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With the demise of Class 9 loose coupled trains all the catch points were removed from the lines. There are still these types of points about but they are probably clamped out of use.
The last class 9 train I worked was on Christmas Week in 1991.
The job was to conduct a Donny Guard from Turners Lane at Wakefield upto Neville Hill Shed at Leeds.
The BV concerned was a Shark Ballast Brake. These rode like a nuclear explosion at owt over 20mph.
The guard had not lit van fire and it was freezing cold, it took me a year to warm me feet up again.
The best brake vans were those which had Timken Roller Bearings fitted, these were the Eastern region Brakes.
10 minutes after leaving York Yard South you could be fast asleep, with the stove a deep cherry red blaasting out the heat.
The only problems was the gaps in the floor boards where a 35 mph wind would blow up yer legs.
These were normally blocked with rolled up newspapers.
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