British Rail Network SouthEast DMU/DEMU Variety 2

[@martinnevey7258]

Aaaahh the beads of water on a diesel soaked sleeper...the smell of the rails on a hot day...got to love nostalgia

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

Yes, the pictures only convey half the experience.....

[@clarky2356]

Miss them old class 117 dmus that run on the gospel oak baking line remember going on them as a kid to barking and on to Southend never will we see them again 😢

[@Marcsharp82]

Always like the NSE livery on DMUs. Looked smart. Especially the 159s

[@markcf83]

I travelled on a Class 159 from Exeter to Waterloo back in 2009. I didn't want to get out of my seat....

[@neilcrawford8303]

Another cracking video. I made a point of travelling on the Goblin line before the old diesel DMMUs were withdrawn in favour of class 150s. The old Thumpers days were numbered, what with the 165 at Redhill on the Reading service, and seeing the 3rd rail at Godstone. To see nearly empty trains on the Goblin route then, compared to now (pre Covid19). Once again it shows that in some situations the poor passenger numbers are a reflection of the poor quality of the services and stations, and not the other way around.

[@Keithbarber]

the last days of the old "slam door" dmus was the lines nadir, and the 150s brought about massive improvements in relaibility, slowly saw timetable improvements as well and left goblin in much better shape

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

The Redhill Thumpers were due for replacement when i filmed them, the juice was on and awaiting a timetable change for the EMU service to start. The Travelcard helped with passenger numbers in London and of course the amount of people who live there now helps...millions more than the 80s, so yes the buses and trains will be busier now. Better, longer trains and a proper service completes the picture.......

[@geoffbarry9540]

Ooh! And running from the Windsor side at the Junction!

[@chris-io1ki]

Another piece of heritage. Gret video mate. @1.30 notice the 115 running as a pair of DMBS vehicles. Weird,the DMUs at Woodgrange Park were a mix of Marylebone and Reading sets? Great Thumper thrash at the end. Thanks for another good upload

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

The Barking-Gospel Oak line got all the cast offs....It settled down for a bit with ex OOC class 117 DMUs along with the odd bubble car in the early 1990s. The Marylebone sets didn't last too long before they were replaced by 117s. But i have seen/videod lots of quirky DMUs on this line......

[@AndreiTupolev]

The Class 117s looked very smart when freshly painted. Great capture of sound from the DEMUs on the Redhill - Tonbridge line at the end, though they were looking very tired by then. Still, some lasted long enough to be painted in Connex livery didn't they.

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

Yes, the Thumpers survived quite well. But then again they had English Electric kit so were well built and fairly reliable.....

[@149jimbo]

Great to see Woodgrange Park as it was when I worked there. Thank you for posting

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

Were you in the box or the booking office? The box was manned continious but the BO was sporadic in the early 90s i seem to recall....

[@149jimbo]

@@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus I was in the box. I was a relief man so I used to go up the T&H as far as Harringey Park Jcn

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

@@149jimbo A mate of my Dad's was a relief signalman on the LTS, didn't get on too well in Upminster IECC and ended up at Gospel Oak, Lauren his name was.....

[@149jimbo]

@@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus I don't recall a Lauren, sorry.

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

@@149jimbo No worries...Have you seen thsi upload of mine taken at Woodgrange Park? Plenty of heritage traction back then....kzbin.info/www/bejne/pXmreoBoZrekeKs

[@trainrover]

Nice-looking station and all to end on..its ROW there looks broader than usual. 🍸

[@jamesfrench7299]

Those first ones are like Leyland Leopards or Worldmasters on rails. I only recently saw a driver instruction film on trains with this traction from the 1950s. Those "thumpers" are something else. They sound like they have a giant lumpy four cylinder running purely on ultra low revving torque! So glad I watched this one. I liked the covered stairways on the platforms.

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

The DMUs were like a semi automatic bus and with similar engines (Leylands & AECs)...The thumpers are more like diesel locomotives, a big lump in an engine bay producing electricity to drive traction motors...great trains all of them....

[@jamesfrench7299]

I'd like to have a ride in those DMUs and I was thinking along those lines (excuse pun!) RE the thumpers. You just confirmed it.

