Hi, couldn't help but notice how clean everything looked..............not just the trains but the trackside and stations too. Then people say BR was filthy and broken.....................Doesn't look it in this film. Thanks for looking back at better days. All the best Dave.
Great post here , people forget what a wretched state these loco's were in towards the end ,lovely to see my baby 1072 featured , i remember seeing her on her side at Bath road during a re-railing exersise , i walked away with tears in my eyes, BR was never the same again.
Great Nostalgic video. I used to see these once a week in Abergavenny and then when I moved to Cornwall in 1964 I used to see them on my way to school in Penzance. Although I was a steam fan I still had a soft spot for Westerns and Warships.
I was aged 14 / 15 at this time and in what I consider the best days of my life, so seeing all this bought back happy memories from my wild and carefree teen years dossing around railways and the like, with my mates. You have some superb footage here from another era sadly now long gone. A definite 5* from me... :-)
I remember how I felt when I saw my first "Western" Class at Paddington in 1972 at 10 years old...WESTERN SENTINEL My jaw dropped and I loved them at first sight!
these old films are priceless,,thanks to everyone for uploading these as without yourselfs people like me would never see them,,,,,,,,,,,,,,thank you folks
Unbelievable to see that and so brilliantly captured. The first shot of D1003 in green was a real thrill - never thought I'd see that again. Amazing someone had the sense to film this stuff while everyone else just used still cameras.
Where I lived, just outside Chepstow, during the sixties and into the seventies, overlooked a small section of the South Wales to Gloucester/Cheltenham route. Westerns and Warships were a regular sight and they became my favourite locos, along with the Deltics (not on the same line obviously). However, my over riding memory of the them at the time was the deplorable condition they were kept in by BR. I don't think I ever saw a clean one and most had rusting bodywork or even bits falling off. You only have to look at the examples on this video to confirm that. It seemed to me at the time that the whole railway system was in a state of terminal decay....which it probably was. Thank goodness that the preserved examples have been given the TLC that these wonderful beasts deserve.
So the Westerns were filthy even in 1964! I was used to seeing them grubby in photos from the 70s, but I assumed that was because the end was nigh. Given how much effort went into their design and liveries, and that they were meant to be a status symbol for the modernised railway, couldn't somebody have given them a wash now and then? Really interesting film, thanks for sharing It..
OMG WONDERFUL, WONDERFUL, WONDERFUL thank you so much for this tribute to the mighty Westerns that served so well yet had such short lives. Never looked after as you can tell from the appalling condition of some of them, they were literally worked TO DEATH to get rid of them :((( You can see and hear how hard these locos worked and they all deserved overhauls and decent respect!! I have driven Ranger and Courier in the past, what an honour and the sound of those Maybachs is music, thanks again!!
Absolutely brilliant! Brought back many memories of watching these engines when I was teenager. I remember seeing most of the ones in this video whizz past West Ealing where I lived at the time
You can see the yellow safety catches on the battery box doors of the "Westerns" as part of the measures to prevent another 1007 Western Talisman accident and it was simple compared with more recent pointless issues plus cost of a public enquiry.
I always liked the look of these engines and they're very interesting from a technical viewpoint. The twin Maybach V12 Diesel engines were higher revving than diesel/electrics and it really comes across here.
Hi Sean, Thanks for the videoclip, it’s great that you love the DVDs! please check out www.rail-video.com for more. Best wishes, Mark Saunders, Globe Video Films.
Never saw the Westerns running, was living on the East Coast Mainline at Leeds, so a Deltic man, but always liked the look of the old ladies! I try to see as many of the survivors wherever they are these days.. Great Video by the way!
think there 52 TOPS numbers were not applied as they carried cast number plates so they would have had to have lost them to do so,perfect to the end they kept their wonderful cast plates until they finished,the roar of the maybach was beautiful.
The Hydraulics were never failures as is shown by their use on recent UK freight trains. The HSTs displaced them. GWR hybrids seem to be taking over. May the wires go west beyond Newbury: An Electric Future for the GWR!
How come the Western's were running well in to the mid 70's, yet never had their class 52 TOPS number applied? Some classes such as the mk1 25's and 24's were withdrawn well before this carrying TOPS numbers? Great posting. I wasn't around in the 60's and early 70's so thanks for showing us youngsters what we missed!
+quadrophenia3 There was no point in changing them as they were being withdrawn when the number changes happened. Their numbers were on plates and it was too much hassle to take them off and apply new numbers. The D before the number was painted over though.
How come the westerns never received their class 52 TOPS numbers despite surviving into 1977? Most classes were remembered within weeks and by mid 1974 completed? Brilliant clear footage by the way, I dread to think how much your recorder cost!
