Use of C Stock on the mainline?

[rpi]

Once again, evening all

Just been watching SB's excellent DEV and I was wondering if the use of C stock from Ealing Common to Edgware Road was a timetabled journey or just a way of getting the unit back onto its home soil without running it as empties.

I believe that C stock are not permitted east of Dagenham H/Way due to the width of the stock but can they work over all other sections?

If so would it only be in a bad stock shortage or are there other timetabled journeys to say Richmond, Ealing Bwy or Olympia?.

Obviously the train ops would LOVE to have C stock on a regular basis, eh chaps ;D

[Admin Team]

I suspect that the C Stock from Ealing Common back to Edgware Road was a train that had been taken out of service for crew refresher training at Ealing Common depot and was being returned to it's normal timetable. In these circumstances it would run 'passenger' throughout the trip. The same applies when it headed down there in the morning; it would have been passenger to Ealing Broadway and then OOS to the depot.

Yes, they can work over all the other parts of the line apart from that you quote.

The only timetabled trips are now within the normal Wimbledon <-> Edgware Road diagram. There used to be some that took in Olympia, but these disappeared a few years ago; the only exception to this is during some periods of engineering works.

Occasionally if there are severe delays they will be diverted to other destinations; personally I've taken them to both Richmond and ealing Broadway in such circumstances. It could also occur if there was a problem , for example, between Earls Court and Parsons Green and the Controller needed to get them out of the way!

Finally, I think the last time I can recall seeing C Stocks working regularly to Ealing Broadway was after the Ladbrook Grove accident when the normal Paddington Main Line services were being terminated at Ealing Broadway; they were used to augment the normal Ealing Broadway service.

[rpi]

Thanks for the explanation Dave!!

I would then presume that training could take place at all District depots with the exception of Upminster?

If say a Barking (I presume they don't work H&C?) driver required a refresher course then a train would work from ECS to Barking then Barking to xxx up the mainline or would the driver be required to go to another depot?

Sorry if that sounds a bit daft only I seem to remember a C stock being used somewhere on the Met recently so the C stock must either be very flexable or get lost easily

[Admin Team]

It wouldn't even necessarily take place in a depot!

Refresher and stock training happens quite often in Parsons Green sidings and in Triangle sidings too on occasions. 'We' also occasionally borrow a train in Hammersmith depot too.

By the Barking drivers I assume you're referring to the Barking District T/Ops? In that case if they're fully rostered at the depot then they're not C Stock qualified at all (they and the Upminster T/Ops) now have no rostered C Stock duties - it is only the 'pool' T/Ops who need to be licensed. They are sometimes required to come down to the west end for their refreshers, though I know that on occasions a District C Stock has been taken up there, and the refresher done in Barking sidings.

No idea aboout the C Stock on the Met, unless maybe it was being taken to Neasden for some reason - possibly to use the wheel lathe there.

I'm sure one of our resident C Stock stock experts will be along in the fullness of time to discuss all this further lol!!!

[Deleted]

IIRC, C stock used to regularly go to Neasden for that exact reason, as Hammersmith was not equipped with a wheel lathe. solidbond would know if Hammersmith has a wheel lathe and when it was installed.

[solidbond]

There is no wheel lathe at Hammersmith. At the moment, any wheels that need to put on a lathe are removed from the train then sent by road to REW at Acton Works. If there are a large number of wheels that need to be done, then they may shunt the units around to make a full train, and then that will be sent to Neasden to use the on-train lathe.
In years gone by, 5 C stocks were stabled at Neasden on nights. This was purely a capacity issue, as there were insufficient stabling points around the rest of the C&H lines. When the 96 stock was being introduced for the Jubilee line, the capacity at Neasden was needed for them, so alternative arrangements were made. This was mainly done by reducing the number of D stocks stabled at Barking and increasing the number of C stocks stabled there.