When I went to Canadia I stayed with a guy who was a Freightman with CP Rail in Medicine Hat, we went to see where he worked from…

Some of the trains he hauled were 1 1/2 miles long & had come all the way across Canada.

this is my favourite train 🙂

Soviet Nuclear armed train carriage. Now residing in St. Petersburg train museum. No wonder the west was a little nervous back in the day.

keppoch.

Would love to have a go at working those huge North American Freights. Bit better than a clapped out 142!

I’d like to work that more though!!!!

I feel very privileged to have seen the Post Office underground railway, or ‘Mail Rail’, which ran from Paddington to Whitechapel, via Mount Pleasant. Closed down in 2003. Relatively very few people have actually seen this railway, which was the first and oldest driverless rail system in’t World, I understand.

In my gricing days I went all the way to Switzerland to find one of these lovely old things, the enigmatic Krokodile.

Some of the trains he hauled were 1 1/2 miles long & had come all the way across Canada.

First time we went skiing at Whistler, we had to wait at a level crossing. We asked the driver why he’d stopped the engine. As the train came past … and kept coming past … and kept coming past … and kept coming past we understood. Must have been there for 15 minutes in total as it wasn’t moving very fast and it was *veeeery* long

Similar to here in Oz I think – something like 4 engines up front and they just come and come and come….

What I wouldn’t give to have four engines up front…

…oh, sorry, is that my coat?

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XwEVzOegqzw[/video]

great thread 🙂

difference between the class 37 and 40?

dont think ive seen a mention of the class 47’s yet.

Me @ 7 🙂

My real train set, at my dads works.

My da 🙂

Anyone remember these in Orange an White ICI colours? [looking for pic]

They used to pull up by my house and the drivers went to the pub 😉 Health & Safety did’nt exist in the 70’s

This is when ripped the line up outside my house 🙁

Blower – Member
great thread

difference between the class 37 and 40?

dont think ive seen a mention of the class 47’s yet.

Posted 31 minutes ago # Report-Post

Diffeent sound , the 40m was heavier, and more for express setrvices.

The Brush 47 where just general dogs bodies, did everything, but the Virgin Thunderbirds (47`s got rebuilt as thunderbird locos to be used incase the pendolinos broke down) look quite cool, new cooler group radiators and couplers on the front, and a decent colour scheme.oh and they wher named after Gerry Andersons Thunderbirds.

A picture I took at the Bath Road Diesel Depot…:-(

I was last to leave 🙁

Wahayy…some right trainspotters on here!
One story Brad (the guy who works on CP Rail) told me was when a train load of stuff was coming from the East coast of Canada to Calgary, loaded with all kinds of stuff including some explosives for the British Army base at Suffield (BATUS) Turns out the brakes on the truck with the explosives on was faulty & the brakes were binding & jamming the wheels every so often. Causing lots & lots of sparks!
(yes I know you need detonators but it makes a good story!)

My brothers a bodybuilder at Wolverton rail works. I remember going their as a kid when it was still British Rail on an open day couldn’t get over the size of the place. He says it’s nowhere near as big now days 🙁

aye the 47’s seemed to be used alot.

the 37’s had the look,

project you know your stuff!

Someone asked about gresleys: there are a few at the great central railway between Loughborough and Leicester.

But this is my favourite train and railway. (clicky)

absolutely bonkers engineering in impossibly steep terrain. And it runs all winter:

And now there are new comfy modern ones, it woiuld seem:

You lot may knock the Renfe stuff for it’s looks in Spain, but they are great – 320km/h while drinking complementary baso de vino tinto 😀 :D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D

I’m so loving this thread. 😀

difference between the class 37 and 40?

The 37’s just worked…

Many years ago I went on a tour of the Doncaster Works – I love engineering.

I had to go and look what a class 47 Thunderbird looked like.

Next week’s thread – planes

trains are crap, awful, and expensive.

only slightly less rubbish than buses, but much more expensive.

H-t-S – That’s before the dellner couplers where fitted, and possibly before the exhaust velocity was increased so that carbon dioxide didn’t drift out of the top of the loco and directly into the Pendolino air conditioning intake…….

ahwiles – is that a road over rail bridge you live under?

For those that are interested, the “47” thunderbirds are actually 57’s. Also nicknamed bodysnatchers as essentially they are 47 bodyshells and bogies, evertyhing else has been replaced.
They are currently in use with Virgin, Arriva, First Great Western , West Coast Railway Company and DRS. IIRC 34 in total.

Lovin’ this thread.

I heartily appreciate the effort train spotters put in so that when I want to find out astonishingly geeky details about trains, it’s all there for me on wikipedia, though I would vehemently deny being a train geek 😉

Also: have a strange OCD habit of HAVING to count the number of cars being hauled by freight trains…

bigyinn – Member
For those that are interested, the “47” thunderbirds are actually 57’s. Also nicknamed bodysnatchers as essentially they are 47 bodyshells and bogies, evertyhing else has been replaced.
They are currently in use with Virgin, Arriva, First Great Western , West Coast Railway Company and DRS. IIRC 34 in total.

Posted 1 hour ago # Report-Post

But to us rail enthusiasts, they will always be class 47 or type 4, s, because they where born that way after they changed to the tops code 47 from the 1600 series..

Another more serious point, why do preserved railways charge so much, went to a really well run one today, they wanted £14, per adult, £12 per
child and children under 3 go free.

I went and took pictures, and departed, to pricey for me.

trains are crap, awful, and expensive.
only slightly less rubbish than buses, but much more expensive.

Is that right? Beginning of the month I travelled up to London by train, first time in best part of thirty years. Nice and comfy, I could sit, listening to music and reading the ebook I’d bought that morning, and it cost me £28 in total. To do that in my car would use just under half a tank of diesel, 200 mile round trip, so approximately £28/30, then there’s the £15 to park at Kings Mall, Hammersmith. I could also sit in the bar at Paddington and have a couple of pints before catching the train back. Maybe you prefer to sit in a car for two hours, and pay more for the privilege. I don’t.

count the number of cars being hauled by freight trains…

goods train man, you’re not a merkin!

project – Member

bigyinn – Member
For those that are interested, the “47” thunderbirds are actually 57’s. Also nicknamed bodysnatchers as essentially they are 47 bodyshells and bogies, evertyhing else has been replaced.
They are currently in use with Virgin, Arriva, First Great Western , West Coast Railway Company and DRS. IIRC 34 in total.

Posted 1 hour ago # Report-Post

But to us rail enthusiasts, they will always be class 47 or type 4, s, because they where born that way after they changed to the tops code 47 from the 1600 series..
1500s….. 😉

CountZero :

This looks like a very capable loco.

Russian freight fleet from French train builders Alstom.

Grabbed my camera and took a pleasant Sunday morning stroll around the Colorado Railway Museum.

EMD F9 Diesel Electric 1750hp Built 1955

317 ton Burlington locomotive Built 1940 (really massive)

Rotary Snow Plow Built 1935

Built 1890

SW8 Diesel Electric Switch Engine Built 1938 Sold to Coors Brewery in 1981

Built 1880 in Philadelphia

A few more

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lQz-5OqiPk8&feature=player_detailpage[/video]

This is a baby over here – not something you want to see coming when you’re in a rush at a level crossing…

Jeeze! Imagine a locked axle on that (and doing a rotational test)! And no tail light!

These engines are making mine look kinda crap.

Looking at those enormous shunters, I’ve just tried to find a photo of the little diesel shunter my schoolmate’s dad drove, and this is the only one I can find of a real engine, most are models: