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How much artistic licence? (Just a bit of fun)


Chertsey

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I know I'm a sucker but I couldn't resist this jigsaw puzzle in the Oxfam shop. Well, you know, those long winter evenings... (when I should be crocheting a bedspread and making sidecloth strings).

 

I know this sort of picture's a cliche but just how (in)accurate is it? And is it a 'real' place?

 

jigsaw.jpg

 

Like I said, just for fun. If anyone else has examples of this sort of thing it would be nice to look at them too.

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Apparently, it's a painting by Barry Freeman of the Oxford canal. Details on the link below.

 

 

http://steamtrainjigsaw.blogspot.co.uk/2012/03/gibsons-and-barry-freeman.html

 

So quite a bit of artistic licence then -- because that's probably supposed to be where Rose Narrowboats are now, with the narrows and the bridge in the background.

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Apparently, it's a painting by Barry Freeman of the Oxford canal. Details on the link below.

 

 

http://steamtrainjigsaw.blogspot.co.uk/2012/03/gibsons-and-barry-freeman.html

Goodness, how do you find these things?

The box does indeed give B J Freeman as the artist.

 

Isn't is marvellous that someone has a blog dedicated to jigsaw puzzles featuring steam trains.

 

So quite a bit of artistic licence then -- because that's probably supposed to be where Rose Narrowboats are now, with the narrows and the bridge in the background.

Oh yes, so it could. Is (was) there a railway line there? I've never noticed.

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I would say it is very true to the actual location. Not sure why adam1uk thinks there is lots of artistic licence. It's one of the straightened sections of the north Oxford Canal. As others have said it's Stretton-under-Fosse (or Brinklow as we used to call it) with the narrows where Rose Narrowboats are in the background.

 

I used to cycle to this very spot regularly as a child.

 

The depiction of the train and the boats also looks in sync for the late 1930s. Remember it well. ?

 

JP

Edited by Captain Pegg
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There are two boats called Denmark on the Boat Index, neither of which remotely resembles the butty in the picture. However lots of the old butties will have been renamed or (if wooden) rotted away.

 

It's clothed up and quite low in the water, so laden, which is consistent with it being towed on a line, but in the Narrow Boat Trust I've only known the butty to be towed by its T stud on the bow, not the looby (the metal piece on top of the mast) as in the picture. The looby was used when pulling with a horse, and we use it when bow hauling the butty, typically when taking the motor and butty separately through a flight of narrow locks close together such as Farmers' Bridge. As I understand it, the advantage of the looby is that when pulling the boat from the towpath, whether using a horse or a puny human as the motive power, it's easier to keep the boat from veering in to the towpath because you're pulling upon a point that's further back than the bow. Whereas when a motor is towing the butty along the canal, that's not a consideration and it's better to pull upon a point that's lower down and further forward.

 

Also I'm not sure about the butty steerer standing out on the deck rather than in the hatch, especially on a very cold day.

 

Other than these nit-picking points, a fairly accurate depiction I'd say.

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They are not towing from the mast,rather from a steel peg in the butty hatches, using running blocks, as you would for example when "long lining", standing in that position allows the butty steerer to slip the line and thus control the snatch, preventing breakage and allow a marginal increase in "get away", to some it was a prefered method to a long snubber as long as the butty was not dragging the bottom

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The butty is being towed using a long line through running blocks along the top planks, the butty steerer controlling things, the towing line being attached to a stud inserted into the cabin top. The only time I've seen this in recent times was when Glyn Phillips and Roger Fuller took Aquarius and Ilford with a load of coal to publicise the Ashby Canal restoration project. This technique was usually used in long pounds.

 

Dave

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A very accurate painting. The butty "Denmark" was built at FMC Saltley in 1906 wieth a fore cabin. Train is correct in all its detail and you could almost take the same picture today except there is catenary over the line.

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Geeky railway fact.....

 

At this location things area bit unusual, as there were / are three tracks, rather than 2 or 4 which would be far normal.

 

In one direction there is both a slow and a fast line, whereas going the other way the slow and fast merge some distance before, and all share just the same track for some miles.

 

I have, however, no idea what the historical reason for this is. As I would expect largely balanced working in each direction, I would think that in the direction the tracks are shared it must be quite hard to get the fast trains through without them being unduly held up by the slow ones.

 

Do any of our forum signallers work in this area, I wonder?

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Geeky railway fact.....

 

At this location things area bit unusual, as there were / are three tracks, rather than 2 or 4 which would be far normal.

 

In one direction there is both a slow and a fast line, whereas going the other way the slow and fast merge some distance before, and all share just the same track for some miles.

 

I have, however, no idea what the historical reason for this is. As I would expect largely balanced working in each direction, I would think that in the direction the tracks are shared it must be quite hard to get the fast trains through without them being unduly held up by the slow ones.

 

Do any of our forum signallers work in this area, I wonder?

Bear with me Alan and I can answer in some detail. Just home from a 13 hour day in London and have a cottage pie to attend to first. I bet the forum can't wait. ?

Edited by Captain Pegg
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That stretch, is I think the stretch from just north of Rugby to just short of Tamworth. The centre track is bi- directional and has been so since the early 1980's. All part of the track rationalization scheme. Many passing loops were also taken out.

 

By taking out certain tracks like passing loops and one of four tracks where possible, the extra space provided allows the general curve radius to be eased at curves, what with that and more super elevation higher speed limits can be set.

Edited by bizzard
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I think Alan Firth painted a similar view with a pair of boats and a steam loco.

 

Not the Alan Firth painting referred to above but this is one we commissioned in 1989, with a little artistic licence:

 

post-7931-0-60666000-1476822404_thumb.jpg

 

Mr Firth told me that he had never painted 'British Waterways' boats before, and he rarely painted empty boats. Clearly there are a few errors on this painting, and I think it took Mr Firth out of his comfort zone, but it hung in pride of place in our dining room for twenty years. For the past seven years it has been 'abandoned' in my guest bedroom, just leaning against a chest of drawers. I have thought about selling it but it probably is not worth much captain.gif

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The location is known as Smeaton Lane on the railway today. That's the name of the road that passes under the canal and railway.

 

It's on the Trent Valley line (Rugby to Stafford) which is part of the West Coast Main Line. The railway is three tracked at this location and to the best of my knowledge the section between Rugby and Nuneaton never was fully four tracked. The four track sections were Rugby to Brinklow and Attleborugh to Nuneaton (and on to Tamworth) and the central section never had more than three continuous tracks. Of course the presence of the canal adjacent to the railway may have been a factor in the central section never being completed despite I believe having enabling powers.

 

At some point in the 60s or 70s (possibly with resignaliing in the mid-60s when the line was electrified) the entire section between Rugby and Nuneaton was reduced to three tracks throughout with both fast and slow lines in the up direction (toward London) but only one line in the down direction. The up fast line - which is the middle of the three tracks - was also signalled in the down direction such that any one line could be closed for maintenance and one track would still be available in each direction.

 

Subsequently the four track sections were reinstated as part of the West Coast upgrade completed in 2008. At the same time the double track section from Tamworth to Armitage was also quadrupled. That section had never had more than two tracks other than through Lichfield station.

 

One specific reason why the Brinklow to Attleborough section hasn't been four tracked is that it is used to 'cross' the down slow line from the east side of the down fast - where it sits from London to Brinklow - to the west side at Attleborough. This is required due to the different track configuration of the WCML on the Trent Valley section compared to south of Rugby and north of Stafford.

 

There is limited local passenger traffic on the Trent Valley lines and the freight trains are generally Class 4 75mph intermodal services that are not impacted by the junctions at Brinklow and Attleborough which have 75mph turnout speeds. Therefore sufficient capacity exists even with the short three track section. Should more capacity be required some form of grade separation between the down fast and down slow lines would have to be provided in order to complete the four tracking.

 

JP

 

Edited because I remembered that the Rugby to Brinklow reinstatement was part of the 2008 upgrade and the earlier works at Brinklow I referred to were to provide a loop with high speed entry and exit.

Edited by Captain Pegg
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The location is known as Smeaton Lane on the railway today. That's the name of the road that passes under the canal and railway.

 

It's on the Trent Valley line (Rugby to Stafford) which is part of the West Coast Main Line. The railway is three tracked at this location and to the best of my knowledge the section between Rugby and Nuneaton never was fully four tracked. The four track sections were Rugby to Brinklow and Attleborugh to Nuneaton (and on to Tamworth) and the central section never had more than three continuous tracks. Of course the presence of the canal adjacent to the railway may have been a factor in the central section never being completed despite I believe having enabling powers.

 

At some point in the 60s or 70s (possibly with resignaliing in the mid-60s when the line was electrified) the entire section between Rugby and Nuneaton was reduced to three tracks throughout with both fast and slow lines in the up direction (toward London) but only one line in the down direction. The up fast line - which is the middle of the three tracks - was also signalled in the down direction such that any one line could be closed for maintenance and one track would still be available in each direction.

 

Subsequently the four track sections have been reinstated - first the Rugby to Brinklow section (1990s?) and then Attleborough to Nuneaton about ten years ago when the line was again resignalled as part of the West Coast upgrade. At the same time the double track section from Tamworth to Armitage was also quadrupled. That section had never had more than two tracks other than through Lichfield station.

 

One specific reason why the Brinklow to Attleborough section hasn't been four tracked is that it is used to 'cross' the down slow line from the east side of the down fast - where it sits from London to Brinklow - to the west side at Attleborough. This is required due to the different track configuration of the WCML on the Trent Valley section compared to south of Rugby and north of Stafford.

 

There is limited local passenger traffic on the Trent Valley lines and the freight trains are generally Class 4 75mph intermodal services that are not impacted by the junctions at Brinklow and Attleborough which have 75mph turnout speeds. Therefore sufficient capacity exists even with the short three track section. Should more capacity be required some form of grade separation between the down fast and down slow lines would have to be provided in order to complete the four tracking.

 

JP

Thanks for this excellent summary.

 

I would just take exception to the statement highlighted in red. Northbound capacity IS restricted by the present lack of a slow line such that some northbound freights are routed from Rugby to Coventry before regaining the WCML at Nuneaton, thus avoiding the pinch point.

 

George ex nb Alton retired

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Thanks for this excellent summary.

 

I would just take exception to the statement highlighted in red. Northbound capacity IS restricted by the present lack of a slow line such that some northbound freights are routed from Rugby to Coventry before regaining the WCML at Nuneaton, thus avoiding the pinch point.

 

George ex nb Alton retired

Two trains in tomorrow's timetable are booked to go via Coventry. One of those is Class 6. The majority of freight traffic on the Coventry to Nuneaton line either originates from or is destined for Southampton via Didcot. The 2008 upgrade was designed to meet a defined service specification and while there are undoubtedly capacity constraints the three track section provided sufficient capacity to meet that specification. Demand has grown since.

 

JP

 

'Fraid not.

It is now signalled from one of the Signalling Control Centres, but not sure which.

I would think Rugby.

Edited by Captain Pegg
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