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Flying Scotsman in Devon and Cornwall with Steam Dreams

Discussion in 'What's Going On' started by IamDaniel, Jul 17, 2018.

  1. AlexGWR1994

    AlexGWR1994 Member

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    My footage of Flying Scotsman and 44871 taking Rattery to the cleaners on Thursday and storming up Hemerdon today (with help from the rear). Enjoy.
     
  2. AnthonyTrains2017

    AnthonyTrains2017 Well-Known Member

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    5741F842-EEF6-4937-BCEC-0D9262FA21FA.png Totally underwhelming experience watching it doodle thru Norton Fitzwarren.
     
  3. GC Met

    GC Met New Member

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    60103 and 44871 at Hemerdon and Stoke Canon . The bridge at Hemerdon was packed .
     
  4. free2grice

    free2grice Part of the furniture Friend

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    A nice surprise this evening at Keynsham while awaiting the usual diesel hauled light engine ensemble back to Southall.
    We couldn't believe our eyes as Flying Scotsman came into view hauling the Black 5, two support coaches and a class 37 diesel !! Nice. :) <BJ>

    Below is a rant from a Mr. Mike Hunt (no pun in the name I'm assured). Posted on South West Rail gen.

    Hello guys,

    I was on the Houndiscombe Bridge (Sutherland Road) at the east end of Plymouth Station for the departure of Class A3 60103 “Flying Scotsman” and Class 5MT 44871 earlier today.

    Once the platform staff had given the ‘right away’, the engine crews spent the ‘customary’ 30 seconds or so enjoying the usual copious discharge of steam from the cylinder drain cocks of both locomotives, as seems the accepted norm these days.

    After that, the train started under way, the cylinder drain cocks now closed as is the usual sequence of affairs. As 60103 approached the bridge, the driver (or some creature) on the footplate of 60103 opened the drain cocks again, totally ruining any possibility of a photograph for the assembled multitude on the corner of that road bridge, including myself.

    As someone with a fair knowledge of steam locomotive modus operandi, there is no obvious engineering reason for this second opening of the drain cocks on 60103 alone, and it conveniently ended as the loco passed beneath the bridge. I do concede that there is a possibility of some situation to which I am not privy.

    My conclusion is that the driver, or whoever, did this with the deliberate malign intent of ruining the photographs of folk stood on the bridge. I hope that I am wrong, but it does seem that way at the moment. It has not happened during any previous departure from Plymouth that I know of. There is at least one driver with WCRC whom I am advised is quite capable of such an act.

    So photographers beware is all that I can say.

    (As an aside, and for what it is worth, I would advise folk reading this, that such spectacles (discharges of steam from the drain cocks) seldom took place anyway on a regular basis in the days of real steam locomotive operation. I was born in 1950 and remember steam up through my teenage years. The drain cocks are there to permit the escape of any water condensate which might collect in a cool cylinder when a loco has been standing for a long while. The spectacles you routinely see nowadays are either purely for show or to facilitate the modern overkill in reactions in respect of risk of damage to the cylinder heads and other components during the compression part of the working cycle).

    End of rant!

    Best Wishes from Mike.
     
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  5. CLN_WVR

    CLN_WVR Member

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    Something intrigues me about this tour - what were 37669's movements on the Thursday, Saturday and Monday?

    Just trying to piece together what she was used for as Diesel TnT with 47760 was suggested, but the timings seem to show 37669 can't possibly have been involved with all of the diesel only legs (Taunton to Theale with ECS return on Thursday for instance) and as far as I can tell only 47760 was used on the steam legs (accepting last night's last movement back to Southall which 37669 was on the back of)
     
  6. mrKnowwun

    mrKnowwun Part of the furniture

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    Worry not, drain cock use was an EU regulation foisted on us by unelected Eurocrats and will be overturned by that nice Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson when he becomes the grand poo bah of offshore England.
     
