VH-RME
B767-200

Sydney Airport
2001

1983-Built for Ansett
2001-Final service on September 10th (Syd-Melb)
2001- Offered for sale in October following Ansett collapse.
2003- Stripped and scrapped at Tullamarine

VICTORIAN A CLASS Fleet Update


The Victorian A class locomotive were rebuilt from B class units by  Clyde Engineering at Rosewater.

LOCO	BUILD #	DATE	OWNER	STATUS
A60	84-1184	1984	V/LINE	STORED, Expected to be preserved.
A62	84-1183	1984	V/LINE	STORED, Expected to be preserved.
A66	84-1186	1985	V/LINE	STORED - Emergency Locomotive.
				Expected to be preserved.
A70	84-1187	1985	V/LINE	STORED.
A71	83-1180	1984	PACIFIC NATIONAL	SCRAPPED, June 2019
A73	83-1179	1984	PACIFIC NATIONAL	SCRAPPED, January 2019
A77	83-1181	1984	PACIFIC NATIONAL	SCRAPPED, January 2019
A78	84-1185	1985	PACIFIC NATIONAL	STORED - BENDIGO
A79	84-1188	1985	PACIFIC NATIONAL	SCRAPPED, May 2019
A81	85-1189		PACIFIC NATIONAL	SCRAPPED, January 2019
A85	84-1182		PACIFIC NATIONAL	SCRAPPED, January 2019

A60 Spencer Street  17-2-1999  Bradly Coulter

A60 Spencer Street  3-6-2000  Bradly Coulter

A62 Spencer Street  17-2-1999  Bradly Coulter

A66 Spencer Street    Weston Langford

A66 Spencer Street  1988  John Hourigan

A66 - West Footscray.       Photo: Rob Alekna

B77 - Dynon Loco 1972 Mick McGinty.

A77 North Melbourne  3-3-2000  Bradly Coulter

B78 (A78) - Wodonga  6-4-1981.       Brad Coulter Senior

A78 - Geelong  18-2-1999       Bradly Coulter

A85 - Being rebuilt at Rosewater (South Australia) 25-5-1984

Brad Coulter Senior

A85 - Dynon 10-7-2004 Bradly Coulter.

This fleetlisting was a joint venture of the 'Semi Retired Foamer' 

and 'Brad Coulter Media & Vision Inc'.

BLI BLI model of Ed Millington.  Photo: Brad Peadon

BLI BLI (MORETON MILL)

It is no secret that I am more than a little obsessed with the railways that served the former Moreton Sugarmill that was located in Nambour. So bad is the obsession that I still often return to the area, to research the system, fifteen years after it was closed and ripped up.
The obsession has seen me set up the Maroochy Shire Tramways SIG website and Facebook group, both dedicated to sharing the history of the system and the latest news.
  I also like to keep up with new modelling items that would be of use in modelling the system as it was. While quite a few things are available, they do range over many different scales. These can be found on the website mentioned above.

  At this years Rosehhill Racecourse exhibition, I finally had a chance to inspect the new HOn30 BLI BLI model kit, a joint venture between Badger Bits and Lyndon's Trains. It is made to fit the chassis of a N scale British 03 class locomotive.
I have not had chance to put one together as of yet, but have seen the finished result and it looks great.
  Can only hope that sales will be good enough to warrant further Moreton locomotives, the bogie Baldwin COOLUM or, even better, the Comengs. Both types would have much use for cane (or just industrial layouts in general) modellers, not just those obsessed with Moreton Mill. :-)

Moreton Mill cane bins.

The year after the system closed, I returned to the area to get some final shots of surviving infrastructure and the track removal train.
The removal train was normally stabled at Philbrooks siding (a little north of Bli Bli cutting) when not in use. So it was on the 2nd September 2004 when I stopped by.
I took a number of detail shots of BLI BLI on the day. These shots, along with some others, are seen below.

Don't mention it.

Today, BLI BLI is know known as Lautoka #16 in Fiji.
Seen here at Navo on the 29th September 2018
Photo: Chris Stratton

Related Items Of Interest.

Other BLI BLI Related Content.
Badger Bits
Lyndon's Trains

Maroochy Shire Tramways website.

