Howdee all, While I realise that the massive helping of 44 class photos this month has quite possibly already lead to a personal accident of epic (one of those modern day wank words) proportions, I am going to push the enveliope even further with an extra large helping of old 44 class shots from within the archive.

The quality of some may be as questionable as the mental health of many a young modern day railfan, however this will be due to eith bodgy old cameras that I could aford, or the fact I have been to lazy to use a proper scanner. Please enjoy none the less.

SIGH!!!!! Sydney Terminal was once such a great place to visit.

While I acknowledge that there is a place for people who get their jollies over Tangaras, Oscars and, god forbid, Millenium sets, the old days of loco hauled Nowra and Goulburn line trains was really where it was at.

4428 is seen here soon after arrival from Goulburn.

Can't for the life of me remember where this is, but think it be Broadmeadow, Seems 4426 has had a bit of cheap repair work done.

Once a regular in my viewfinder, the long extinct 4427 is seen here chugging her life away at Central.

4424 at Cootumundra in the days prior to this location becoming somewhat of a second home.

We were on our way home from Melbourne when we stopped for a few photos of Culcairn station. Twas with much surprise that a headlight lead to 4423 and 4465 screaming by on their northbound train.

The days were numbered for 4421 as she sat at Chullora. She was never to see the open road again.

4424 again, this time in Sydney Terminal.

4422 sits at Sims Metal on a siding that had previously seen many of her sisters, and even more of the steamers which her and the sisters replaced.

This was the end of the road for many a 44. Twas also a good place for souveniers.

4423 at Hope Street.

This was not a good road at Delec. Locomotives sitting here were not usually long for this world.

Twas no different for 4419 who went to god not much later.

4409, seen here at Hope Street (Enfield) had one last journey to make, that being the short one to Sims Metal at Mascot.

I had two favourite 44 class, these being 4406 and 4460. Both have now gone to god, and the above photo was the only time I ever saw them together. The location being the ever popular Delec turntable.

4405 leads a freight past CPH 1 and 7 at Broadmeadow. The CPH railmotors were running the last even passenger trips (railfan, not regular) to operate the former Belmont line. These only able to go to Jewels platform.

4405 at Delec depot.

4403, now preserved in Canberra (again in the original indian red due to a lack of imagination), is seen here arriving at Sydney Terminal from Goulburn.

4456 on a very wet night at Delec (Departure Roads)

4456 trails another 44 at Campsie in the late 80s.

4454 now in Red Terror at Delec locomotive depot.

4452 spending her final days at Sims Metal Mascot.

4453 did not have many more years left beforean accident took her life.

The original Indian Red livery, seen here at Delec, would be her only colour.

4450 was the last to retain the indian red livery along with the red lining and is seen here at Delec.

4451 at Broadmeadow locomotive depot.

4450 at Broadmeadow locomotive depot. She was to be scrapped as the last in the indian red livery to retain the red lining.

4450 stored at Lithgow.

4448 in her pre-Red Terror days at Central.

4446 at Delec.

44233 and 4446 on an east bound freight arriving at Bathurst.

4446 leads a train from Griffith during a brief stop at Barellan.

4445 awaits attention at Delec.

4445 and 4424 stored at Junee roundhouse and awaiting their ultimate, and sad, fate.

4453 was very, very close to the end of its career when it ran this train to Bombo with 42211.

Not long after it was seen in Chullora workshops, stripped of parts and never came out again.

4403 and and unidentified 80 class approach Moss Vale station with a limestone rake from the Berrima branch. 4403 wears a blue version of the short liver heritage scheme earlier seen on 4446.

4448 42220 are in very unfamiliar territory as they approach the Wongawilli terminus of BHP's private Illawarra coal line.

4482 shunting the long closed Manning River milk branchline at Taree.

Freight from Brisbane near Taree.

The deceptively rural scene here is actually at East Botany in Sydney. The train had just departed the port and was bound for Griffith.

4427, the train and that Kelloggs loading have all ceased to exist.

