Letters

‘Clay Tigers’ and the Potteries

by

Sarah Wilkinson

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24th August 2017

IT was great to read David Ratcliffe’s feature in the July issue on PBA ‘Tiger’ wagons, which were used predominantly on clay workings from the West Country to the Potteries. I am very familiar with these distinct wagons and services, as they passed through my home town of Wednesbury using the Dudley line for at…
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WEST MIDLANDS ‘GRONK’ TRIPS

by

Sam Hewitt

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7th August 2017

REGARDING the article ‘A Trip Down Memory Lane’ (May issue), which looked back at some of the Class 08/09-powered local shunting trips in the 1980s and 1990s, it reminded me of similar such workings around the West Midlands at this time, when ‘Gronks’ were often let loose on the main line. During the Speedlink era,…
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BR’s BIG SHAKE-UP

by

Sam Hewitt

–

25th May 2017

I ENJOYED the freight sectorisation article in RE251 (April issue) and found it an interesting read. The splendid main opening image shows what is most likely the long-distance Lackenby to Corby ‘Tubeliner’ at York. I think there were two such workings between Teesside and Corby back then. However, due to changes within the steel industry,…
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‘Westerns’ on freight

by

Sam Hewitt

–

27th April 2017

THE article ‘Last Days Of The ‘Westerns’’ by David Russell (March issue) brought back some fond memories of this much-liked and followed class. My own first positive sighting of a Class 52 was that of No. D1047 Western Lord (withdrawn February 1976), which I saw standing in Bescot Yard (circa 1974/75) while travelling by train…
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HONG KONG BATTERY LOCOS

by

Sam Hewitt

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30th March 2017

I SAW the shot of a Brush/Wabtec-built battery loco for the Hong Kong Metro in your February issue (RE249). It reminded me of this photo taken in 1989 of one (No. L60) of the previous batches built by Brush for Hong Kong. These 1500V DC locos are used to haul maintenance trains. Phase 1 (Nos.…
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Last days of the ‘Westerns’

by

Sam Hewitt

–

16th March 2017

I AM writing to say how much I enjoyed the look back at the lovely ‘Western’ class in your March Issue. Unfortunately there was one error that crept in when it was claimed that No. D1010 Western Campaigner worked the 1E45/ 07.30 Swansea to Leeds throughout on January 20, 1977. It was in fact No.…
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A question about West Midlands coke

by

Sam Hewitt

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21st February 2017

I FOUND the latest two issues of Rail Express (RE248 and 249) an enjoyable read, and found the modeller sections in both issues of particular interest. The Albion Metals scrapyard layout (RE248), loosely based on the now defunct operations of a scrap metal merchant based at Bilston in the Black Country, was a superb piece…
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LETTERS: ‘Nightstar’ in Birmingham

by

Sam Hewitt

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27th January 2017

CAN anyone help with more information about this photo from my collection? It shows EPS Type 3 No. 37612 heading a generator car, another ‘37/6’, and a rake of ‘Nightstar’ coaches in an enclosed compound at Washwood Heath in late 1996. Was this at the Alstom factory? Was it a newly-built rake? Or was it…
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Forgotten prototype

by

Sam Hewitt

–

22nd December 2016

I HAVE just completed Simon Bendall’s excellent article on the HST prototype set (December issue, REM). It brought to mind a visit (perhaps with Dalesrail?) to Crewe Works on July 23, 1972 when we came across the second power car No. 41002 in undercoat and apparently under initial testing. With all the recent publicity surrounding…
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Tebay tankers revisited

by

Sam Hewitt

–

17th November 2016

I AM just reading the October issue of Rail Express and I see on page 29 (Express Mailbag) there is a picture of some redundant bogie tanks being used as fuel storage at a motorway services. This is actually taken at the J38 Tebay Truckstop, not the nearby Westmorland motorway services, which is about a…
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