the daily load was that required a large van to run from Aylesbury to Didcot?

Cheers
Paul

[Walkingthedog]

Ducks.