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Class 69 No. 69001 for GB Railfreight.

Discussion in 'Diesel & Electric Traction' started by free2grice, Feb 16, 2021.

  1. Bikermike

    Bikermike Well-Known Member

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    Class 20... with one of those top protrusions to allow for a bigger fan group...
     
  2. Bikermike

    Bikermike Well-Known Member

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    Just think of the reliability...! We could play a tape of the engine note...
     
  3. Fred Kerr

    Fred Kerr Resident of Nat Pres Friend

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    If I remember the times correctly many Communist satellites of Russia were becoming weary of Russia centralisation and were seeking ways of loosening the grip hence Western Governments were keen to exploit this by offering incentives such as trade deals to provide leverage and the attraction of a "free" society rather than one "locked into" Russian interests. I don't think the later fall of Communism was a direct result of such trade deals but the constant drip of the alternative view of life offered by them certainly helped. I well recall talking with my friends in East Germany during the 1970s and their view indicated a growing realisation that subservience to Russia was not in their best interests, but interestingly Romania began supplying 192 Class 119 locomotives to East Germany in 1976 using a body shape similar to the East German Class 118 bodyshell. It would be of interest to know what connection - if any - the order had with the British Class 56 build but (a) it's outside the realm of this thread and (b) I doubt if anyone has the information available.
     
  4. 35B

    35B Nat Pres stalwart

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    If there is anything in the underlying theory about why the business went to Romania, then it would not be associated so much with trying to undermine Communism as undermine the Warsaw Pact - Ceaușescu's state visit was at a similar time, as one of the more independent minded Warsaw Pact rulers. The idea that Soviet Communism would collapse was the preserve of a few optimists even just a few months before the Wall fell, and policies of the Wilson/Callaghan/Carter/Brandt era would have had little relevance given the very different, and much more confrontational, policy approaches of Thatcher and Reagan.
     
  5. Monkey Magic

    Monkey Magic Part of the furniture

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    Let's not forget PKP's EU6 electrics (and their successors).

    After 56 and especially after 68, the regimes of the region attempted to establish a modus vivendi with the population and increased the emphasis on consumer goods, the quickest and easiest way to do this was to buy from Western Europe who factories and machining. If people have a decent living standard (relative to where they were in 1939) then they may not support you but they won't actively take the streets to oppose you.

    There is something of a paradox when it comes to relations between the states of the region and Moscow. No Polish politician is ever going to go poor by taking an anti-Russian line. However, in some states such as Romania there is an ideological component to the embracing of nationalism and 'independence'. When Khrushchev issued the Secret Speech repudiating Stalinism this put the Stalinist regimes of the region in a quandary. Some such as Poland and Hungary attempted to remove the Stalinists (and to some extent succeed). In Romania, Albania and Bulgaria, the Stalinists held the upper hand and wanting to avoid the fate of other Stalinists they pulled an interesting move. They embraced nationalism to defend Stalinism. They argued that Khrushschev's attempt to Destalinise was an example of Moscow imperialism, so in the name of the nation they were rejecting Destalinisation.

    Hence, the 'independence' of Romania, Albania etc, was a mere fig leaf to hide hardline Stalinist economic, social and political policies at home. The West (US, UK, France, West Germany etc) fell for it hook line and sinker believing them to be another Tito, when what they were getting was Tito abroad, Stalin at home.

    Needless to say, the story of the 56s is I suspect a bit murky and wrapped up in at attempt to curry favour and geopolitical posturing.
     
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  6. Matt37401

    Matt37401 Nat Pres stalwart

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    Isn’t there a rumour of one 56 being painted in Romanian state railways livery to please Ceausescu but he got rather angry about it?
     
  7. Martin Adalar

    Martin Adalar New Member

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    The 56 had the same cab as a 47 and no doubt the body shell itself would have been very similar if not the same.
     
  8. Martin Adalar

    Martin Adalar New Member

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    The fall of communism was simply down to the USSR strapping itself to keep up with western military spending which caused economic damage, it had nothing to do with any trade deals or shifty diplomacy.
     
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  9. Matt37401

    Matt37401 Nat Pres stalwart

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    991AFD85-13FA-4E9F-B066-0258C8EB38E5.jpeg Just received this of 69002, GBRf going retro again by the looks of it.
     
  10. GWR4707

    GWR4707 Nat Pres stalwart

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    To me that would look better with a small logo....

    Sent from my SM-A125F using Tapatalk
     
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  11. Dunfanaghy Road

    Dunfanaghy Road Well-Known Member

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    Large logo & yellow cabsides - anything to break up the slab of Rail Blue!
    Pat
     
  12. Jordan Leeds

    Jordan Leeds New Member

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    They certainly make freightliners 70s look stylish
     
  13. Paul Grant

    Paul Grant Well-Known Member

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    Make all cheques payable to:

    GBRF
    3rd Floor, 55 Old Broad Street,
    London EC2M 1RX

    I quite like that it looks like a Tron 56.
     
  14. Martin Adalar

    Martin Adalar New Member

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    It is nice to see paint being used for a livery and not just vinyl, the very worst of BR liveries was better than anything you will see on a train run by a privitised TOC.
     
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  15. RalphW

    RalphW Nat Pres stalwart Staff Member Administrator Friend

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    What utter rubbish.
     
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  16. goldfish

    goldfish Nat Pres stalwart

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    Other opinions are available…
     
  17. MG 7305

    MG 7305 New Member

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    The 56 had the same cab as a 47 and no doubt the body shell itself would have been very similar if not the same.

    Now line up:

    Class 53 (1200 Falcon).
    Class 35 (Hymek).
    Class 47 (Brush 4).
    Class 50 (Four Hundreder).

    They all look very similar front on. Being a spotter in the early 70s I never saw it but as a modeller in the 21st century I have! In brackets is what we called the classes then.
     
  18. peckett

    peckett Member

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    Hot of the press ,56094 passing Kettering a couple of hours ago(08.05.2021 ) with a Toton to Brent train load of cranes.
     

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  19. peckett

    peckett Member

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    What are/were East German 119 s and 118 s. The only German loco's with that number series were German electrics of the 1930s.Most if not all East German Electrics were designed and built by L E W (Locomotive Electro Works,Hennigsdorf)ex AEG pre war, and now Bombardier.
     
  20. Matt37401

    Matt37401 Nat Pres stalwart

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    It’s a modified 47 body shell, I don’t think there was that long a gap between the last 47’s being built and BR deciding they needed a new type 5 dedicated freight loco.
     

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