Re: [VIC][NSW] NSWRTM charter Melb - Tamworth

[James Brook <ajmbrook@ozemail.com.au>]

Michael Kurkowski wrote:

> Firstly, re the failed/working locos. I believe that 4490 failed in NSW
> somewhere and got dropped off the consist (hehehe - Alco). With a 42 and a
> 442 together, it's very easy to think that the 42 is doing all the work
> because it would drown out the sound of any other loco! Having chased a
> train from Geelong to Ballarat just over a month ago, I can confirm, the
> train having a G+G+S+X in the consist, all you could hear was the S doing
> all the work, and the huge clouds of grey smoke to boot. It made me wonder
> if the G's were doing any of the work at all :-)

There were some other people photographing the train at Kilmore East and they
knew one of the crew. When they rang his mobile to find out where the train
was, he said they were passing Broadford with only 4201 powering. When it
passed us at Kilmore East there was no smoke, heat haze or any other sign that
the loco was actually working. When I photographed the Southern Aurora tour in
November there was a heat haze and a little bit of smoke coming from the top
of 44211 and 4490. It would seem a bit odd to only have 4201 powering over the
great dividing range if there wasn't a problem with 44211. Although it could
have all been a premature April fools joke! :-)

> Secondly, with all the recent discussions of headboards, why do I fail to
> see a headboard on all the NSWRTM trains? And again, why are the NSWRTM
> still in existance if they are deprived of headboards? This isn't even a
> railfan special! The only advertising on this train from what I saw were
> the white decals on each side of the first car with "COUNTRY MUSIC TRAIN"
> or something like that. Steamrail management take note...

Its the same with the SRHC. They don't use headboards but they are still in
existance. The white "Country Music Train" decals weren't on the charter train
this morning. They must have added them when it arrived in Melbourne. It was
good to see a special train without any headboards or advertising, its
extremely rare these days! On another note, Steamrail's diesels didn't have
any headboards until August 1998 when a magnet appeared on the side of T395
during the Kulwin tour.


--
- James Brook -

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