Lovely set of photos of the ACE- What is the significance of the two white reflectors(?)
on the front of the engine - Where was the Atlantic Coast Express name board added
to Tangmere? Are these photos on separate days- Really wonderful-
Thanks for posting-
Monty
Hi Monty. The white indicator discs were carried by Southern railway engines to indicate either the type of train or more usually the route, presumably more important to signalmen of old on the intensive suburban services they used to run. Most other regions just used them to indicate the type of train, thus the discs at either end of the front buffer beam on Tangmere in most of the pictures indicate an express passenger train. Those were shot when Tangmere was working a Bristol to Par (in Cornwall) train on the old west region route, so not replicating the ACE at the time. The vertical arrangement seen leaving Exeter Central was as carried on the ACE working between London and Exeter, and also on via a now torn up old southern route to Plymouth, however the name headboard was never carried on the final section to Plymouth since Plymouth is not on the Atlantic coast, unlike most of the other destinations. Old photographs of the section of the ACE working to and from Padstow for example sometimes show the loco carrying a nameboard on the smokebox, but other times not. Had it been depicted on the line into north Cornwall the indicator discs would have been arranged differently again. All very complicated!
So shots one to four show Tangmere on a Bristol to Par run (and back) on the Sunday, not strictly replicating the ACE (it had worked down on the Friday London to Exeter as the ACE), shot five is replicating the ACE London bound from Exeter on the Monday and Braunton is running light so carries a different headcode.
The ACE had no rival on the UK system for the complex nature of its working!
Barrie
Sydney Trains (4) by Firedogg123, on Flickr
Sydney Trains (5) by Firedogg123, on Flickr
Sydney Trains (6) by Firedogg123, on Flickr
