D1015 Western Champion Slipping at North Queensferry

D1015 Western Champion on Pathfinders Railtour from Inverness to Bristol on Sunday 21st June 2009. Running on a single engine all the power goes to the rear bogie resulting in huge wheel slip. See my other video on the second (more successful) attempt to get away.

[@optmius99]

I was thinking the same thing as you guys. It brakes your heart seeing anyone treat an locomotive like that, especially if its a beautiful vintage loco. Spinning like that causes wear and tear to both weals and rails and even transmission since this is hydraulic type. And obvious you're not gonna go anywhere spinning the wheels like that either. I didn't that in the worst case you just put a sock in it and call a helper rather than treat the poor loco like that. The wheels on this thing look so good, i think they where refurbished pretty recently, and i bet the guys in the shop treated those wheels and the loco with all the care in the world so that a crap head driver can do this with the loco. Shame ! ,

[@DermotWalrusson]

Watching the video carefully, I noticed two things. There are no sparks coming from the wheels of the front bogie and no smoke from the exhaust of the front engine. If so the poor old Western was trying to get going on one of its two engines and only half it's normal tractive effort. Either it was running on one engine or the front engine failed to throttle up.

[@TrainTrackTrav]

I can hear Jeremy Clarkson in the cab yelling "Power!! Come on, yyyyeeesss POOOOWWWEEERRR!!!"

[@DOCTORDROTT]

Poor driving, track damage and wheelsel damage

[@nigelterry9299]

The shock to the drive train when the wheels finally gripped made me wince.....

[@Reggyrail]

Wow he reallly knows how to drive Westerns. I hope someone told NR

[@andysim232]

its hard enough to get permission to run Heratige Trains on the main line without Drivers like this.

[@andybyrne50]

No respect for one of britains most loved class of locomotives !

[@kevatcrewe]

How could the driver open up to full power for such an amount of time, and not notice he wasnt moving?! Seriously, you have to be careful with old beasts like this, not drive like your driving a 66! I think the driver needs some serious re-training on how to drive a Western.

[@colinjuk]

I cant get over this!! i had my first weel slip the other day only been driving 2 weeks! you naturaly what to lower the power when it happens you can feel it and sense it! i cant get over he went to fall power!! i hope the Western was ok? i bet the track is groved there now!!!!

[@MrCagivaman]

I didn't realise there were so many Western driving experts out there. It's amazing what you can learn from a book and the claim to have intimate knowledge on the subject. My Uncle Reg Chappel was a Westbury based driver for 40 years and he drove all the Western Regions diesels and as he always told me, nothing beats experience. He managed to take me on quite a few cab rides when I was a kid in the 60's. It always looked so easy. So all you experts, get down the yard and volunteer, arseholes.

[@WhiskeyGulf71]

Oh well, as you are uncle Reg’s nephew you MUST know everything ! I hope 11 years later you are less of a moron. Also, no one is going to want to volunteer if arseholes like you are strutting around running your mouth off.

[@littleratbag1111]

This brings a whole new meaning to lighting up your tyres!

[@magicmaybach]

total driver incompetence!! probably shagged out the railhead, not to mention the tyres...wonder who copped the bill for the inevitable damage? I wouldnt let that tosser near a effing 08 in future, let alone a 52.

[@Koozar]

The bloke hanging out of the window was anxious to get a close up, it was as though he was very excited by it all...

[@gazfish]

Jeremy Clarkson school of driving, more power solves everything

[@Pullisto]

Supposedly a professional...!

[@D1037]

Nothing like watching a professional driver hard at work, and that wasn't it! Only saving grace is that the DTG (The group that owns it) were I suspect on the train, and I'm sure had a few words to exchange with the bloke up front. On the bright side, damage to the loco was probably nill. On the other hand, I bet the local P-way gaffer was pulling his hair out when the found the rail burns....

[@ShakeshaftVideographyOnline]

That slips even more than a SR Light Pacific and thats saying something!

[@mrspivvy]

@24nov67 no its a diesel hydraulic. the engine drives what's effectively a torque converter to drive the wheels

[@Tom-Lahaye]

Looks this driver has no feeling for the engine in his butt and no good hearing also, the sudden increase in revs and the locomotive gliding backwards had to be noticed. Even a bit of wheelspin can normaly be noticed by the vibrations and sound the locomotive makes and the driver should had react directly by releasing the power and aply over again.. In the clip following this one it's done right!

[@v6200man]

shocking for both the wheelset and the track - this man needs retraining at the least

[@hiyadroogs]

@55022RSG Hardly, it's a diesel hydraulic! It works through a torque converter/gearbox.

