The Big Four - which do YOU choose?

[the ferret]

This is very much a personal choice, each one of us has personal preferences as to the part of Britain that we model. The original Hornby Dublo was based at Binns Road Liverpool and so was inclined to favour LMS with LNER a close second. Eventually GWR

 

began to appear but it was a long time before the Southern Railway was covered.

 

In modern times there is still a nationwide variation in the railway, its infrastructure and ancillary equipment besides the trains themselves.

 

I am curious about

 

the degree each part of Britain is favoured relative one to another.

 

I am a Southerner so favour SR and GWR. But although population grows sparser as you go north this may not mean that others who think like me are in the majority.

 

So, I ask

 

you all again, which area of Britain are YOU modelling?

[Mike70]

the ferret said:

This is very much a personal choice, each one of us has personal preferences as to the part of Britain that we model. The original Hornby Dublo was based at Binns Road Liverpool and so was inclined to favour LMS with LNER

a close second. Eventually GWR began to appear but it was a long time before the Southern Railway was covered.

In modern times there is still a nationwide variation in the railway, its infrastructure and ancillary equipment besides the trains themselves.

I

am curious about the degree each part of Britain is favoured relative one to another.

I am a Southerner so favour SR and GWR. But although population grows sparser as you go north this may not mean that others who think like me are in the majority.

So,

I ask you all again, which area of Britain are YOU modelling?

LNER is my first choice, closely followed by LMS.

[Bulleidboy]

Commuted on it every working day from May 1964 until March 2009 - so it has to be Southern Region.

[Bob1952]

As an East London Lad Living between the Great Eastern Lines & the London, Tilbury & Southend Railway ( LMS owned ), its both LNER, LMS.

 

Bob

[LCDR]

Undoubtedly the Southern is my first choice, specifically the lines of the former South Eastern & Chatham Railway in South East London, Kent and Sussex. I do however have an interest in the Metropolitan line of the London Underground, and the LNER GC section.

[2e0dtoeric]

I'm a North-Westerner, so it has to be LMS!

[81F]

Living in Oxford, my first experience of railways was the Morris Motor car trains stopping at the Bridge at the bottom of priory road. Not sure if they were Hymeks or 47s (this would be very late 60s early 70s. My next was watching trains at Criply meadow

 

just north of Oxford. At that time most of the GWR was being erased from Oxford though a few bits clung on - I vaguely remember some semaphores. This and visits to the GWS at dicot sealed my liking for things GWR.

 

During the 1990s I spent time chasing

 

remnants of closed GWR lines (forest of Dean, west midlands and parts of South Wales and the Welsh Borders served to reinforce it.

 

My best find was Eynsham Station in 1985 a few weeks before the Bulldozers flattened it. As most of these lines were not

 

the usual picture postcard GWR of South Devon, I prefer to model the obscure aspects of that railway hence my choice of prototype Chirk (GWR) and ultimately it's link with the private Glyn Valley Tramway.

 

However, if I had to start over and had unlimited

 

resources I would build a model based on Limply Stoke to Camerton branch and include Monkton Coombe as I feel you could cover a period from the 1900 right through to closure and the filming of the Titfield Thunderbolt.

 

However, as My SWMBOs Great Great

 

Grand Father was station master at Slinfold (LBSCR) I don't thin I'd have a choice though!

[Postman Prat]

 

As a lad from the North East, although resident in Southampton for nearly 50 years, my choice has to be BR (North Eastern Region). All those wonderful filthy Q6s and J27 hauling coal, or even better, 9Fs hauling iron ore up to Consett. On the mainline

 

the magnificent V2s, Gresley and Peppercorn Pacifics and the Thompsons.

 

You would not want more!!

[81F]

Postman Prat said:


As a lad from the North East, although resident in Southampton for nearly 50 years, my choice has to be BR (North Eastern Region). All those wonderful filthy Q6s and J27 hauling coal, or even better, 9Fs hauling iron

ore up to Consett. On the mainline the magnificent V2s, Gresley and Peppercorn Pacifics and the Thompsons.

You would not want more!!

I must admit that area is a bit of a mystery to me railway wise. The only thing that springs to mine are

some large timber coal jetties any idea what I mean and where they are/were?

[Postman Prat]

 

Hi 81F

 

You're probably referring to the coal Staithes. Hopper wagons were propelled along the staithes, get to the loading point and stop, open the bottom doors - another empty!!!

My memory may be at fault (after 50 years away) but I think

 

there were staithes at North and South Blyth (north of the Tyne, either side of the mouth of the river Blyth) as well as smaller ones actually up the Tyne past Newcastle, at Dunston. It's Poliss' part of the world so he will probably come on and kick

 

everything I've said about the locations all around the forum.

