2BA or not 2BA

Ok, I apologise for the pun in the title.

Last week I bought a pack of 2BA machine screws from an internet based supplier (who for the time being will remain nameless). When I received them I was puzzled to find that they didn’t fit the electrical equipment coverplates, or more tellingly the 2BA nuts I had received from the same supplier only the week before.

After a few minutes rummaging in my collection of old screws, I found that I had been supplied with M5 machine screws. Unsurprisingly I phoned to complain….

“Well they are equivalent” I was told.
“What do you mean by equivalent?” I enquired.
“M5 parts can be interchanged with 2BA parts”, came the reply.
“But I have 2BA threaded holes and I need 2BA machine screws to fit them”.
“Sorry sir, but I think you’ll find the M5 will do the job better”.
“But I need them to fit the equipment that already exists with 2BA threads in it”.
“You will find that if you use the M5 it will fit perfectly well”.
“No it doesn’t!”
“Yes it will!”

“Please can I speak to your supervisor?”

After a 5 minute wait, a lady picked up the phone and we went through the whole discussion again... No improvement. Not the slightest understanding of the problem.

“Can I return them and get my money back as they don’t work?”
“Have you opened the packet?”
“Yes”.
“Sorry sir you can’t return it if the packet has been opened”.
“But it says 2BA on the packet, and you now admit that you’ve supplied me M5, so you have mislabelled them”.
“No sir M5 and 2BA are equivalent, so the labelling is correct”.
“But equivalent to is not the same as identical to”.
“Yes it is”.
“No it isn’t. I think I better speak to your manager…….”.

To cut the rest of the story short, I went on eBay found some 2BA parts, confirmed with the seller that they were genuine. And three days latter they were fitted and the equipment covers were back in place….

Back to the original supplier; I have taken out small claim paperwork and sent them a copy with a note saying that I will submit it to the court unless I receive a full refund within 28 days. I’ll keep you posted….

Why is it that paint causes so many arguments?

In the railway diesel traction preservation world, what is paint for? Apart, that is, from a subject on which we can all fail to agree and argue endlessly about.

Well, paint does two things. It provides a degree of protection for metal to save it from oxidisation in the UK’s damp atmosphere. Secondly it allows the owner to advertise their brand through a choice of colours and design.

Back in railway history, I wager Mr Stephenson didn’t bother with paint for the second reason, applying just enough to prevent the metal deteriorating.

So why is the chosen paint scheme such an emotive subject? And I should point out here that my particular grief is with those who are not involved in the preservation of a particular loco but seem to think they can tell the owners what colours it should carry.

“Because large logo is hellfire”, “Because XYZ loco never carried it in BR service”, “Because I once had this loco in that livery”, “Because that livery was the start of the end”, “Because these locos never carried that livery in BR service”, “…

OK, let us unpick these particular issues:

a) Starting with the last one. OK so the loco didn’t carry it in BR service, but for several preserved locos they have been in private hands longer that they ever were for BR, so why not look at what might have been had they survived a little longer. Imagination is a powerful thing and shouldn’t be ignored.

b) Because that livery was the start of the end, this frequently is levelled at the NSE liveries when applied to class 50s. However for a small number of enthusiasts this is how they remember them, so why not recreate it?

c) I’m sure we’ve almost all had at least one loco that has followed us around. So over the years we’ve had it in what ever livery it carried at that time. Perhaps not a bad reason to chose a livery but unless you own the loco not a good arguement to put to those that do.

d) Why is BR ownership the only marker of authenticity? Many locos worked for only a few years under BR then had an even longer career with the National Coal Board before entering preservation. Should these examples only be painted in NCB’s colours? But I see very few are.

e) It is true some liveries suit some loco designs better than others. And aesthetics are at least one good reason for a choice of colour scheme.

If we followed all the rules dictated by the paint police (outlined above), probably all the class 50s would be large logo, and many other classes would have just two choices (green or blue)….

