 |
Log-in Register |
|||||||||||
| RAIL DATA | ||||||||||||
Articles list Profiles list
Reviews Forum Notes Links Photo Galleries Other sites Icons
Downloads 
| Title: | British Multiple Units (6+ books) |
|
| Author: | Ashley Butlin | |
| Publisher: | Coorlea Publishing | |
| Format: | Book | |
| Subject: | Multiple Units | |
| Category: | Numbers - All | |
| Spec: | A4, 48-92 pages, card covers | |
| Publication date: | 1999-2010 | |
| Summary: | This series of books combines to detail the fates of almost every multiple unit vehicle built by BR. | |
| Review: | First appearing in 1999, this series of books published by Coorlea Publishing were all written by disposals expert Ashley Butlin. Somewhat similar to his books covering the coaching stock fleet, these differ in a number of ways. Firstly, the formation histories are provided for numbered units (hence not for first-generation DMUs). The method for doing this is a little bit confusing at first. Each unit number is shown with all vehicles that were ever part of it, and you need to refer to the dates to determine what the actual formation was at any given date. It is hard to see how this format could have been simplified without using a lot more space and repetition. The second difference is that individual dates into stock (and dates of each vehicle being added to a unit) are given, along with the withdrawal and disposal dates. As with the coaching stock books, renumbering information is given (this time with dates) and separate lists detail departmental and other conversions. The first edition of Volume 1 (covering DMUs) has not yet been reviewed, nor have later books covering AC (Volume 3) and DC (Volume 4) EMUs. A Volume 5 looking at Southern Railway era units was proposed. | |
| Reviewed: | 03/10/2019 by Thomas Young (Comments made by others can appear in the notes section towards the bottom of this page) | |
| Sample pages: | (Click on any image to view full-sized in a new window)
The second edition of the DMU book appeared in 2006 and is split 50/50 between first-generation (all by then withdrawn) and second-generation units.
The section for 1st generation units sensibly shows both the original and 1983 numbers together, hence avoiding a lot of repetition.
Second-generation units are listed by unit number, with all the constituent vehicles listed.
Departmental numbers are listed separately and without dates.
Unlike other titles, this volume also re-lists preserved stock separately, with changes of location shown.
The first volume to deal with EMUs was this title covering the suburban units and published in 2000.
Unlike other titles, this volume also gives a narrative overview of the history of the types covered.
The format can seem a little arcane at first. For example, was unit 5021 a 9-EPB?!
A useful appendix lists all the individual vehicles in numerical order, with references to all the unit numbers that they were formed into.
A further appendix lists the former numbers (and last set numbers) for each coach that was rebuilt on older underframes. | |
| Notes: | No notes have been left yet. ?There may be some notes posted but which have not yet been approved. |
|
| Edits: | This item has not been edited. | |