Oh looksie, we have reached the end of May in our April celebration to the 44 class.

Despite bypassing heaps of photos, it seems they are still showing up.

While becoming more random, they will continue until the death threats from EMD fans start to roll in.

Thank you to all those who have been visiting, the numbers of which have been impressive, I appreciate your interest in my strange little website - or is it just the 44s that currently grace it?

Saturday mornings at Cooks River, it become a ritual for all those who loved ALCo.

7SP5 was the star attraction, with its guarantee of at least three or four 80 class, at best some 44s and 45s shoved in for good measure.

Here 4496 lends assistance to a pair of her more modern 80 class counterparts.

4492, 4497 and 4872 sit around Broadmeadow awaiting their next duty.

You would be mistaken for thinking this is an old LVRF livery :-)
4495 is said to have been in for repaint but only just started when a motive power shortage saw her pulled back into traffic. Regardless of the truth, she was certainly the pride of the fleet when seen here at Goulburn.

4495 looking a bit better at Taree.

4494 in her reverse livery, carrying the blue L7 logo when seen at Delec, and without when caught at a much more accessable CTAL siding at Port Botany.

44?? 4492 heading north to Brisbane, sitting at Taree.

4491 at Delec.

4488 also at Delec.

Broadmeadow was to ALCo fans what Darlinghurst was to perverts and this day in 1991 was no exception. 3507, 44220, 4717 and 4471 sit around awaiting some sort of work.

4487 at the Chullora.

Stay tunes - more delightful 44 class just around the corner.

~~ 44 CLASS OPERATIONAL HISTORY ~~

Hi all, as the 44 class celebration reaches the end of the second month of it, original, one month celebration, we present to you these wonderful historic tid-bits brought forth by Glenn Ryan (many thanks mate) from the innermost reaches of his 44 class shrine of rememberance.
4403s last run in regular service, Canberra oil trains and Flemington Market sidings.
Oh yes, treats to cause uncontrollable excitment in even the hardest of spark gunzel.

~~ CANBERRA MODEL RAILWAY EXHIBITION ~~

2011

Getting out of the rat race that is Sydney for a day in the bush is an all to infrequent pleasure nowdays. If I am not looking after the shop, then chances are babysitting and doing the regular dirty nappy pitstop.

The trip down to Canberra for the annual model railway exhibition was an on again, off again, plan up until a few days before we departed. Even how we would go about getting there was not really decided on the day we were departing, although we did know it would be by car and that at least one shop of the RTM Bundanoon tour was to be undertaken.

Departure from Moorebank was a rather late 9am one, about 15 minutes after hearing 3642 pass through Holsworthy station on her southbound trip.

This should actually be the last shot, but I forgot to add it to the site first and, quite frankly, am to bloody lazy to get it to the bottom of the rest.

This was the trip home, we had got some 30 minutes out of Canberra before I suggested to MrX that he was on the wrong road, the Yas 16km sign helping to prove the point.

Much to my enjoyment, the final hour of daylight was spent on back roads, headed in the direction of Bungendore and in search of the long lost Feral Highway back to Goulburn.

Mittagong signalbox.

Remember signalboxes? Where once real people actually worked, where trains would be controlled and one could approach for train running information at all hours of the night.

3642 on tour to Bundanoon is seen passing through Mittagong.

NR21 AN1 NR13 on the up at Exeter.

4520 and 44211 hauling the empty Bundanoon set back to Moss Vale.

Exeter.

Alas it was time to get the ol rears in gear and head on down to Canberra, via the Big Merino for a customary bacon and egg roll, to have enough time to actually take a look around the exhibition.

Yummy ALCos.

Falling asleep at the controls :-)

The above layout was perfectly situated alongside some stairs for some terrific elevated shots.

Interesting layout, but the teapot and cups seemed a tad out of scale.

~~ 44 CLASS DEDICATION ~~

OK, while we all (well most of us do) know, the 44 class has quite a huge following, not only in Australia, but also around the world thanks to its cousins overseas.
Its no secret that the 'Semi-Retired Foamer' is obsessed by them (and their overseas cousins), but there are others suffering from the same problem.

This photo was sent in by Glenn Ryan in dedication to our mutual 44 class worshipping mate David 'Gonzo' Kirkland who is alleged to have stated that he hopes to be reincarnated as 4445. ALLEGED!!!!
It shows 4445 in her final days, awaiting scrapping at Junee. While most of her is now gone, her cab was saved and exists in northern NSW.

Heres to our good friend Gonzo.

~~ A RANDOM HELPING ~~

from the archive.

Yes I realise it is May now, but I have still many more 44 class shots that I have scanned. Thankfully I stopped scanning them a week ago, otherwise the amount here could keep us going for the rest of the year.

Still, contrary to popular opinion, you can't have to much of a good thing.

Oh the wonderful pre-Endeavour days on the south.

4486 pauses briefly at Menangle before roaring off in another cloud of thick black smoke.

A still clean 4486 at Delec.

4499 and 4485 are none to concerned about Mindaribba loop as they hurry their way north towards Brisbane.

4484 on a ballast train somewhere around Sydney.

Anyone able to identify the location?

4484 4511 climb south out of Taree.

4482 shunts 8502 at Lansdown Engineering (Goninan) near Taree.

4483 and 4447 amongst a sea of red at Delec.

4482 stabled at Moss Vale between runs to the city.

She certainly gets around, now she is shunting the Manning River branch in Taree.

4481 on a down Goulburn passenger at Strathfield.

4481 leads a train north out of Taree.

4480 shunting Taree yard.

4480 in Delec.

Changing of guard as 4482 arrives in Taree to replace 4480 on local shunting duties.

4480 has just been painted into the blue livery and awaits release from Chullora.