Surely there is room for all liveries whether they are authentic or not. And because locos in preservation are privately owned, why shouldn’t the owners decide.

I for one are waiting for the furry that will be unleashed if one private owner decides to apply his own livery in a preservation setting. But why should they be subject to ridicule or rudeness for a decision, which in all fairness, is their’s to make? Why shouldn’t they advertise their brand, in their way?

So stop wasting energy arguing over the livery. Just protect the metal and agree that this is the best form of advertising hording available.

Confidence Down at the Quarry

Last week I had the joy of taking two taxis in London, both were metrocabs, both fulfilled their duties fine. One was clean, tidy and everything worked. The other had a missing window catch so the pane rattled, the floor was dirty (several weeks worth at a guess), the seats had several small burn holes and a badly repaired tear. It has to be said I was far more confident that the first would get me from Liverpool St to Thames St, than I was the other one would get me back after the meeting.

Last weekend’s East Somerset Railway 150th celebration combined the East Somerset Railway, with tours of Merehead Quarry, Steam Launch operation on a nearby reservoir and a display of railway loco maintenance at the Mendip Rail Workshops.

In the grounds of the Mendip Rail Facility picnic tables had been set out and a fairground was in operation to keep the young, and young at heart happy.

Also in the yard near the depot complex were steam hauled freight train demonstration runs using a 9F, and a static display of locos. Brand new Class 66s, rubbed shoulders with 19th century 0-4-0 tank engines as well as the depots own extensive fleet of class 59s. Other visitors included 50049, 37901 and 37906 all from the Severn Valley Railway.

But what has this to do with a scruffy Taxi?

I was impressive with the condition of each of the Mendip Rail class 59s. No scruffy paint jobs, no torn seats, no bodged supports for conduits and pipes, no covers taped into position as the catches had failed, no stained paint work, no used filters and parts left lying around .. etc etc etc. Each 59 was clearly heavily used, so nothing was “out of the box” perfect, but everything looked cared for and maintenance was of the highest order.

Unfortunately apart the GBRF 66 which was almost brand new, the army liveried Class 60 and the preserved locos on display, most of the others were obviously less well maintained.

Now I’m not saying that the other locos were not safe to operate, but by maintaining these vehicles to a high order Mendip Rail inspire confidence with the public and their customers, a confidence that comes from their obvious attention to detail.

I know that in the commercial world the costs of maintenance have to be balanced against the income streams and the needs of making a profit to pay dividends to shareholders. But if Mendip Rail can keep their fleet in this good order, surely other freight operators can too.

More B****y Paperwork

Over the years I have collected all sorts of stray railway documents (mostly of the diesel locomotive engineering kind). They have come to be from friends, ex-railwaymen, and bought off the internet (Ebay etc) or at railway marts or car boot sales.

So I have a collection of Workshop Overhaul Standard Specifications (WOSS), TSUs (training books), and a fine array of engineering notices (LDs and MPs etc). All very well and good.
Last week I turned up at a railway mart, to be greeted by a stallholder who knows my particular fetish. With a huge grin he presented me with a few sheets of roughly photocopied paper, covered in oily fingerprints and looking more than a little worse for wear.

“Would sir be interested in these?”

Fortunately Network Rail group standards are not my thing as I can get them for free by other methods, and as I pointed out to him, the set he was offering were not even up to date, as they had been superseded by more recent issues.

However this encounter got me thinking. How do I know that my other documents are the most up to date available……

By the 1980s some rudimentary version control was in place and this practice is now second nature to almost everyone involved in document handling and reproduction.
But back in the 1970s document version control on the railway was not widely practiced outside the cloistered atmosphere of the drawing offices. But then giving a document a reference code as well as a title appears to have been fairly alien to them too. In fact I have two documents both produced by different departments inside BR, published within two weeks of each other, and both have the same title but cover fairly different subject matter.

