New Header!

As part of my effort to spruce the site up a bit, I've done a new and larger header which isn't exactly the best work I've ever done, but does feature two of my favourite things: 'Jeanie Deans' and of course, my alias Colonel Klink decked out happily as a guard/driver.

For my British/overseas readers, the big engine in the middle is a South Australian Railways 620 class Light Pacific, styled slightly after Sir Nigel Gresley's marvellous P2 2-8-2 'Earl Marischal'. A broad gauge engine (not to Brunel 7 foot gauge mind you, 5 ft 3 in), two of them are preserved, one in working order with the SteamRanger Heritage Railway!

(for those interested, here's a LINK)

Magazine Review: 'Backtrack'

Time for the first magazine review featured here!

In Australia, our railway magazines from overseas are usually two or even three months behind everyone else's, which is bad for current news magazines like the wonderful Steam Railway or Heritage Railway, but doesn't really matter for historical ones like Steam World, Railway Bylines (personal favourite!) and the subject of today's review, Backtrack.

(note: the above image is a cover from about a 10 year old issue- the new ones look much spiffier!)

When it comes to historical railway magazines, none of them, I repeat, NONE of them, have for me been able to match the professionalism of 'Backtrack'. Rather than simply feature articles on events, closures, locomotives and flashbacks, as seen in 'British Railways Illustrated' and 'Steam World' (both of which are great mags too!), Backtrack also analyses personalities, policies, equipment performance, myths, accident investigations and quirky articles that you won't find being dealt with by anyone else (for example, one highly interesting article was the origins of the names for the 'King Arthur' class 4-6-0s of the Southern- a most delightful piece of prose!)

Each article also references outside sources, whether they be anecdotes, articles or books, so you really do get a sense that each article has been throughly investigated for facts. However, like many written pieces dealing with often controversial issues, you will on occasion detect a hint of author's bias. One article I found to be so was one dealing with locomotive performance and merit as viewed from the shareholder's view: for example, the A4s and GWR 'Kings' were right on the money, yet Bulleid's Merchant Navy pacifics were not due to their many problems- which ignores their unorthodoxy being partially Bulleid's labour saving attempts in the days of the war, a noble attempt to save the fitter's time and money which didn't quite work out. The 'Leader' project was also savaged, where its 'lack' of benefits for shareholders and its relative low use possibilty (size and weight) were discussed, ignoring the fact Bulleid was attempting to save on turntable costs, add the convience of cab-forward diesels and proves that steam could have a future in a different form- in his case chain driven drives and diesel style cabs. The article failed to mention that the project, despite promise, was given quick disposal (and possible sabotage-see my earlier post about 'Leader:Fiasco or Triumph') by BR, and the similar engine built in Ireland did work. As Sir Winston Churchill said of Gallipoli: "The terrible ifs accumulate!"
Before this post turns into anther rant on the 'Leader' let me continue.

What also broadens 'Backtrack's appeal is the variety of era in which the magazine covers: pre-grouping companies, always getting the short end of the stick in other texts, get a surprisingly decent amount of articles on them, as do the more unsual small companies you might have not heard of before. Its not just lines or locomotives for these groups either, I have seen recently articles on the LNWR's American Publicity materials, and the Southern Railways Electrification advertisement and efforts.

A nice touch also is the dedicated effort to each month show a new and unseen group of photographs in colour on one subject: the month I'm looking at (March '09) has LBSCR Tanks in colour, a previous issue has one of my favourites, the Wainwright 'H' Class Tanks in colour!

However, for those not interested in reading a lot of writing or essays on various subjects, Backtrack might not be your cup of tea. Probably a better choice (although more expensive and rarer here) is Steam Days, which is similar but focusing on more general subjects rather than the niche of Backtrack.

So, what's my conclusion?
8/10

Pros: PROFESSIONAL! Niche market subjects, analyses of everything concieable, pre-grouping railways, not just more Black-5/Standard class colour pictures.

