Quote:
Originally Posted by pre65
The one I saw looked like the pick up shoes were in the use position.
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Definitely not.
There's a very high chance that they will be ripped off by the ballast in the down position whilst operaing in the Anglia region where the ballast is not kept to regulated height, plus if the pantograph is raised the shoes must be raised, and if the pan is down the shoes are down. A dual mode train can't have them both operating simultaneously.
Royston to Kings Cross is overhead lines only. The only 3rd rail on the GN is on the Northern City Line down into Moorgate, but 387s are too big to fit. 313s cover that route.
You will have been able to see the shoe gear sitting up under the shoe beam, but there's DEFINITELY no 3rd rail in Hertfordshire. There's only a few inches difference between the raised and lowered shoe position, but I can assure you that the pantographs will have been doing the traction current collection.
Hope this helps, BW.