Maroochy Shire Tramways group.
BLI BLI and pals at Bli Bli (Video)

FIJI MAQERE RANGES

An Adventure

  Way, WAY, back in 2006, I spent a week in Fiji sampling much of the 2ft action that the country has to offer.
  Mid way through the trip, we decided to head across to the small little out-depot of Tavua, a fascinating location with one of the most model-able little loco shed I think I have ever seen.
  In an incredible example of great timing, they were preparing to transfer the local track car back to the Rarawai sugar mill in Ba.
  We waited a little way outside the town for the track car to come past. Thanks to John Browning, one of my companions on the trip, I was privileged to have a ride across this spectacular mountain range.

Our vehicle for the adventure.

Not impressed that we violated his territory.

Their was much evidence of regular derailments.

Tell me that this is not just begging to be a tourist railway.
Some beautiful views of the farms and coastline along this section.

To finish up, more evidence of cane lost in derailments as I neared the end of the trip.

Earlier Fiji posting on the blog HERE. Including the above mentioned Tavua shed.
More to come as it is found.

 

BLI BLI (Now Lautoka #16)
The Prototype and The Model.

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Come along and help us to help the kids most in need.

Built (Steam Loco): Phoenix Foundry of Ballarat (Victoria) 1889
Later renumbered Y109
1950s - Sold to the 'Brunswick Plaster Mill' company.
1956 - Rebuilt to the beast shown above.

Nicknamed 'The Thing'

Operated on gypsum trains from Raak Plain to Nowingi.

To Steamrail upon retirement. Taken to Ballarat East.

Later preserved at 'Millewa Pioneer Park' and cosmetically restored.

AMPOL - PAGEWOOD

PART 3

OPERATIONS

 While operations in the early days have not been easy to obtain information about, in the 90s it was common for either the Botany shunter to visit the terminal and push the tankers back to the goods yard, or for trains to operate directly out of the terminal to Clyde and beyond.

 A goods train timetable from 1968 suggests that the terminal was regularly shunted by trip trains, presumably those leaving Botany. However, this is not to say that
shunts by the Botany yard shunter did not occur, these would not appear in the timetable.
 Rollingstock on the line was limited mostly to NTAF fuel tankers for the terminal. These would have been separated by a match wagon during the steam era.

  However, on occasion, Kelloggs NGRX rice hoppers have been down there when their plant was shunted at the same time. This would leave the possibility of louver vans also being pushed down there following a Kellogg’s shunt, though we have not yet found any evidence of this.

 Botany had a shunters wagon that, again, could likely have been a regular visitor.
 Locomotives, on the other hand, have been quite varied and this is where the line comes into its own for those who like to collect locomotives more than rollingstock.
 Opening of the line was still well within the steam era and, while I am still far too young to have seen such delights, I have been told by those who were lucky enough that most common would have been standard goods locomotives of the 50 and 53 class, while 59 class would not have been unknown.
 While there has been no actual proof of it, modellers could get away with 30 class tanks, which saw occasional use as Botany shunter, as well as the 36, 38 and 60 class that were all quite common visitors out to Botany.
 The diesel era is a bit easier, with the author noting 442, 45, 48, 49 and 82 class shunting the branch at various times (see separate section for individual locomotive examples) and the reports of others stating that 44 and 73 class have also been seen out there.
 Again, while there is no actual proof of it, it is quite possible that an X200 has shunted the branch while in use as Botany shunter and also the 41 class which regularly made the journey out to Botany. Even the 81 class would be a pretty likely possibility.
 It is interesting to consider what could have been the case should the line remained opened. The 80 class moving on to trip working would have almost certainly seen their presence along the branch and later, even more interestingly, maybe Freight Australia locomotives following their move into NSW fuel train traffic.
 Of course, this is just a possibility had the AMPOL/Caltex merger not occurred, fuel traffic continued on rail and you have all your modelling license fees paid up to date.

Yellow: Former ICI branch which, while closing decades earlier, is still easier to make out when on location.

While the research continues, this three part special is complete.

Below are a few random items found during research into the terminal.
If you have any information/photos of the former AMPOL Terminal at Pagewood, I would very much love to hear from you. Hopefully we can find enough information to continue this series.

AMPOL Pagewood Part 1 - The History
AMPOL Pagewood Part 2 - The Line

Gatehouse on Moore Street.

Vehicle Loading Facility

New concrete bufferstop.

Thanks to David Xuereb, Rob Pane and the Eastgardens Library.

Botany Railway Line SIG