[@thisisbloody]

I agree phishplatephan, and to all of those who think this is great, maybe you'd think differently if you had to pay the repair bill.

[@deew6625]

Track damage !!!!

[@johndenbury4697]

No Traction control fitted ?

[@davidgibbings6085]

The driver should never be let to drive these awsome westerns , hope he gets the sack treating a loco this way 😡

[@northstar1950]

That should have put a nice dent in the rail as well as reprofiling the wheelsets

[@brannkouk]

its what happens when you let someone who knows absolutely zilch about hydraulics is allowed to drive them

[@milepost326]

This is comes from having drivers who are trained on Heritage Traction regarding faults and failures, but not right readily trained fully on how to drive the locomotive under "most" conditions. Im sure the driver was embarrassed over this incident whilst the DTG are disappointed, and Network Rail might be asking questions regarding all the issues involved, but that would create lots of paper workso maybe not. The driver obviously didnt set out to lose control of the loco and train.

[@mikhailr13]

Was Jeremy Clarkson driving?

[@JamesCleevely]

obviously wasnt a Bristol based DBS driver on that one then...

[@dervard94]

Feel sorry for P-Way...

[@garfstiglz3981]

The driver on this train should have his licence withdrawn. What an idiot, to increase power whilst obviously not going anywhere, no one can say he didn't know what was happening.

[@nick7076]

I hope the DTG register a formal complaint and that driver is never allowed to drive a western again. Shockingly abysmal unprofesional driving.

[@thebrummierailenthusiasts5329]

Look at the wheel on the western it’s slipping

[@Richardsrailway]

hmm.hmm.. that's a couple of grand's worth of damage to the railhead profile, not to mention its not doing any favours to the flanges on the loco

[@KBRAILVIDEOS]

Not really suprised this happened, its quite a climb onto the Forth Bridge, nice catch

[@D1037]

There was a fault on the other engine at the time.

[@mrspivvy]

@MrColin3373 I doubt this thing has a computer anywhere on it, dates from the early '60s

[@MrCagivaman]

Also, why don't you watch SHVGA other video showing the Western get away. As for my Uncle. Check out the video from Shermane on the Western leaving Westbury. He was my Uncles 2nd man and he comments that Reg was reknowned for letting 2nd men have a go for the driving experience.

[@vorlonb3]

You know I hate this video, not the person that posted it btw, it just makes me cringe on all the hard work the DTG have done to keep this beauty on song. Then this happens, cringe factor 10!

[@Yardieboss]

Chuck Norris was on the other end holding the train

[@mickd6942]

How to turn a locomotive into a lathe

[@AllianceB95]

He just keeps it @ full trottle. It looks awesome but its kind of bad for the Wheels. 5* for this great vid mate!

[@FirstGearSims]

It angers me to see incompetent drivers treating what are essentially pieces of history with this little care. He should be sacked.

[@tgk300xx4]

This won’t do any damage to the loco so don’t worry. I am more worried about that track.

[@twr12]

Er, why was only one engine running?

[@marleybutler4633]

No sand ?

[@tom201090]

how long was it before it started moving again

[@Richardsrailway]

@antsimkins , indeed!, i hear this what balfour beatty projects are currently using on the ECML!

[@07Rossyboy]

Was Jimmy Saville there on the platform with the white hair!? cleary an 8 year old school boy was driving the Western for his Jim'il Fix it badge!

[@hans2406]

A very bad driver indeed. May I call him a twit, an amateur?

[@timratnett4243]

Terrible driving , we used to start away with 1500 ton stone trains. He's causing damage to the rail head and the whole drive chain through to the wheels..

[@philiplimerick2794]

Awful display of bad driving. Treating any Loco like that is not acceptable. Be it a classic or modern traction.

[@ml66b]

Aye your right. Still think unfamiliaraity played a part but the rolling back while still wide open wasn't clever.

[@antsimkins]

And in other news, the Network Rail owned railhead grinder has been replaced...

[@Splop10]

Why am I suddenly reminded about a certain red Jaguar?

[@PlaneTrainAmbulance]

The Driver Manager in the back cab ended up walking right through the engine room (with no ear defenders) and punched the driver for being such an idiot.

[@wilfstor3078]

Either turn on the sander and hope for the best or drop the power.

[@TheLegoTrainStation]

The actual hell did he do that for?

[@24nov67]

I think i'm right in saying these engines don't have traction motors? the wheels are powered by drive shafts straight from the two 12 cylinder maybach engines. that said you would still think they would have some sort of traction control system that would detect wheel slip? i think other loco's such as the class 55 deltic had traction control?

