Prototype for everything dept.

A nightmare to build though :$

Ian J.

There is still - just about - a "balloon loop" at Eastleigh. Some years ago the Network SouthEast Area Manager at Salisbury (I think it was he, apologies if I get this wrong) had the bright idea of a steam weekend on the old Southern Region. He borrowed the M7 tank (possibly from the Swanage Railway) and had that performing as station pilot; a main line train ran down to Exeter behind 777 Sir Lamiel, and ran back to Salisbury with 75069 in charge. Meanwhile, Taw Valley was running shuttles between Salisbury and Eastleigh, at the former the engine was turned on the Laverstock Triangle while at Eastleigh the whole train disappeared into the works in the direction of Fareham and ten minuteds later appeared from the works and joined the line from Southampton. The whole event was so popular they repeated it a couple of years later on a smaller scale, with 828 and Britannia doing the Salisbury - Easleigh bit, again using the Eastleigh works loop to turn the complete train.

A bit long winded - apologies for that - but more came to mind as I was clicking the keys; just hope it helps the discussion.

David Costigan

Great info , thanks

also at the grain terminal at Rockingham, Western Australia.

That would be Eastleigh depot, loops around the works though, not the works known locally as the DEMU as thats where the DEMUs (Hampshire units) were looked after when they first arrived in Hampshire.

Chris

Not many colleries had loops though even if most of the power stations did.

Chris

Chris

When I sent the post I felt sure that there were some collieries that do/did not have balloon loops, but where trains ran through, approaching and leaving by different routes, but I couldn't think of any last night. Maybe Gascoigne Wood if my memory serves correctly?

Selby probably did as it opened as a super pit in the 1980's.

Chris

"John Nuttall" wrote

Gas Wood didn't really and I never saw it operate that way. Trains generally accessed from Milford Junction and reversed after loading.

In theory it could have been accessed from the Selby direction, loaded and then exited through Milford Junction, but it mainly supplied the Aire Valley power stations (Eggborough and Drax) and it would have been a complicated procedure for the emptied MGRs to run via Selby.

John.

Balloons are found in southern Africa, eg Pyramid South (Pretoria, South Africa) and Bulawayo (Zimbabwe).

"John Turner" wrote

View of Gascoigne Wood colliery from the 'Selby end' here:

John.

Thanks John, it's over 20 years since I lived in the area.

There was a balloon loop just beyond the terminus of the Colac-Beech Forest line in SW Victoria, Australia. Passengers were not allowed to travel around the loop, but had to disembark onto the Beech Forest platform until the train ground its way round.

This 2' 6" gauge line was built to serve the timber industry, and was the stamping-ground of some rather neat 2-6-2+2-6-2 Beyer Garratts.

Andrew Clarke Canberra