Cons:More expensive than some of the other magazines, pre-grouping/niche articles might not be to some liking, occasional bias against certain issues, too much writing for some?

Happily, Pendragon Publishing has a sample issue online for perusual, although its an old one it is very similar to the modern format bar the new one's more spiffy appearance.

CLICK HERE TO SEE THE SAMPLE BACKTRACK ISSUE

Another new Build: 'Galloping Gertie'

This week I was researching an unusual locomotive, the first in Britain to have Walshaert's valve gear and a Single Fairlie standard gauge (very unusual!). This is an engine built for the Swindown, Marlborough and Andover Railway and later absorbed into the Midland South Western Junction Railway along with other SM&AR stock. I emailed the MSWJ group for any information about the type, of which just one photo exists, and they very kindly furnished me with further data and two scematic drawings. Kudos!

While surfing their SITE, I was surprised to see the society have joined in on steam preservations new frontier- new-build locomotives! They plan to build a replica of one of their railway's best-known engine, a Beyer-Peacock 2-6-0 tender engine, no 16, nicknamed 'Galloping Gertie.'

This is of special interest to Australian enthusiasts- the design is almost exactly the same as an Australian type bar an enclosed cab and larger tender (no, don't know the type yet- PLEASE FILL ME IN SOMEONE). If I am not mistaken, it will be the only Beyer Peacock standard-gauge tender engine built for British railway use remaining upon completion.

Seeing as the group has just started, so far they have outlined their aims- and are holding a publicity booth at a Swindown and Crickdale Railway Beer Weekend 2-4 May.

Beyer Peacock fans, unite!

OFFICIAL WEBSITE OF THE PROJECT

Locomotive Firemen: Supermen!

I have today an interesting post. Earlier I was digging a big trench for a drainpipe before filling it in again. That has nothing to do with railways. But it got me thinking...

Every shovelful of dirt would have been half as heavy as a shovelful of coal. I wasn't standing in front of a boiling hot firebox, but could at least stop and have a breather and a quick cuppa. Firemen would be lucky on some runs to even think about tea let alone a breather. I had five others helping me- a fireman might not even get help from their driver on occasion.

I was not working to a specific schedule and it took us longer than expected. A fireman...well, he and his driver would have been 'on the carpet' if they took any extra time.

Add to it the fact that we had the luxury of stopping for lunch and dinner, washing our hands etc...

The age of steam was a grimy one as well as being' romantic'.

Hats off to all of you firemen who fired in regular service; you and the other unsung heroes from the age of steam deserve as much congratulation as the Engineers and others who get all the glory.

Highland Shirt avaliable!

At long last, the OFFICIAL Highland Railway t-shirt is avaliable from my redbubble page!

Its easily the best one yet, and I would be delighted if a few of those who read here can buy a couple! Please consider getting one- I am trying to save up for a few new railway books that are a bit outside my current budget. Anyone who helps me save for them will have my gratitude!

Review: The Trains we Loved

(WARNING! I GO OFF ON A TANGENT HALF WAY THROUGH...)

Here's a quick review of a book that I recently picked up and was delighted with: 'The Trains we Loved' by C. Hamilton Ellis, yet another distinguished railway author (and painter) who is almost as well known as O.S. Nock (probably the best known of them all).

This particular book was published in 1947, has had its name taken by a more recent book by David St John Thomas and is most assuredly NOT the same book. Both, however, have something in common: they are overwash with NOSTALGIA. This is in effect what makes both books so interesting especially for modern readers who have never seen the railways when worked by steam.

While the newer book is awash with information about the experiences of the author in BR days, this older book has crucial memories of a life that began over a century ago: in the days of the pre-grouping powers: the famous LNWR, Midland, London and South Western, original GWR and the North British are but a few of the long-gone railways discussed in wonderfully descriptive prose that can only come from someone who saw the railways in action as a boy.

What makes this book thereby so important to modern eyes is the fact that few traces remain of these lines: a mediocre number of pre-grouping locomotives have survived, and fewer in active service: for example, the LNWR has just one locomotive surviving from its 20th Century stock (the recently overhauled 'G2').