 

I hope it's filled part of your railway education.

 

[Postman Prat]

 

Hi 81F

 

I meant to mention that these staithes form the background for a Michael Caine movie by the name of 'Get Carter'. It's years since I saw it so I can't tell you if it's any good.

 

[81F]

Postman Prat said:


Hi 81F

You're probably referring to the coal Staithes. Hopper wagons were propelled along the staithes, get to the loading point and stop, open the bottom doors - another empty!!!
My memory may be at fault

(after 50 years away) but I think there were staithes at North and South Blyth (north of the Tyne, either side of the mouth of the river Blyth) as well as smaller ones actually up the Tyne past Newcastle, at Dunston. It's Poliss' part of the world so he will

probably come on and kick everything I've said about the locations all around the forum.

I hope it's filled part of your railway education.

Thanks for that, found one on Google - would make a lovely model - something to rival the timber

viaduct at Pendon, shame there's a bit missing.

[LCDR]

Although I originate from Kent, but lived and worked most of my adult life in Yorkshire, I did spend seven years in the North East, and found the railways absolutely fascinating. I was fortunate to be there when the NCB still had some large private systems,

 

i.e. Ashington, Bates, Harton, Derwenthaugh, Dunston, Seaham, Easington etc. etc. and many of these ended at the sea or on the Tyne or Wear with staithes for tipping coal and minestone into ships. My especial favourite was the Harton system near South Shields,

 

which operate some unique overhead wire electric locomotives. One by one these lines closed and the track was lifted and rolling stock was cut up. Today you have to look hard to see where any of these were.

 

The North East would be an ideal area to base

 

a model railway, but sadly there are few model steam locomotives suitable to use on it, and certainly no typical North Eastern Railway types apart from a rather dated J72. It is easier to model it in diesel days of course.

 

I have firmly committed myself

 

to the Kent lines now, there already being some models I can use, so it is unlikely I will model the North East myself, but I am fond of it.

 

81F said:

 

Postman Prat said:

 

 

Hi 81F

 

You're probably referring to the coal

 

Staithes. Hopper wagons were propelled along the staithes, get to the loading point and stop, open the bottom doors - another empty!!!

My memory may be at fault (after 50 years away) but I think there were staithes at North and South Blyth (north of the

 

Tyne, either side of the mouth of the river Blyth) as well as smaller ones actually up the Tyne past Newcastle, at Dunston. It's Poliss' part of the world so he will probably come on and kick everything I've said about the locations all around the forum.

 

I

 

hope it's filled part of your railway education.

 

Thanks for that, found one on Google - would make a lovely model - something to rival the timber viaduct at Pendon, shame there's a bit missing.

[Tony57]

For me its Western Region, London Division, Brought up in Chalvey near the Slough to Windsor Line in 60's, with its 100 arch viaduct across the Thames flood plane it was double tracked then. Watched to DMUs ply back and forth, say the Royal train several

 

times being pulled by a Castle Class Loco into Windsor.

Spent many hour watching trains in Salt Hill Park or on the foot Bridge near Horlicks Factory. Watched the transition from steam to Diesal Hydraulic in the form of Westerns, Hymecks and Warships and

 

not forgetting the 8 car Blue Pullman. Got a job on the council as a trainee gardener was based at Salt Hill, saw the change again to HST and Class 47's 37's and the demise of goods wagons deliveries to Slough sidings, as road transport took over.

Watched

 

the pulling power of the Yeoman and Amey Class 59 with their 32plus 100tom bogie hopper wagons as they passed through on their way to West Drayton stone depot. Modern train watching is boring with just HST's and Thames turbo's going back and forth, with the

 

occasional bulk stone or fuel train passing through, there is no variety anymore.

[walkingthedog]

Had to reply to you Tony. I was bought up in Slough in the 50's and 60's on the opposite side to Salt Hill near the Farnham Road. Used to see how close we could ride our bikes in front of the the Slough Estate steam locos. Spent hours in Salt Hill and

 

on the footbridge on Horlicks Bridge.

Sometimes got a ride on the pannier tanks in the goods yard. My dad was from Eton. Know your part of the world very well.

So it's GWR/WR for me too.

[flyingfox4475]

When I was a lad I lived along side the Great Northern main line at Brookmans Park, and commuted for over 30 years on that line It has to be LNER. However My Late Mother worked for the LMS at the War Time HQ at the Grove Watford. So I have some leaning

 

to The LMS. Another member of my extended family worked for the LNER at Corton Suffolk. He was my Grandfathers nephew, My Gt Uncle. So I Model LNER mainly with a bit of LMS.

