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171 class 08s in National Rail or industrial service, which excludes those in preservation. Ten class 09s in similar use. Thirty six of those 171 class 08s carry names.

One thing I always thought Lima diesel/electric locos had going for them was that the livery detail always precisely applied (even when the liveries were occasionally fictitious!), and the colour match against the real thing was generally good.

I can't claim that's ever been apparent from a personal perspective. The old 1970s Hornby one seemed/seems crude by comparison when both were competing products in the market, thirty years ago, though it did look sufficiently like a class 47 to keep the childhood me happy at that time.

Yeah, the old Lima class 47 tooling used in Hornby's Railroad range still stands the test of time, in my view.

Personally, I thought that the NSE livery was quite carefully tailored to suit the stock it was applied to: It seems to me that the dimensions of the blue/white/red upsweep at the cab ends of units were altered to suit the positioning of windows, particularly on the earlier variant with mid-grey...

Ah, I wasn't aware of that. Personally I'd still be quite happy to accept the existing Hornby K1 in apple green as 2005, though it does perhaps explain why Hornby haven't produced it.

As far as I'm aware, all the remaining main line railtour mark 1s are wired for electric train supply. Some (perhaps most?) are dual heat, though the BCK currently in use in the Jacobite rake, 21266, was a later built vehicle that is historically electric heat only.

For a colour palette that none but a minority will ever hear of, that doesn't seem like an issue.

So you objected to representative names not being there, and then object when they are? Sounds like you'll never be pleased. I shouldn't imagine the Cornish would find it less patronising to have their whole heritage defined by "clotted cream".

And is in fact well on it's way to being cosmetically restored at the Crewe Heritage Centre, where it currently resides on loan from Freightliner.

Yeah, it passed into preservation at the embryonic Gloucestershire-Warwickshire Railway after Vic Berry's yard closed down in the early nineties. It's moved about a bit since then, with time spent at the Dean Forest Railway, and I think is currently on loan to the Chinnor & Princes Risborough...

That's true, I forget sometimes that the surviving K1 has spent some time named while in preservation - though it seems to have also run without plates for periods of time since it was returned to black livery.

Wonderfully smooth, quiet and capable runners, those Hornby K1s. Mine has been the stalwart performer on the 'Jacobite' equivalent on my layout for the past three, soon to be four, seasons. Potentially a simple renumbering job to the preserved 62005 with yours, as well.

It's definitely been a great jumping off point for further discussion and reminisces.

Yeah, it's a pity that one is now rarer than hen's teeth in the second hand market, demanding sky high prices when it does turn up. I missed out on picking up a copy before it went out of print some years ago - well overdue a reprint.

Yeah that's the one, the 'Calder Valley' units. Rolls Royce engines, and not at all bad as far as 'bog carts' go, with a bit more 'poke' than other first-gen diesel units to cope with the Trans-pennine gradients. Reduced to 2-car power twins from their original 3-car formations by that point in...

That's certainly fortuitous timing. :)

That must have put four class 37s at Arisaig at noon when the LSL and WCRC workings crossed over, assuming the LSL service is running top and tail. Can't imagine that's happened often, or at all, over the decades, and especially not with a majority of 37/5s.

So far as I'm aware (and certainly according to the GC website), they're still operating as 5-car sets: 221142: 60392 60992 60986 60792 60492 221143: 60393 60993 60994 60793 60493

Indeed, quite a lot of them do already, usually an older class 47 (or comparable class 57) as it can provide train supply to the coaching stock. Even the rakes with a generator car included to perform that function will sometimes/often have a diesel on the rear for operational convenience and...