Working the Lickey Incline

Notes from the SLS Midlands Forum April 2008 on working the Lickey Incline

In steam days virtually all of the up (South West to North East) trains had to stop at Bromsgrove for a banking engine. Then as now the chief horror to be avoided was stopping - "if you stop, you stick". A modern HST can rush the Lickey but physics still plays its part and while it may hit Bromsgrove at 110 mph by the time it gets to Blackwell it's down to 88 mphDescending the Lickey with unfitted goods and mineral trains was a nightmare and about half of all trains were probably out of control by the time they reached the Bromsgrove.Heavy braking led to a blue haze from overheated brake blocks and in diesel days' fears that the red hot blocks would set fire to congealed grease and oil on the engine bogiesTwo frightening incidents were a driverless 47 taking its rake of wagons and guard's van containing a traumatised guard downhill. In steam days an Austerity ran out of control, was diverted into the platform road at Bromsgrove, where it hit the points so hard that it fell off the rails but fortunately regained them.The locos remembered from steam days as working up and down the Lickey and banking were:

• Norris 4-2-0sClass
• 9F 2-10-0s
• Stanier 8F 2-8-0s
• Austerity 2-8-0s
• Midland Compounds
• 'Jinty' 0-6-0s
• GWR 2-8-0T and 0-6-0 PTs
• Big Bertha - 0-10-0s
• Jubilees
• Royal Scots
• Black Fives
• Hughes' Crabs 2-6-0s

The Bromsgrove footplatemen preferred the GWR panniers tanks to the 'Jinties'

Acknowledgements to Stephenson Locomotive Society.

For a full report on this seminar see the 2009 SLS Centenary Book to be published next year

James Cholmeley Russell

Read the biography of James Cholmeley Russell at http://jamescholmeleyrussell.blogspot.com/, a key and controversial figure in the development and life of the North Wales Narrow Gauge Railways Company that later became the Welsh Highland Railway. The original article was published in the Welsh Highland Heritage Society Journal but new material on his life is gradually emerging.

Hornby Dublo Catalogue

Hornby Dublo Catalogue , originally uploaded by Boxbrownie3.

Introductory page from 1950s Hornby Dublo model railway catalogue showing controller, couplings and electric signals and points. Note the very non PC smoking father!

Hornby Dublo Book of Trains

Hornby Dublo Book of Trains, originally uploaded by Boxbrownie3.

Brilliant combination of the art of the photographer and the skill of the studio artist

Produced in 1959 for the launch of the Hornby Dublo 2 rail model railway range, some of it based on the old 3 rail range but many new products particularly the plastic injection moulded SD range of railway wagons

Hornby Dublo 1950s catalogue

Hornby Dublo 1950s catalogue, originally uploaded by Boxbrownie3.

The Classic 3 rail Hornby Dublo model railway multi folded catalogue leaflet. Duchess of Montrose at the head of "blood and custard" tin plate coaches about to leave the wonderful die cast Hornby Dublo station buildings. Passengers are those handpainted lead figures that are now so collectible.

Hornby Dublo Accessories

Hornby Dublo Accessories, originally uploaded by Boxbrownie3.

Do we have all these?

Hornby Dublo advertisement 1938

Hornby Dublo advertisement 1938, originally uploaded by Boxbrownie3.

Thrilling news!

Tri-ang Railways 1963 Cuneo Cover

Tri-ang Railways 1963 Cuneo Cover, originally uploaded by Boxbrownie3.

Cuneo was Tri-ang 's favourite artist for a while in the 60s. And did stuff for Gamages Toy Catalogue as well! Great picture with lots of allegorical overtones - the old and the new, the changeover, late 20th century technology versus early 20th century technology, romance versus modern technology, the triumph of man over the elements - Brunel died very shortly after the bridge opened etc...And where is Cuneos's mouse?

And who owns the original of this great picture now?

And all for a toy/model railway catalogue!

Clifton Rocks Railway - funicular

Clifton Rocks Railway - funicular, originally uploaded by Boxbrownie3.