4493 4514 4482 in Taree on a Brisbane to Sydney freighter. Crews would change and soon another the typical erupting ALCo smoke and noise would see it roar our of town.

Taree was always blessed with a 44 class shunter for the yard, and the short runs to the Manning River branch (above) and the sleeper siding to the south end of town.

While theoretically this shot could be repeated, the possibility of walking into the port with 4486 is virtually non-existent. In the pre-paranoia days around Botany, these sorts of shots were taken for granted.

4473 at Cowra awaiting restoration. The work has since been completed and she now operates out of Sydney.

The noise was pure magic. 44100 and 4474 gain speed at the roar north out of Cootamundra, having stopped at the Coota West signalbox for safeworking duties.

44100 yet again, this time further north at Broadmeadow loco depot with 4480.

Only 4480 and 4483 ever wore this blue Freightrail livery.

MORE 44s COMING RIGHT UP.

~~ WHERE IS IT #378 ~~

Howdee all and welcome to the next 'Where Is It'.

For a change, I have picked a location away from the Hunter Valley region of NSW.

So I suppose you can consider that your first clue.

Now, where is it?

GUESSES:

Crookwell Line ( No- Further south)

Galong-Boorowa Line (No-Further South)

Tumbarumba line (No - Further south)

CORRECT GUESS:

~~ Hexham Balloon Loop 44s ~~

Welcome back to a month of 44s with the Semi-Retired Foamer!

44100 was a historic locomotive, not only in Australia (then the last of the largest mainline loco class in Australia), but worldwide as the last of the 'World Series' built anywhere.

Unlike the first World, which is now preserved in Spain, 100 sadly went on to be scrapped after the 1994 auction - despite efforts top save her.

4486 had just been restored and was out for her first run from Cowra (top shot) to Woodstock (above shot). The locomotive has sinced moved to Sydney, the line long since closed.

A very rare location for 4448 and 42220, seen arriving at Wongawilli on the private, then BHP owned, coal branch. Was part of a tour around the Illawarra.

Whittingham.

4401 at Hope Street (Sydney)

Heck I was a lot younger back when I took this shot of myself with 4401.

Much More 44 Action To Come.

WELCOME TO APRIL 2011

This is a month that will go down in the anals of railfan history as the 'Semi-Retired Foamer' attempts to share over 200 photos of the New South Wales 'World Series' 44 class over four weeks.

The SRF has had quite the thing for these beasts since very early in his gunzel career. As a result, several hundreds of photos have been taken, all of varying quality as I've moved from instamatics, to SLRs and now those flamin digital contraptions we have to endure today.

So join me through April as we roll through some of the collection. Many will be low in quality due to lack of experience and lack of money for anything better, but most show a part of history no longer repeatable.

Sydney Terminal used to be a great place to visit in search of loco hauled services from all directions. One of the favourites was those to and from Goulburn and Canberra.

Here we have a rather worn looking 4446 arriving with a passenger service from the former location.

For some time in the early 90s it become the custom to head down to a 'then' friendly Botany yard in search of ALCos. The Sunday evening BS3 would always have some up front, either running through from Brissie, or having exchanged to something else around Enfield.

This late night found 4486 and 4857 doing the Patrick shunt.

4446 again.

Hmmmmm, yes well 4446 was a popular loco. Here she is at Delec near the end of her working life. By now she had been painted into a heritage scheme rather similar to her original look above.

To prove I did shoot other 44s, here is class leader 4401 in the reverse livery at Central station.

Before withdrawal she would be painted in the ghastly red and white (Red Terror) before preservation saw her revert to her original livery.

Sunset over Taree.

4482 does the sleeper siding shunt at Taree on the NSW North Coast. The loco has now gone, but that nose door with the 4482 went on to be privately preserved.

4403 and 4855 rest around the long since obliterated Delec locomotive depot in Sydney.

4855 has left us, while 4403 remains in this livery and preserved.

MANY MORE 44s SHORTLY.