Fish trains

General UK Railway Discussion and questions.
Post Reply
User avatar
Peter White
Milepost 7
Posts: 93
Joined: Fri Feb 15, 2013 12:37 pm
Trainz Version: TRS22+
Location: Brighouse, West Yorkshire

Fish trains

Post by Peter White »

Hi all

After spending the last 45 years in the road transport industry I am now trying to get my head around the workings of the railway (I have already been chastised for saying amber instead of yellow). I have been fascinated with railways since my childhood days in Doncaster but my dad said I had to get a proper job so that put paid to my boyhood dreams.

My question regards fish trains. Did they need a guards van? I assume they did, but as they were scheduled to run at 60mph would this be a normal guards van or would it have been a BG or BSK or similar? The reason I ask this is that according to the 1962 carriage workings for the WCML a BG is added to the rear of a fish train at Carlisle. If a normal brake van was fitted at the rear would this have been detached first or would the BG have just been attached at the rear.

Thanks for any help in advance.

Peter
User avatar
cyberdonblue
Forum Veteran
Posts: 1578
Joined: Mon Mar 31, 2014 6:41 pm
Trainz Version: 2006 2012 T:ANE SP3
Trainz Build: 105766
Author KUID: 214658
Location: West Midlands

Re: Fish trains

Post by cyberdonblue »

Peter White wrote:...I have been fascinated with railways since my childhood days in Doncaster but my dad said I had to get a proper job so that put paid to my boyhood dreams...

Peter
:lol: :lol: A very wise Dad indeed.

Fish trains were a little before my time, Peter, but I can assure you that a BG and a Guard's Brake van of the freight variety would never have been marshalled together in a train like that. It would have been one or the other, I'm sure. However, many of those trains were fully fitted vacuum braked trains by the date that you have mentioned so I'm not sure what the situation would have been with regards to brake vans. I know from what I've read that express bogied vehicles for fish vans were running as early as the 1920's and that the GCR were prominent movers of fish supplies, even attaching fish wagons to the back of express passenger trains. Maybe this old article from the "Grimsby Telegraph" can shed some more light on the subject for you. http://www.grimsbytelegraph.co.uk/looki ... story.html I have to confess I read it some time ago so I'm not too sure how much information might be relevant to you. I hope it's some help though.

Reminiscing again: :roll:
The old freight Brake vans would happily trundle along at 60 mph (linespeed and track condition permitting, of course) but I confess to having had a very unnerving experience of travelling in one at 75 mph (albeit only briefly.) It was along a very well maintained stretch of mainline and it rode better than I'd imagined. A local instruction for the particular job we went on allowed for the movement of this Brake van in advance of the loco. Yes, that's right, the Brake van leading. The speed antics started out as a joke inspired by youthful foolishness and bravado wouldn't let anyone back down. It could have ended very badly indeed. Fortunately it didn't. I would certainly not recommend the experience and have no desire to repeat it.

Dave :D
User avatar
Peter White
Milepost 7
Posts: 93
Joined: Fri Feb 15, 2013 12:37 pm
Trainz Version: TRS22+
Location: Brighouse, West Yorkshire

Re: Fish trains

Post by Peter White »

Thanks for the info Dave, a very interesting article. I remember that flyover being built as I used to travel to Grimsby on a regular basis both by rail (to Cleethorpes and it's mile wide beech) and road to the docks as a drivers mate.

Peter
Post Reply