One thing that is different about Ellis' (and O.S Nock's) books is how different they are to modern treatises on such subjects (say, a modern author's take on the Highland Railway will be matter-of-fact and be based on research- and author's viewpoint- rather than the experience of engines/system in action and the benifit of first hand observation of the line compared to other such lines). Mr Ellis is only to happy to label things as good or bad -or even both!-in his view, whereas most authors tend to be biased but not deliberately involved. Here is a fine passage which illustrates what I mean. Ellis writes as if describing something in a novel:

Crossing London River, the railway system of Kent was one of the most individual, most important, best of a kind, worst of a kind, most delightful and most detestable in Great Britain.

What a wonderfully different viewpoint! Modern authors cannot say such things unless they have information from various sources (for example, Edward Talbot's 'The LNWR Recalled' discussed in an earlier post has stories and information from those who worked/lived in LNWR days- the evidence overwhelmingly, for example, redeems F.W Webb of his stigma and also gives his compounds more creedence- this would not be possible without such evidence!).

Of course, this also adds a few problems- first, Ellis is harsh on things he personally dislikes, such as F.W Webb's reign on the LNWR, describing him as an austere, joyless man- several anecdotes from enginemen and others who knew Mr Webb describe him as an authoritarian yet good-natured man appreciative of humour and charitable (see 'The LNWR Recalled' for more). However, this is not Ellis' sole domain- O.S Nock is less critical but also gives Webb a mean serve. Disgracefully, many modern authors from Adrian Vaughn to Owen Jordan (the latter's 'Jordan's Guide to British Steam Locomotives' gives extremely poor misinformation about Webb's experiments and character, the book itself a travesty of criticism that the author is NOT qualified to make on such poor evidence in many subjects mentioned) continue to spiel rubbish about Mr Webb based on dubious evidence- a whitewash against him by his successor, George Whale. (it might interest many that Ellis' biography of Webb in Twenty Locomotive Men has been largely attacked by those in the know as being full of misinformation). A fine biography on him, 'F.W. Webb: in the right place at the Right time',corrects these misinformations very well. Plainly put, Ellis cannot be trusted on Webb in any of his texts!

However, The Trains we loved is a superb tome nonetheless. It is even better when added to Mr Ellis 'Some classic locomotives', which describe a number of types of locomotive- not classes, but designs, such as the beyer-garratt, the Crampton, the 4-6-0 etc (one highly interesting part is given to Ellis' musings on idiotic names applied to some wheel arrangements, such as 'American'for the 4-4-0. He gives the lovely name 'Old English' to the 2-4-0: would that enthusiasts take it up!).

As with all Ellis' texts, there are superb colour paintings to accompany it. Given colour photos of the engines shown are RARE if not NON-EXSISTANT, then these pictures are especially important!

Overall, a superb book- that I mark down solely for Mr Ellis' historical accuracy on some things (apart from the Webb thing I can't bring up the others offhand, but there are some. I think...)

GET A COPY!
9/10
As always, I can assist buyers in tracking it down- ebay is of no use here most of the time.

Excellent Railway Prints "Locos in Profile"

(note: this post didn't go through earlier when I said it was, I only just noticed)

I have recently found a site that offers some of the most detailed profile prints of steam engines I have ever seen- technical precision to every nut and bolt. They're drawn from a combination of sources- works pictures, technical drawings and shots of the engines in service. So far I've had a look at- and am purchasing eventually- the B-17 'Sandringham' and the magnificent 'Cock o' the North'.

So far, there about about ten different prints available- however, what sets this site apart is the 'type submission' section- where you can nominate your favourite engines to be done next! (I have emailed already requesting, you guessed it, Jeanie Deans, the artist knew of the class and said he would consider it if there was more call for pre-grouping types)

The price is fair at around 20-30 pounds for a single print (depends on type of engine you're buying).

LOCOS IN PROFILE