Scalefour Forum

Hi all

Couldn’t really find a category this fit into so here seems to be the nearest.

Found a few videos on operations on the Lickey. Including pinning down brakes on freight trains

To go with these (and you can get the Railway Roundabout annual highlights in DVD) there are also Peter Handford's sound recordings on the Lickey, although I'm not sure of their availability as a CD at the moment. Apart from the sounds of the trains (and the shouts of the spotters on the incline) his recordings in such places also highlight the reduction in ambient sounds of insects and birds since the 1950s. There is one sequence on the Lickey where Peter is recording close to a yellowhammer singing its heart out - the train approaches slowly and gradually drowns out the birdsong, then as it recedes up the bank the yellowhammer's song comes back into the sound mix. I doubt whether there is a DCC sound chip for that! (hence my view that DCC on-loco sound is a developmental dead end and we should be aiming for ambient soundscapes - but that's another topic ...)

From one of Peter Handford's recordings I know best, because it has my local church bells, seems to definitely be a collage of recordings and from a memory of an article about his recordings, they are edited. Some of the trains come too quickly in succession and the ambient sounds, well, too convenient. But like all artists, it is the way they are combined that make them the masterpieces they are.
I did film a Class 47 a couple of years ago pulling away from a scheduled stop, deputising for 4472 which had failed. I deliberately included the church and ambient sounds. You can hear the loco characteristically toot its horn, cautiously chug away in spurts as 47 drivers did until after about 20 mph it opens up to full power. The reaction from the steam crowd online... " too long, nothing happens and it's only a diesel". I give up.

Being born and bred in Worcester this is fascinating. I’d forgotten Bromsgrove had upper quadrants - we were used to lower, the Faithful City being GWR. It was the novelty of the LMS locos that led to my interest in the MR. Halls, Castles, Manors etc just felt too mundane! How spoilt we were.

I remember reading that Bromsgrove had a railway workforce of over 2000 - which virtually disappeared with cuts and modernisation. A huge impact on a relatively small town.

Am I right in thinking that the banking locos weren’t coupled in any way to the trains? Did the drivers have to judge distances and speeds by eye? Incredible.

That’s right. Not coupled to the trains going up and not coupled to each other going down. Apparently they could follow trains down as long as they could see them.

jim s-w wrote:Apparently they could follow trains down as long as they could see them.

Plainly visible at 17:20 in the Age of Steam film: a 94XX following a freight down the incline at a distance of not much more than 100-200 yards. Well, that's all right, like a form of permissive block working. But what about the sequence at 17:22 showing a Nine backing down the incline wrong road - was that a regular feature of the incline's working to maximise line occupation? The advantage is obvious as it creates a path for a Down train to descend the incline 'right road', but everyday workings against the flow of traffic seem to open the door to quite a lot of additional hazards.

Very interesting films, though, thanks for posting them.

John Palmer wrote: But what about the sequence at 17:22 showing a Nine backing down the incline wrong road - was that a regular feature of the incline's working to maximise line occupation?

Does it not mention that the down road was under possession and make a comment about the huge loss in line capacity as a result?
Rgds

grovenor-2685 wrote:

John Palmer wrote: But what about the sequence at 17:22 showing a Nine backing down the incline wrong road - was that a regular feature of the incline's working to maximise line occupation?

Does it not mention that the down road was under possession and make a comment about the huge loss in line capacity as a result?
Rgds

Sorry, missed the commentary. My only available audio output is a low power speaker built into the monitor, so most sound content just passes me by. With a possession they must have been block to block back to Cheltenham!

I'll try again and strain to make out the commentary.