So taking a real example. I have two copies of a document called “Diesel Locomotive Disposal”. One in a blue cover the other in green. They are not identical, but very similar. So how can I tell which is the later version? Indeed is there anyway of knowing? Or do I just guess that the copy with the corrected typos and extra few paragraphs is more up to date than the other one? Hardly satisfactory but unless anyone out there knows differently its my starter for 10.

A Mis-spent Youth

This weekend I went out to photograph a few rail-tours in the Scottish Borders. At one location I was set up ready to go, when an irate farmer advised me that I was on his land in a manner that suggested I should do something (or else!). As I made to move off to find another location, he asked me what I was doing there anyway.


Normally I tend to deflect such questions, but surprised at his interest, I responded, telling him that I was a part owner in a locomotive that was due past any moment now and I wanted to get a photograph of it.


“How do you become a part owner of a locomotive?”


I suggested he didn’t want the long story, and the short version could be summarised as "a mis-spent youth".


From this point his manner became far friendlier and we got talking. It transpired that his uncle had been a driver for many years before being forced to light duties following an injury. The farmer used to go with him on Sunday engineering trains and occasionally as far as Inverness in the cab of a Deltic or Brush (I assumed class 47). It was clear he remembered the time with fondness and was now quite happy to stand there and talk, he even let me get my shots in.


After the train had disappeared round the curve, the conversation continued. It transpired he had wanted to follow his uncle on to the railway, although he knew it would disappoint his father as he wouldn’t then be able take over the family farm.


What had stopped him?


At fifteen he had an argument with his mother, and in a fit of rebellion he had stolen the village bobby’s bike and cycled into the nearby town. There he had nicked a bottle of sprits and tried to drink it all in the park. Although he was never prosecuted, the police record had been enough to prevent him getting a job on the railway.


Dryly he remarked, “That was my mis-spent youth”.

Cooperation

I was very pleased to see the crowds out to witness the passing of the Railway Touring Company land Cruise to Scotland this weekend.
This operation features no less than 3 preserved locomotives all from different organisations during the long weekend. 55022 Royal Scots Grey started passenger leg of the train rolling from London’s Kings Cross station at 07.20hrs this morning. 50049 Defiance and 40135 will take on most of the running in Scotland over the weekend.
It is a tribute to all three groups: Royal Scots Grey, The Class 50 Alliance, and The Class Forty Preservation Society, that they can all work together to this successful end.

Remind me, who are we fighting?

In recent weeks I have been dismayed at the slagging off that some hard working individuals have been receiving on internet forums, message boards etc.

Why? Well in at least one forum the planned livery of a loco is being attacked. Yes this loco never carried it in BR service but the group’s management team suggested it and it was voted on at the AGM (and accepted). Now some members who didn’t bother to attend the AGM or authorise a proxy to vote, and a few non-members are up in arms. The criticism as I understand it is that they are accusing the committee of undemocratic behaviour.

The vitriol has now risen to such an extent as to be nauseous. It has become deeply personal and, from what I see, likely to be deeply damaging too.

What the members and non-members must understand is that the committee are all volunteers who put in their time for free. It doesn’t matter if the work is engineering, administration, or fund raising related, it still takes time, in many cases more than 20 hours a week.

If these hard working individuals get fed up with the complaints, they may just stand down. Who is then going to replace them? Do the replacements have the right skills and the time to give up to the cause?

Yes, discussion and genuine complaint is good, and the democratic process is there to allow management teams to be changed. But unless there is wrong doing or there is an obvious and capable replacement waiting in the wings, you may just find that replacing a dedicated enthusiastic committee member is harder that you think.

But above all remember we are all in this for the fun of it, so keep the discussions frank, honest and open, encourage dissent, and do not expect everyone agree with you. But there is never any place for petty arguments, rudeness and person insults. Surely our fight must be with rust and those who stop our beloved locomotives from operating in a safe and regulated way, not with those individuals who actually make it happen!