[the ferret]

Tony57 said:

For me its Western Region, London Division, Brought up in Chalvey near the Slough to Windsor Line in 60's, with its 100 arch viaduct across the Thames flood plane it was double tracked then. Watched to DMUs ply back and forth,

say the Royal train several times being pulled by a Castle Class Loco into Windsor.
Spent many hour watching trains in Salt Hill Park or on the foot Bridge near Horlicks Factory. Watched the transition from steam to Diesal Hydraulic in the form of Westerns,

Hymecks and Warships and not forgetting the 8 car Blue Pullman. Got a job on the council as a trainee gardener was based at Salt Hill, saw the change again to HST and Class 47's 37's and the demise of goods wagons deliveries to Slough sidings, as road transport

took over.
Watched the pulling power of the Yeoman and Amey Class 59 with their 32plus 100tom bogie hopper wagons as they passed through on their way to West Drayton stone depot. Modern train watching is boring with just HST's and Thames turbo's going

back and forth, with the occasional bulk stone or fuel train passing through, there is no variety anymore.

You are so "near home" for me! I was born at Datchet in 1937, wrong side of the river to be Royal(!) so my first train rides were on "Southern

Electric" to Staines, to where my parents had moved shortly before I was born.

My Dad worked in Windsor then, so we used to go there a lot when the Luftwaffe let us. All the traffic went over Windsor Bridge then. Going over that Bridge on an STL (RT's

had not arrived then) always felt a bit scary - like riding a bicycle along a clothes line!

While I remember arriving by Electric (2-NOL) at Windsor Riverside Station, I was always fascinated by the GWR station at the top of Castle Hill. There were

buses there, that were not London Transport but belonged to "Thames Valley". Some had outside staircases.

The trains were different, too. The coaches were brown and cream, beautifully lined out contrasting with the all-over green of the Southern Electrics.

The GWR engines were green with much ornate brasswork.

Opposite rose the mighty bulk of Windsor Castle and it all gave an impression of solidarity, dependability and made you feel proud to be British, in spite of the attentions of the German Planes

and later, the V1's and Horrendous V2's.

When we moved to Reading in 1944 to escape the V2's that fell from space without any warning at any time in the 24 hours, I was seven. I remember so vividly hearing rather than seeing, a GWR express train running

at speed through Reading Station, the rhythmic sounds of a Castle class loco hard at it, followed by the exciting quadruple beat of the wheels of fourteen coaches. It made the hairs stand up on the back of your neck; the sounds and the smell were so unforgettable;

sounds that gradually died away down the line towards Swindon and Bristol, followed by that characteristic "clatter" of a signal being returned to "danger".

It all conspired to polarise my attention to the railway, whatever the colour and type of engine.

Later

I would travel to Llandudno by LMS and by "The Flying Scotsman" to Edinburgh but for the moment it was The Southern and The Great Western that held my attention and struck deep into my young imagination.

[Buz]

Hi all

Born in Bishops Stortford with Liverpool Street as the closest London Terminal.

Rather obvious its LNER for me.

Would be handy if I could find Bishops Stortford station Track plan so I can do an 8' or 9' feet long Station using that track

 

plan.

But no one seems to know where the plan is so I can get a copy of the plan with goods yard and loco facilities.

regards John

[poliss]

Dunston coal staithes are the largest wooden structures in Europe. They are still there, although parts were set on fire by scummy vandals and destroyed. They should start work on restoring them next year.

 

[Railfan70]

When I was a young lad I grew up with steam and lived on the main Birmingham to Bristol line, I thought if it wasn't LMS it wasn't worth looking at, now I am an old man of 70 I think anything British Steam is fantastic so in that respect I have no preference.

[cooped]

I'm not old enough to have any memories of steam let alone the big four, but family history pushes me to the LNER. In reality though if I like it I'll run it. In my collection is LNER, LMS, SR,GWR, BR (early and late crest), LMR, and London Transport.

 

Then there is the Pennsylvania railroad, New York Central, Norfolk and Western, Union Pacific, Southern Pacific, Baltimore and Ohio, Erie, and the Atlantic Coast line. Then back to Europe, the SNCF. Needless to say my layout (when complete) won't be modeled

 

after any particular location!

[kenilworthcastle]

I'm a Great Westerner. I may be an American but I have a HUGE fascination for British Steam, mainly that of the GWR :).

[Postman Prat]

 

To balance things a bit, I like a lot of American locos. I know next to nothing about then but they have an appeal.

 

[The son of Triangman]

Got to be the LNER as I was born and still live in the heart of GER and M&GNJR territory.

[Postman Prat]

 

Everyone knows I'm a North Eastern man, in my heart but I put in the above to show I'm nor totally blinkered!!!