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  7. 6026 King John

    6026 King John Well-Known Member

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    Yes I wondered about that as well. I suspect it may have been there for insurance purposes. This was a rather complex operation involving 2 steam locos and a Class 47 and it all went rather well in the end as far as I can see. However it may have been considered sensible to have a spare loco in the area as in the case of a failure Southall is a long way to get a replacement loco from. So maybe the 37 was kept at Plymouth just in case?
     
    Last edited: Oct 9, 2018
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  8. KristianGWR

    KristianGWR Member

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    A couple of shots from Crofton and Hemerdon. Filmed on Thursday and Monday, respectively.
     
  9. AnthonyTrains2017

    AnthonyTrains2017 Well-Known Member

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    8D5E15F8-D684-4010-B041-BA5EDEA7FDCB.jpeg
     
  10. Jamessquared

    Jamessquared Nat Pres stalwart

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    Ah, that's a good one!

    When FS visited the Bluebell, I remember the accompanying driver remarking to us that the loco was very "wet" and any movement from rest should be made with the cocks open, even if you had only been stopped a relatively short period of time. It's possible I suppose that he gave that instruction in order to ruin any chance of a departure photograph, though perhaps more likely that he had tens of thousands of miles experience and knew the foibles of the loco. (The drain cock control, incidentally, is on the fireman's side, so it wouldn't be the driver operating them, though he may well request their operation).

    I've been on the footplate often enough, albeit not on the mainline, to have the firm opinion that trying to second guess the reasons for the crew taking particular actions when you haven't actually been present is a mugs game!

    Tom
     
  11. Is it just me that feels a little uneasy.
    That this has been posted on here, where it seems said Gentleman hasn't got a right of reply?

    Bit low laughing at someone behind their back like this.

    The negatives out the way enjoyed the few trips, I did over the weekend was nice to enjoy a 47 on the mainline back in Cornwall as well,
     
  12. free2grice

    free2grice Part of the furniture Friend

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    Mr. Hunts comments: ''My conclusion is that the driver, or whoever, did this with the deliberate malign intent of ruining the photographs of folk stood on the bridge''.
    ''There is at least one driver with WCRC whom I am advised is quite capable of such an act''.

    The comments were made on a local website for members only. How could the driver who was accused of such an attack, be able to have a right of reply? <BJ>
     
    Last edited: Oct 9, 2018
  13. Steamage

    Steamage Part of the furniture

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    I think SW Rail Gen was the place to leave this rant. There's enough opening of drain cocks on here from our own members without importing such vapours from elsewhere ;-)
     
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  14. 33026 Seafire

    33026 Seafire New Member Account Suspended

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    So a private gen group and you think its okay for you to post it in public, you must be really great at keeping secrets,

    I think the for members only part was the clue there,
     
  15. RalphW

    RalphW Nat Pres stalwart Staff Member Administrator Friend

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    Could it be that Mr Hunt is one of the many railway employees who has a great dislike of all things WCR, as shown by many on other forums used by rail employees, and was a rant to that end?
     
  16. free2grice

    free2grice Part of the furniture Friend

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    SW-SWRG is a Yahoo group with nearly 600 members. Many people would have read the post .....but not the loco crew. So for them the dirt sticks. <BJ>
     
  17. mrKnowwun

    mrKnowwun Part of the furniture

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    Could it be that he was just being jocular and witty and as such it deserves a wider chortle audience?
     
  18. CLN_WVR

    CLN_WVR Member

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    A few shots from Monday:

    Passing Powderham (3 images)

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]


    Crossing the river at Huntspill (2 images)

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]


    Passing Newton St Loe
    During ECS move of 60103, 44871 + 37669 from Bristol back to Southall. Very dark and grainy image so really just a record shot, although considering the late running meant the sun had gone down and it was very dark, amazed I got a shot at all.

    [​IMG]
     
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  19. 5944

    5944 Resident of Nat Pres

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  20. mrKnowwun

    mrKnowwun Part of the furniture

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    Like that last shot
     
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