[@stevenvater8720]

It's a diesel hydraulic...avoids drive shafts .

[@theinspector1023]

@@stevenvater8720 It's got driveshafts.

[@andysim232]

oh dear. He probly drives class 66s all week. Hes not used to having to correct wheelslip =)

[@murfmeef]

a train burnout?

[@johnoneill5661]

Two for the price of one 👍 excursion train and rail grinder all in one.

[@DOCTORDROTT]

This has to be the worst bit of driving I have ever seen in the over 4 decades I have been in the industry, damage to loco and rail head, this person should be banned from driving for ever

[@SMILEVIDEOTRAINS]

Shot in a milion. Great

[@OptimusPrime2471]

High Speed Gordon vibes from this one clearly a story for one of the diesels in the future ;)

[@jimusgrimus]

'all the power was going to the rear wheels'..........thats called traction isn't it....

[@IH6848]

total muppet of a driver, should not have been even allowed in the cab.Very unprofessional & before the trainspotter C**p comes back, yes I do drive trains with locomotives...

[@Isochest]

What the frig!? Wheelslip like that on a diesel!!!

[@nathan83699]

why was it only running on 1 single engine~?

[@voidjavelin23]

not in the mainline

[@ELHV]

Just what I thought! "POWEEEEEEEEEEER!", a lot...

[@AtomicFFProductions]

There begineth and endeth the lesson on why wheelslip + full throttle = broken nose!

[@alirobs2]

May be go for photographers. WHY DIDN'T THE DRIVER SHUT OFF IMMEDIATELY HE EXPERIENCED A WHEELSLIP. THIS IS WHAT I CALL NO DRIVER TECHNIQUE !!!!! As a driver we get instructed to shut down immediately otherwise resulting in very bad wheel burns on the rail or damage to loco wheels !!!!!!!!!!

[@7822welshsteam]

i had a ride on this from taunton to kingswear and back. managed to get front window but fat man with stupid moustach (know he's from dtg seen him since) brought his mates over and told me to move. If he tries it on the royal dutchy i'll knock him out!

[@HSTHoward]

wow!

[@magicmaybach]

Yes, and competent drivers drop back the power immediately to stop the slip and regain traction, they dont thrash fuck out of it in the vain hope of "melting" the wheels enough to weld them to the bloody rails...pig ignorant??? perhaps you should learn a bit about starting a train correctly before posting "sarky" and sadly misinformed comments.

[@jimusgrimus]

Hydraulic locos dont have amps

[@LothianTrainz]

I wonder if that was Jeremy Clarkson trying to drive....

[@PoxyMoxon97]

F*** ME! GREAT CATCH :O

[@TrainsbyM]

Amazing 😂♥️

[@gengnepal]

Train burnout !

[@hughrobertwright]

excellent, so thats how to do a burnout on a train!

[@тарас-м5в]

фотограф

[@sanyigz]

lol what a sunday driver :))

[@bonkeydollocks1879]

That's it driver just drill straight through the rail..

[@misterbracks]

pratt driver,.... talk about rail and wheel abuse

[@james426able1]

I bet the driver was just practising on how to do burnouts

[@BibtheBoulder]

I bet he drives an Audi....

[@sprason1963]

Looks like the driver needs some serious re-training on locos, period. Jeez, what an ass, can only imagine what he'd have done taking 1500ton of steel coils up Llanvihangel bank, north of Abergavenny; welded the 37's wheels to the railhead most probably.

[@ch00bz0rzz]

wow that must have be so hot

[@Jaymtb90]

Steam engines manage on six wheels and the same contact area, just shows how amazing this driver is and how fantastic diesel is.

[@shedontanks]

That's what happens when you spray the rails with WD-40

[@Manvicstart]

Of course there's only one bogie slipping the lead engine isn't running.................. Now who's the armchair expert. TAXI FOR ML66B !!!!

[@formidable38]

Fuckin drybollock junk anyway, it probably added to the value of it!

[@itfcsam]

! wow! 5*

[@тарас-м5в]

чшто то искры 🧡

[@jimusgrimus]

Mate, you ran into an 'incharger' ...........the preserved loco, particuarly diesel loco, movement is full of these types. Thats why I dont go anymore. Everyone is on an ego trip. Its trainspotting and playing trains, nothing more.....

[@mlhill2002]

The driver did it deliberatly for show---and entertainment

[@rebeltruckeruk]

That is the most appalling piece of driving I have ever seen. Get your wallet out driver...you may have a rather large bill winging its way to you.

[@stephenpowell5912]

Beautiful sounding loco ❤️Wonder what the problem was with the wheels 😒

[@Keith19563]

What a dipstick of a driver!