Atomic Systems

To protect his loco Ian Riley (who was on Tangmere at the time) reached accross the cab and slamed the train brake on to prevent further damage, it beggars belief why the driver kept opening the regulator again before the wheels of the loco were anywhere near stopping spinning. Also the driver of t...

Ah, happy days. I'd give my left arm for just one more time in the seat with 3417. Lovely machine... Only been on the job three years and already I'm working with blokes who never touched a Slammer. They don't know what they're missing....

All I can tell you is that the Wessie was a runner - she was cut in and apparently moved off the Wimbledon Park wheel lathe under her own power - and from the video avaiable on ukrailpics.com both units were cut in and under power on the way down to Bournemouth. The explanation I've heard regarding ...

'Tis only a pity it wasn't 1497; BR Blue and Grey would have looked much nicer alongside the Piggie livery...

Oh well, maybe next time.

spartacus wrote:Out the door, into a bottle. Of course with early diesels and some units there would be the option of out the connection at the front, although I wouldn't advise it when the train's moving!

Why do you think we always carry a couple of empty plastic bottles in the kit bag?!

That film really portrays the vastness, the extreme cold and the sheer power of those big units. Of course we Brits did look at a similar " budget" idea. "The runaway Pacer" two convicts escape from a group 4 van stopped at a half barrier crossing near Cleethorpes but it lost something in the trans...

[quote="spartacus"]Celebrities on trains: I believe Bruce Dickinson nearly missed one of his first gigs with Iron Maiden after chasing 40s on the ECML! Nice bloke is old Bruce - often see him on South Western making his way to Gatwick; one of these days I'll pluck up the courage to ask him down to t...

TGV
St Pancras Station
Chinese Heavy Steam still working in the early 21st Century
Amtrak - for the simple reason that they still exist
The Settle to Carlise line
English Electric

Alright, I know it's anorak - anyone who wants to see a slammer in action on the South Western tonight! Arriving around 20.00 to pick up a 442 and departing within two hours. Might be worth looking out for if you have any interest. I am putting a session on the beer back by 30 minutes just so I can ...

EPS - Enhanced Permissable Speed; anything that tilts can run at 125mph. Anything that doesn't tilt, such as an '87 plus Mk3 rakes, must run at the lower speed.

There is, or was, a trick on the third rail that used to work with the old DC-motored stock; holding the Aux Set button in without having Line meant you could take traction power from the batteries. You only got about 200 yards and it cooked the batteries, but sometimes it could mean the difference ...

I remember getting stuck at edgware road as i wasnt going fast enough to pick up on the other section of fourth rail :oops: Though if stopped in the nuetral zone i thought there would be sufficient power in the auxilary banks on an AC loco to reach the Live. Slightly different on thrid and fourth r...

Put at 33/1 on the front of the GCR's CIG and bingo - instant DMU with none of the hassle running around the train. That's why they wanted the Crompton up there. And if you don't like it, fair enough - don't ride on it. But by the same token, show some respect to the people who do like them - and in...

*Ahem*.... (Clears throat, cracks knuckles and flexes anorak muscles...) "Southern Slamdoor Stock" Tracing its developmental routes back to the early 1900's the erstwhile Southern Region of Britains rail network boasts the largest 3-rail electrified network in the world. The British Rail designed "M...

Would have been nice to convert her into a directors train... something a bit different to ferry the media around in.

Shame no one at head office has any imagination.