What it used to be like - catch a tram along the Avon Gorge and then catch the Clifton Rocks Railway and have tea in the Grand Spa (now Avon Gorge Hotel)

Clifton Rocks Railway

Just added link to Clifton Rocks Railway restoration project. Richard Webster and I jokingly discussed this in the 1980s - now it might happen!

Steam Index

I've just added a new link for Steam Index which is a fantastic resource for any one interested in steam locomotive history and railways - it has bibliography, magazines, abstracts, patents, indexes, patents and biography.

All it seems by one man Kevin Jones - born at about the same time as the A4 Pacifics!

Wolverhampton Steam Shed 1967

53-23 Group of railway men, last days of steam at Wolverhampton1967, originally uploaded by Boxbrownie3.

Where are they all now? Fanatastic group of guys taken by Nick Hedges. More on Flickr at BoxBrownie 3

Fireman shovelling coal, Wolverhampton 1967

51-37 Fireman shovelling coal, W'ton 1967, originally uploaded by Boxbrownie3.

Part of a series taken by the wonderful photographer Nick Hedges of the last days of steam at Wolverhampton Shed

Swindon A Workshop

Swindon A Workshop, originally uploaded by Boxbrownie3.

Taken on a comprehensive private trip around Swindon in the 1950s

7301 and 58100 Bromsgrove Lickey Incline

7301 and 58100 Bromsgrove Lickey Incline, originally uploaded by Boxbrownie3.

A Jinty and Big Bertha!

LNER Garratt

LNER Garratt, originally uploaded by Boxbrownie3.

The Beyer Garratt that no one liked - tried as an experiment for banking on the Lickey Incline. Pannier Tanks, Jinties and the ubiquitous Riddles' 9Fs eventually won

Big Bertha 2290 when new

Big Bertha 2290 when new, originally uploaded by Boxbrownie3.

Fresh from Derby Works

Pictures of the Lickey Incline

Super power - Big Bertha as Midland Railway 2290 banks train away from Bromsgrove
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Deeley 4-4-0 2P at Blackwell
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Midland Single tops the Incline piloting a 2P in early part of the 20th century
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New Lickey Incline site

lickeyincline.co.uk is devoted to the history and heritage of railways and model trains and model railways in Britain and elsewhere but mainly the UK.. It is for investigating the history, heritage and future of Britain's railways and also seeing how they have been created in models. Lickey Incline is about the great days of steam both in Britain and abroad and the great names in model trains. If you have information or comment please get in touch. Send E.mail to (lickeyenquiries@lickeyincline.co.uk)

There is a wealth of information here at lickeyincline.co.uk concerning model railways and the great firms behind model railways such as Bassett-Lowke, Hornby, Triang and G&R Wrenn.The site features a history of model rail from the Birmingham dribbler to the heyday of model rail in the 1960s and 1970s.Great Britain has a great number of preserved railways and other historic rail sites ranging from working lines to rolling stock and locomitives in various stages of restoration and we list some UK preserved

Welcome to Lickey Incline

Why Lickey Incline? The Lickey Hills is a well known local beauty spot in the Midlands and the Lickey Incline just south of Birmingham, on the Gloucester to Birmingham line was once the scene of powerful steam engines pushing passenger and freight trains up one of the steepest railway lines in the UK . It is reputedly the steepest sustained railway incline in Britain with a climb is just over two miles, at an average gradient of 1 in 38, between Bromsgrove and Blackwell, near Barnt Green.
Who can forget the sight and sound of up to four pannier tank engines blasting a Birmingham bound train headed by a Jubilee or Stanier Class 5 up to Blackwell? The web master grew up in the 1950s and remembers hanging out of the railway coach window on a school railway club "shed bashing" trip to Birmingham and listening to those panniers whistling to each other and the train engine as they prepared to push yet another train up towards Birmingham. One of Peter Handford's original long playing records of train sounds was incidentally of Lickey Incline trains.

Particular areas of interest are the individuals involved in creating and managing the railway companies, locomotive design and the economics and politics of railway development.

There is a web site that also celebrates railway age at www.lickeyincline.co.uk