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Engineering work experience

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201bhoy

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Just back from a great day at York Road depot getting work experience for civil and mechanical engineering. Brilliant experience, got to underneath the enterprise and CAF coaches into the inspection pit and maintenance the De Dietrich bogies! I never knew how big the site really was, or how big a scale they have to do things to! On the downside, I saw the Gatwick DVT still sitting in the yard, probably never to be used :(

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It's a serious issue. Where I worked, there weren't many people left with a full set of digits.

 

I chap I worked with was using a pendant crane to lower a couple of tons onto a base, but it needed an internal pipe connecting when it was about two inches from contact. He was doing this when he managed to drop the thing a tiny bit too far, trapping his hand. The shock of this made him let go of the pendant. He knew that, if he didn't catch it on the first swing back, then he would not be able to reach it on subsequent, shorter swings. He had the presence of mind to hit it away from him on the first swing, so that the swing was bigger to give him a better chance. He did then manage to catch it on the second return swing. If he hadn't then, because he was well out of sight (and hearing) of anybody else, he would have been stuck there until somebody spotted that he hadn't appeared for his tea....

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now you are bulshitting me! you cant leave this thread without giving more info on same please...

 

I can't find any pictures of the cases anywhere - they were a rivetted and framed aluminium case with a suspension system that was supposed to cushion the impact if it was dropped from 75 feet.

 

The white patch here is the remains of the concrete pad that we dropped them on.

 

I have had to inform MI5 that you are in possession of this information....

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This is a later version.

 

spearfish.jpg

 

Ours was a fully enclosed box that protected from a fall in any direction - I wouldn't want to drop one of them too far, if it rolls over during the fall, it could get exciting...

 

It doesn't matter too much now, though, they only have to transport them up the motorway, I suppose. The old ones were intended for worldwide replenishment.

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Excellent - how long are you there?

 

There either tomorrow afternoon or the whole of Friday. One of those two days I'm going to a construction site with my uncle who's a civil engineer, either Portadown station, Coleraine station or the Derry Line track relaying!

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I am very lucky! Mind you you could possibly get into Inchicore if you're lucky with a wee bit of help from someone, which is even more impressive!

 

I've been to Connolly yard with my uncle before which was excellent

Even passing inchicore I'd almost piss myself with the excitement of seeing the few remaining locos and rolling stock:ROFL:

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I've been to Connolly yard with my uncle before which was excellent

Even passing inchicore I'd almost piss myself with the excitement of seeing the few remaining locos and rolling stock:ROFL:

 

Same!!!! But I'd say if you asked nicely and phoned ahead you could get a bit of tour about the place :)

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I am very lucky! Mind you you could possibly get into Inchicore if you're lucky with a wee bit of help from someone, which is even more impressive!
Same!!!! But I'd say if you asked nicely and phoned ahead you could get a bit of tour about the place :)

 

Not a chance... you won't get past the gate unless you're an employee or a member of the RPSI there specifically to work on their stock.

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Sounds like you have had a ball and a great time on your work experience with NIR.I also had my weeks work experience with NIR way back in 1978,although the only thing available was in the Red Star parcels office at Belfast Central.It was brilliant with great craic with the guys and free rail travel from Adelaide to Central.I got a guided tour of Central,which was only 2 years old then,but the highlight was a cab ride on the Hunslet, which had just come in with the Enterprise from Dublin,when it made its way round to the servicing depot beside the original Queens Quay station.I can assure you,your memories of the time you have just had will live long in your memory,I can remember my time at Central as if it was yesterday :)

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Well, I never got a cab ride! I was just thinking about your layout when i was looking at pictures of Adelaide's old freight yard, it's a real shame its gone ;(

 

It is a shame about Adelaide freight yard,sign of the times unfortunately.When I was growing up,before the freight yard was built in the early 70s,the area was known as the bog meadows and it still had some old wagons kicking about from when it was home to the GNR engine sheds.A bit ironic that it is now back to a similar role,50 years later.

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It is a shame about Adelaide freight yard,sign of the times unfortunately.When I was growing up,before the freight yard was built in the early 70s,the area was known as the bog meadows and it still had some old wagons kicking about from when it was home to the GNR engine sheds.A bit ironic that it is now back to a similar role,50 years later.

 

So you remember it being built! Was the crane built later? I'm also just wondering if you've been over in Belfast in the last two years or so? Because the crane is gone, and so are any signs of the old freight yard! On the site is now a new dmu servicing depot! Not quite the same, although at least NIR manged to keep the site!

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So you remember it being built! Was the crane built later? I'm also just wondering if you've been over in Belfast in the last two years or so? Because the crane is gone, and so are any signs of the old freight yard! On the site is now a new dmu servicing depot! Not quite the same, although at least NIR manged to keep the site!

 

The original Adelaide freight yard was built to replace the old freight yard at Grosvenor Road,which was beside the old Great Victoria Street station.This was around 73/74 and the freight was still mostly made up of loose coupled wagons.The crane only arrived when CIE moved away from this type of freight to the then more modern container traffic.I would need to check my records for the date it arrived.

I was back home last May visiting my mother and popped down to Adelaide,I hardly recognized the place.

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That site is actually only a fraction of what the GNR had. The whole area around Apollo Road behind it was also railway land, as was more of the land up towards Lislea Drive.

 

Thats right jhb,I dont remember the GNR works,too young,been wanting to say that one for ages,but I remember the whole area being the bog meadows which stretched from Lislea Drive area to near enough the Park centre.I dont know how much of that was railway land though.Used to cross the lines to play in the bog meadows when I was a youngster,but dont tell my mother!!

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