Isochest I think the issue was that at first they were horribly unreliable especially the Warships and the Westerns for different reasons and the class 22 was underpowered and therefore used to get thrashed to death. By the mid sixties however most of the problems were sorted and a class 52 was more than a match for a class 47. By the seventies BR decided that diesel electric was their preferred 'standard' design and all locos that were 'non standard' were to be phased out. This included the diesel hydraulics and the Deltics and many of the high revving twin engined locomotives. Why they couldn't have settled on an industry standard before attempting to replace what was a new steam fleet instead of wasting all that money on failed and out of standard designs is beyond me.
I love these old hydraulics despite their German roots but wonder if it would have been better to let the Castles and the Kings to pull the long distance passenger trains into the 1970s and make the switch to diesel with the British HSTs
Hi, couldn't help but notice how clean everything looked..............not just the trains but the trackside and stations too. Then people say BR was filthy and broken.....................Doesn't look it in this film. Thanks for looking back at better days. All the best Dave.
Great post here , people forget what a wretched state these loco's were in towards the end ,lovely to see my baby 1072 featured , i remember seeing her on her side at Bath road during a re-railing exersise , i walked away with tears in my eyes, BR was never the same again.
Great Nostalgic video. I used to see these once a week in Abergavenny and then when I moved to Cornwall in 1964 I used to see them on my way to school in Penzance. Although I was a steam fan I still had a soft spot for Westerns and Warships.
I was aged 14 / 15 at this time and in what I consider the best days of my life, so seeing all this bought back happy memories from my wild and carefree teen years dossing around railways and the like, with my mates. You have some superb footage here from another era sadly now long gone.
A definite 5* from me... :-)
The names, the names! No line had names like these. You had to go and read the name of the engine that had pulled you 200 miles plus...
Thank you for your video, managed to spot the last few of the class , great times.
Glad you enjoyed it
I remember how I felt when I saw my first "Western" Class at Paddington in 1972 at 10 years old...WESTERN SENTINEL My jaw dropped and I loved them at first sight!
these old films are priceless,,thanks to everyone for uploading these as without yourselfs people like me would never see them,,,,,,,,,,,,,,thank you folks
Unbelievable to see that and so brilliantly captured. The first shot of D1003 in green was a real thrill - never thought I'd see that again. Amazing someone had the sense to film this stuff while everyone else just used still cameras.
Where I lived, just outside Chepstow, during the sixties and into the seventies, overlooked a small section of the South Wales to Gloucester/Cheltenham route. Westerns and Warships were a regular sight and they became my favourite locos, along with the Deltics (not on the same line obviously). However, my over riding memory of the them at the time was the deplorable condition they were kept in by BR. I don't think I ever saw a clean one and most had rusting bodywork or even bits falling off. You only have to look at the examples on this video to confirm that. It seemed to me at the time that the whole railway system was in a state of terminal decay....which it probably was. Thank goodness that the preserved examples have been given the TLC that these wonderful beasts deserve.
Best looking diesel locos we ever had.
Great clips thanks . I bet old drivers love this stuff
Such great looking locomotives. It´s a pitty they no longer exist on the daily route to the west. The sound is outrages and great.
My my! Those ol' Westerns look so good in BR Blue. Great footage!
So the Westerns were filthy even in 1964! I was used to seeing them grubby in photos from the 70s, but I assumed that was because the end was nigh. Given how much effort went into their design and liveries, and that they were meant to be a status symbol for the modernised railway, couldn't somebody have given them a wash now and then? Really interesting film, thanks for sharing It..
Fantastic. It brings back memories of Saturday mornings spent on Reading station back in the mid-seventies. Thanks.
OMG WONDERFUL, WONDERFUL, WONDERFUL thank you so much for this tribute to the mighty Westerns that served so well yet had such short lives. Never looked after as you can tell from the appalling condition of some of them, they were literally worked TO DEATH to get rid of them :(((
You can see and hear how hard these locos worked and they all deserved overhauls and decent respect!! I have driven Ranger and Courier in the past, what an honour and the sound of those Maybachs is music, thanks again!!
Absolutely brilliant! Brought back many memories of watching these engines when I was teenager. I remember seeing most of the ones in this video whizz past West Ealing where I lived at the time
Lots of memories there. Thank you very much. John.
Amazing sound and picture quality, especially those days
awesome footage - brings a lump to ya throat!
+v
These westerns bring back memories of when I lived next to the line at Wednesbury when steam was in the last dying days.
Wonderful. Wonderful Wonderful Westerns. My Devon holidays were what I lived for .
02:25 great sound ... those were the days ! Nice old locos at he BR
You can see the yellow safety catches on the battery box doors of the "Westerns" as part of the measures to prevent another 1007 Western Talisman accident and it was simple compared with more recent pointless issues plus cost of a public enquiry.
