As promised, I'm now looking at the units that preceeded the MK3/PEP designs but as I think most TSW routes would be 80's onwards I've only included units in service on 1st Jan 1990. I've also added the routes they ran on since the 80s as some of you will understandably be much younger than me and won't know their history.
Literally any of these on a route would be a must-buy for me. A Southern route in NSE days would be perfection - Waterloo makes sense, with the already well modelled Clapham Junction. Could easily add in lots of options including Class 73s
I don’t know, there’s something about SR Slam Doors… Even through I’ve never seen one, be on one, and certainly been nowhere near them… Maybe it’s because they’re iconic, maybe it’s because they were the last of the Slam Door EMU’s… That being said, any Slam Door EMU would be welcome.
I know what you mean. I'm researching the history of BR traction from the sixties onwards and I've got over two dozen Southern Region EMU books to use for references purposes. The AC units and the DC units on the Midland Region have so few books dedicated them that tracking the allocation and livery histories of these units is proving incredibly difficult. For some reason the AC slam-doors never seemed to evoke the same passion. It's so bad that a friend of mine who spent his life taking photos of AC EMUs and I have talked about writing a book that's definitive history of the AC slammers. If it weren't for Hugh Longworth's excellent books on BR traction I would be in real trouble. My only grievance with Southern EMUs is their almost perpetual renumbering schemes.
Looking at my two polls, it seems a Brighton Mainline add-on pack set in 2003 with 319s,377s and 423s would probably incredibly popular with those of us who want older traction.
Yeah, the SR’s multiple unit numbering system is a bit of a head scratcher. I mean a 4CIG is a 4 coach unit with Corridor’s and is used out of Brighton. Unit 1498 here however, is a Class 421, but it’s number suggests otherwise, in-fact very few trains outside of the SR in UK did not use the full TOP’s system, another charming factor. How many!?
A newcomer to the hobby would probably wonder why only some units had names that correspond to their intended route. Brighton, Isle of White, Gatwick Express and the rather nebulus "SUB" for Suburban spring to mind. I worked on the Eastern Region so it's like learning a foreign language. Easily over 24 books/publications on Southern EMUs, from over 65 years of railway publishing. Southern Photo Album books seem to have been particularly popular (and expensive) over the last decade. I've often wondered whether Southern's heritage of having electric units is why they're so popular. Mass-produced DMUs and AC EMUs were directly replacing steam in the 60s so probably didn't have so many admirers. At the same time Southern were replacing 1930s electric units.
No REP’s/TC in list? Anyhow I voted for the CIG’s/BIG’s and VEP’s as probably the most common Southern EMU with routes ready to run on. The 310 for AC though technically think these were based on the Mark Two body design and of course the legendary 309 should be ever get The Street to Clacton and Walton.
OldVern I missed out 4TC as they were on the way out at the start of 1990 but it's a good shout, it would give the Class 33 in TSW some work at last. There was only one 4REP left and it was sat at Bournemouth stored unserviceable. I decided to miss out the motor luggage vans too. DJsnapattack Lovely unit, I've commuted on 312 706 many times. From the second batch originally for the then newly electrified Kings Cross suburban services. As for the 4 x 312s on the WCML That would have to be 312 201 or 203 as the other two 312s allocated at Bletchley only got NSE liveries when they transferred to Clacton at the end the eighties. 204 was in a hideous yellow and blue experimental West Midlands livery. WCML services were mostly the similar but slower 310s until the 317s arrived from the "Bed-Pan" line. Thus starting a rolling stock cascade that ended with the oldest units going to the LTS. Much to our disgruntlement. Even the GE gave us their older 312s and kept the newer ones they'd inherited from the WCML/GN.
Used to ride the 4cig 4cep 4beb 4vep trains for over a decade on southeastern and Southern networks. There was a preserved 3cig running on spa valley line a while back. Would like to see any of these units come to tsw.
Chose the 304 303/311/309/310/312s because they have routes in game that can be backdated to their era of operations. 750v DC Third Rail CEP BIG CIG EPBs fit ECW BML SEHS in the NSE era or 1970s. If We wanted their US equivalents these correspond to LIRR Metro-North M2s M1s ACMUs and NJ Transit Arrow II Arrow III 11kv 16.7-25hz AC pre 1984 Erie Lackawanna 3kv DC Emus SEPTA Silverliner I-IVs also at 11kv 16.7-25hz AC
TSW6 - 1970's Commuter Special. I'm on board, no PIS, no air-con or wifi, a uninhabitable smoking carriage, infrequent ticket checks, frequent derailments and trains overshooting platforms because of bad brakes. Bring it on DTG.
Loved seeing that unit down on the Lymington Branch. That and 1499 were the reason to visit there in the first place. So wished I had a better camera back then.
