Riding in a Guards Van/Brake Van hauled by a class 37294 loco Embsay Bolton Abbey Steam Railway

[@cedarcam]

I have ridden in a few guards vans and found they are comparable with a pacer. There were some drivers who were not very gentle on taking up power or the brakes giving a very jolty ride tying the kettle to the stove chimney with wire to stop it going flying was something I remember seeing.

[@ThePanzer6]

Shame about the state of the class 47

[@transportinterests5371]

@@ThePanzer6 no idea what the state is right now, not been there for a while! Cheers!

[@transportinterests5371]

@@ThePanzer6 just checked and the loco is owned privately, sadly the trust needs to restore its own fleet and do not have capacity to spare for private locos.👍

[@ThePanzer6]

Was at the Diesel gala last weekend, has been moved to to embasy but slowly getting on a worst state​@@transportinterests5371

[@bingbong7316]

You need a SR Queen Mary, bogie luxury!

[@comeoutdoorswithus4406]

Is this the Severn valley railway

[@transportinterests5371]

Embsay Bolton Abbey Steam Railway, Skipton. Cheers.

[@andrewbrown6786]

A couple of thoughts on this: The Class 37 is not the best of locos for creating a smooth pull away - they require a driver who is really on their game with working loose coupled trains, not something you will get to experience too many times on any railway nowadays… Then you have the Guards Brake - surely the most unsuitable vehicle to do the job it was designed for? Too light, too short, poor quality materials (not that loco cabs were historically given much more thought) and in need of a guard who knew how to ‘work them’ to ensure the smoothest of rides - you won’t see many of those nowadays, if anywhere!

[@transportinterests5371]

I must say that this guards van was the most comfortable and luxurious one I have been in. But then, it was the only one! Somebody suggested the southern bogie style is rather better to ride on, is it the Queen Ann? I must say, I really enjoyed this trip! Thanks for watching!

[@stewartmarshall5853]

You want to try one with 25 empty mineral wagon when the driver takes of to fast from a standstill when you heard the sound of loose coupling stretching out you soon learned to hang on

[@andrewbrown6786]

@@stewartmarshall5853 oh yes - you are so right. That’s when you need a driver who knows Class 37’s 👍