[@roberthill6216]

@@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus I believe the thumpers had the same engine as a 73. A 6 cylinder English Electric diesel prime mover.

[@cedriclynch]

The "thumpers" have the English Electric 4SRKT engine, four cylinders, turbocharged, 600 horsepower at 850rpm. The engine runs with practically no vibration, it is very smooth. These trains were expected to last about 10 years but some of them ran for 45 years and were still going well when they were withdrawn in the early 2000s.

[@warweezil2802]

Happy memories of Western region units running the Swansea to Pembroke Dock service in the late 60s/early 70s. Not sure of the class but some had curtains and (sadly never seen open) buffet facilities. Guess it was at the start of foreign holidays because as the years went by the long formations that only ran on Saturdays grew shorter and eventually ended up as a 2 car service as places like Tenby grew quieter.

[@markcf83]

Wouldn't have been the class 117 units as they were at Bristol and Reading. Probably class 120's....

[@warweezil2802]

Mark O'Neill I would expect they were out of Canton Depot, probably stables at Swansea, we had some mixed units over the years.. I seem to recall some had the gauges running up the windscreen pillar... others had them set in the drivers desk. In later years we had some with no curtains and lower seat backs. I’d rather they were still here than the single car Pacer we often have to endure. They should pay US for riding on them

[@markcf83]

@@warweezil2802 thankfully they're going this year. I've got those bloody Pacer units on the Valley Lines to travel on,though the class 150 units are infinitely more preferable....

[@warweezil2802]

Mark O'Neill I’ve been very disappointed that TFW didn’t lease some DTrain units for services west of Swansea. I worked on them as a guard on the DIstrict Line, they ride quite well and should be miles better than the bus bodge they keep inflicting on us here on the Pembroke Dock Line.

[@markcf83]

@@warweezil2802 I believe they are getting some for the Wrexham to Bidston line.

[@geoffbarry9540]

Wow! At 6.45, that 207 on the Kenny Belle has got to be a rarity?

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

They used the Thumpers on a peak hours only Kenny O to Clapham service that had been the only passenger service for years (even the District Line only ran when exhibitions were on at Olympia Hall) until Cross Country Inter-City workings were introduced..

[@EM-yk1dw]

Lovely Soi. Anymore DEMU footage please?

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

Yes, there will be more uploaded over time from 1986 onwards......

[@djcb4190]

I think that was about enough!

[@geoffbarry9540]

Were the Thumpers at Godstone filmed before the third rail was turned on, or were they going the full journey to/from Reading?

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

I think the juice was on by this point although the electric service hadn't yet started. The Thumpers were on Redhill workings only, it had been quite a few years since the Reading based DMU service had been swapped from Tonbridge to Gatwick....

[@theimperialist2686]

Nice video Soi.

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

Thank you....plenty more to come......

[@tomhami]

Great video! Were the first two diesel mechanical? Sound very much like a routemaster, assuming AEC or Leyland powered?

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

Yes, they were like buses, semi-auto. And Leyland (and BUT one of their subsidiaries) with AEC powered various DMUs over the years.....

[@djpeekay25]

Didn’t realise DMU ran through Olympia. What route were they working?

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

NSE introduced a Willesden Junction-Clapham Junction service. It was DMU worked until the Olympia to Willesden section was electrified when class 313s took over.

[@Ashfaq1999]

Great 😊

[@MKTTransportVideos]

Nice power twin at 1.30!

[@tonytigerstrains]

115s. Leyland Albion engines.

[@DKS225]

Love those Thumpers.

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

You can't beat English Electric thrash!.....

[@DKS225]

@@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus No you can't and that's what i like about them.

[@MKTTransportVideos]

What was the 207 at Kensington doing?

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

That was the Kenny Belle service. A peak hours only working to & from Clapham Junction, originally laid on i believe for post office workers back in the day when Olympia hadn't got a train service other than the District for exhibitions.....

[@GATrains321]

I hope you get to 6k subs soon, keep it up

[@GATrains321]

Congrats for 6k!!

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

Thank you....it's a good achievement for only a couple of years of uploading.....