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  • Accidents in retrospect: Fatal signals at Stechford

    Accidents in retrospect: Fatal signals at Stechford

    by

    Sam Hewitt

    –

    Still reeling as the implementation of Dr Beeching’s Reshaping the Railways programme of station and line closures pressed ahead, the railway experienced a bad year in 1967. In the first of a series marking the 50th anniversary of 1967 railway accidents Fraser Pithie considers a fatal collision on the West Coast Main Line at Stechford…

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  • Lazarus Projects: Push and Pull – diesel style

    Lazarus Projects: Push and Pull – diesel style

    by

    Sam Hewitt

    –

    With the Great Central Railway-based diesel brake tender nearing completion, Nick Pigott tells the story of a unique new-build project. MANY types of modern traction-era rolling stock have survived into preservation, but a notable exception is the diesel brake tender. These extraordinary vehicles were introduced in the early 1960s when British Railways realised that many…

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  • A few hours driving a Quarry Hunslet

    A few hours driving a Quarry Hunslet

    by

    Sam Hewitt

    –

    While many enthusiasts are attracted by the lure of driving a standard gauge loco, Cliff Thomas takes the controls of narrow gauge ‘Quarry Hunslet’ Gwynedd with an unfitted goods train at Bressingham Museum… and finds it far from easy! An invitation by Bressingham Steam Museum trustee Robert Ellis to spend a few hours driving newly…

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  • Alternative fuels for trains

    Alternative fuels for trains

    by

    Sam Hewitt

    –

    With the writing on the wall for diesel-powered trains and a lack of commitment from the Government for further electrification, Keith Fender looks at some of the alternative fuel options for new trains and trams. THE UK Government has announced it wants to phase out diesel-powered trains by 2040 – and the race is on…

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  • The Franco-Crosti story

    The Franco-Crosti story

    by

    Sam Hewitt

    –

    The Franco-Crosti preheater was a brave yet ultimately unsuccessful attempt to increase the efficiency of the classic Stephensonian locomotive. Robert Humm charts its development in Italy, Great Britain and elsewhere Improving the efficiency of the steam locomotive by using waste heat to raise the temperature of the boiler feedwater was hardly a new idea. Joseph…

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  • THE AREA MANAGER’S DIARY

    THE AREA MANAGER’S DIARY

    by

    Sam Hewitt

    –

    Career railwayman and Practice & Performance contributor John Heaton kept a detailed diary of the events – good and bad – during his role as a BR area manager, which is chronicled in book form. One memorable incident at Totnes is recalled here while maintaining an operational railway. During the 1980s I was enjoying my…

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  • Freight without frontiers: 20 years of Class 66

    Freight without frontiers: 20 years of Class 66

    by

    Sam Hewitt

    –

    Two decades after the first examples landed at Immingham Docks, Ben Jones looks back at the development and the early years of the General Motors-built machines, and their effect on the railfreight industry in the UK and mainland Europe. Very few locomotives can claim to have revolutionised the freight operations of an entire country, but…

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  • End of the line for an icon: DB CLASS 103 FINALE

    End of the line for an icon: DB CLASS 103 FINALE

    by

    Sam Hewitt

    –

    Fourteen years after the official end of regular duties, the main line diagrams of the hugely popular Deutsche Bahn Class 103 electrics have ended. Ben Jones takes a nostalgic last run behind this iconic class and pays homage to these magnificent machines. IT IS 04.59 on a chilly late-November morning. An early InterCity express to…

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  • MORE PRE-GROUPING DELIGHTS

    MORE PRE-GROUPING DELIGHTS

    by

    Sam Hewitt

    –

    Keith Farr concludes his analysis of the performance of 4-4-0 locomotives designed before the Grouping in 1923 which handled passenger trains with aplomb before the introduction of larger 4-6-0 and 4-6-2 types by the ‘Big Four’. IT IS lunchtime at Bath (Green Park) station in 1958. The 1.10pm ‘all-stations’ to Templecombe, comprising three Southern coaches…

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  • British locomotives abroad: the definitive guide

    British locomotives abroad: the definitive guide

    by

    Web Editor

    –

    Since 1999, British diesel and electric locomotives have worked in various parts of Europe for a variety of reasons. In this definitive and exclusive feature Anthony Sayer tells the story of what worked where and when – and what locos are still abroad.

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