Brilliant. Especially great to see footage of D1011 Western Thunderer my first and favourite.
I always liked the look of these engines and they're very interesting from a technical viewpoint. The twin Maybach V12 Diesel engines were higher revving than diesel/electrics and it really comes across here.
Excellent sound quality!
I like the V200 in both its german clothes and british
Even though I was a midland man the Westerns were my favourite diesel hydraulic locomotive of all time 👍🏻 Saw them all except 1058 ☹️
Hi Sean, Thanks for the videoclip, it’s great that you love the DVDs! please check out www.rail-video.com for more. Best wishes, Mark Saunders, Globe Video Films.
They must have had very good driver visibility as the windscreen pillars are so thin and such a big glass area
lovely
Brilliant stuff brings back great memories cheers...Bill
Never saw the Westerns running, was living on the East Coast Mainline at Leeds, so a Deltic man, but always liked the look of the old ladies! I try to see as many of the survivors wherever they are these days.. Great Video by the way!
peggey707 thanks m8 for looking and adding a comment :)
Great video brings back a few memories cheers Kevin
Superb shots there,and the film quality is excellent. Although I never saw them in service this brings makes me feel like they've never left!
think there 52 TOPS numbers were not applied as they carried cast number plates so they would have had to have lost them to do so,perfect to the end they kept their wonderful cast plates until they finished,the roar of the maybach was beautiful.
Great stuff. Have to look up my diary for some of those 1970s dates......
The noise these hings make sound like the glorious sneeze of god. Its amazing..
absolute hellfire footage. I've only been graced with one western for haulage and that was D1023 and i loved it
The Hydraulics were never failures as is shown by their use on recent UK freight trains. The HSTs displaced them. GWR hybrids seem to be taking over. May the wires go west beyond Newbury: An Electric Future for the GWR!
Brilliant sights and sounds! Faved! Thanks for sharing!
The movie camera must have cost you 6 months wages? Class film
very nostalgic shots!
SOUND !
blubberblubberblubber...
diesel hydraulic masterpiece!
How come the Western's were running well in to the mid 70's, yet never had their class 52 TOPS number applied? Some classes such as the mk1 25's and 24's were withdrawn well before this carrying TOPS numbers?
Great posting. I wasn't around in the 60's and early 70's so thanks for showing us youngsters what we missed!
+quadrophenia3 There was no point in changing them as they were being withdrawn when the number changes happened. Their numbers were on plates and it was too much hassle to take them off and apply new numbers. The D before the number was painted over though.
a fantastic vid thank for posting !!!!!!!!!!!!
Excelente Sean, esto es historia ferroviaria de primera.
5*+fav.
saludos de Enric.
Bloody Good hydraulic coverage:-)))
superb footage there,ta for sharing!
Brilliant many happy memories of innocent times past
Wonderful memories. Many thanks.
STUNNING!
Magnificent! Thanks for sharing! - Mike
good all the time love them all
Superb footage mate 5* n faved
How come the westerns never received their class 52 TOPS numbers despite surviving into 1977? Most classes were remembered within weeks and by mid 1974 completed?
Brilliant clear footage by the way, I dread to think how much your recorder cost!
What was the beef with the Hydraulics? By all accounts they were efficient. BDZh Bulgaria and many other countries still use them
Isochest I think the issue was that at first they were horribly unreliable especially the Warships and the Westerns for different reasons and the class 22 was underpowered and therefore used to get thrashed to death. By the mid sixties however most of the problems were sorted and a class 52 was more than a match for a class 47. By the seventies BR decided that diesel electric was their preferred 'standard' design and all locos that were 'non standard' were to be phased out. This included the diesel hydraulics and the Deltics and many of the high revving twin engined locomotives. Why they couldn't have settled on an industry standard before attempting to replace what was a new steam fleet instead of wasting all that money on failed and out of standard designs is beyond me.
I love these old hydraulics despite their German roots but wonder if it would have been better to let the Castles and the Kings to pull the long distance passenger trains into the 1970s and make the switch to diesel with the British HSTs
wow! how clear is your shot of western pioneer at the start? your camcorder must have cost the same as a house!
195017000
merci JEAN NOEL meilleurs vœux et salutations
Wonderful!!!!!
Mytimekid
Great choice for a fav :)
Great video thank you
Thanks you, Videos very nice, ５★★★★★
brillant footage bec loved it 5/5
that's diesel 10 in Thomas and friends but where is pinchy
@thepofmeister no m8 just this :) sorry !
in my reccomended? I HATE TRAINS?! kinda awesome though :D
in my reccomended? I HATE TRAINS?!
These westerns bring back memories of when I lived next to the line at Wednesbury when steam was in the last dying days.