Nice video. I am happy to say that I was the lead sales person at GE on the class 70s in the UK, first Freightliner then the Colas units. Good to see them doing well at both railways.

@Traindriverbrian1

4 ай бұрын

Personally I love the 70. I only wish we had more of them For me it’s an excellent locomotive that can be misunderstood

@aggydaddy

4 ай бұрын

@@Traindriverbrian1 fully agree with you. The maintenance and operating teams at Freightliner just didn't support the new technology. It's a great locomotive. The Colas team were more supportive.

I’d previously been unsure of the 70’s. I’m now a convert, and the cab silence is unbelievable. And yes, I did watch it to the end.😂 Another excellent presentation.

Omg I love that startup, that engine rumble 🤩🤩🤩🤩

Learning a bunch about locos here. And confirming what I've heard about the better CAB conditions. Never would have believed it be that quiet though. I'm going to go shout rant and rave at Freightliner now about they need to buy more locos. Nothing short of 59's 60's 68's 56s 69's 92's 88's and so on. All so you can drive them and tell us about them 😁 Purely selfish I know which I'm normally not, but us train enthusiasts don't dick around when it comes to learning about trains. True love is you'll do anything.

I live in Tamworth lucky enough to see them work the Kingsbury petroleum trains & on the WCML hear them at night on the liners lovely!!

Lucky to live in Oxfordshire about 3 miles from the railway you can hear the 70,s for miles they are really distinctive especially climbing out of Oxford to Banbury with the intermodal workings from Southampton going North to Trafford park nice to see inside the cab of one

@johnwalker194

7 ай бұрын

I've just spent the summer at Nuneham viaduct working firstly on the bridge repairs and then on the gatehouse by the running rails at Culham. These things are monsters when they thunder past !

That was interesting and informative from a lay person point of view. Looks complicated but isn't. Thank you Brian.

Excellent Brian. Thank you. Do like listening to 70 hard at work

A very informative video of the fugly........ thoroughly enjoyed that one and reckon you did too as it passed half an hour for you. Keep em coming Brian.

Amazing insight

Fascinating.

POWER👍🏻

Nice one Brian! Great insights and comparisons. Thanks

Really interesting insight. Thank you

Enjoying these extended videos mate

Very interesting.

Brilliant. Thanks Brian. I did watch the whole video.

I find your videos very interesting, good one

As a locomotive systems engineer it’s always interesting to see/hear from the operators that work the machines. How does this compare to the EM2000 and/or QTron systems on a Class 59, Class 66 or Class 90?

Great video, really helpful in understanding how modern locos work. More please.

Those 70's sound well

Thank you for this informative video. I really enjoyed it.

Great tour of the loco. I found most of my curiosity satisfied. Thank you

Absolutely great footage Brian!

Now I'm away to look at my Farish cl70 model ! Great video. Cheers Euan

Great video Brian

Great video as always, very interesting and informative. Thanks Brian keep up the good work

Thank you Brain Very interesting and Enjoyable. More to Driving. The train then one thinks thanks again.

Great watch. Many thanks for sharing your experience and knowledge on the railway.

Good morning Brian. As a train enthusiast from the 70s lol 😂 watching classic BR diesels as I missed steam kettles 🙄 Slowly I’ve come to like modern traction at the young age of 66 and I’m not a shed 😀 I think the train spotting world call the 70s ugly ducklings🐥 like we called the class 47 duffs 🤣 Anyway what you’re doing showing the life of a freight train driver is fantastic as I would think anyone who isn’t a train enthusiast hasn’t got a clue on how freight moves on our railways 👍🏻 Cheers Stevie

@Traindriverbrian1

8 ай бұрын

70’s are also nicknamed fuglies I tend to call them 58’s in steroids

Very enjoyable watched it through to the end and learnt me a lot about the 70

one of my favorite modern age UK loco, ty so much for this!

thank you brian great video of the class 70 enjoyed it so much the best work horse loco

Very interesting film many thanks, I’ve always liked Classic 70.

Thank you very much for this very informative video. Best regards, Ian, Swindon.

Brian does a 66 shut it's self down like the 70 after 10 minutes

Thanks Brian, great video as always, although I did miss your location, would have thought that the wagons would have been getting loaded

Hello I live near Leeds look through the fence. At Midland road a few weeks ago they had a bit of a shunter round with the class 70s and number 19 was near the fence so I got a few photographs of it with the wheel sets missing.

Im you I love the class 70s ......I see one every morning when I catch train from stafford to Stoke at 6.30 am usually running ballast or empties back north ......Great locos

hahaha Garston yard.... spent many hours sat in there waiting to collect containers!

Great work, pinkypies 🤣👌

American and European engineering at its best thankyou mate for the vid and as we say in America high ball meaning high respects and in loco full green

Can’t believe you have to make that statement 😂 but great walk around

I first saw a Freightliner class 70 parked up in the sidings at Bristol Parkway. I did think they were rather ugly.

Awsome but on my last time in U.K ad york station tey hard to spot in freight train services did i choose wrong location ore had just bad luck in york ? was on 30-01-2024

Great video Brian! I would love if you could get a recording of a 70 starting up considering i cannot find a class 70 startup video ANYWHERE would just like to know if you have a recording or not. Edit: I say that yet not hearing later on in the video theres a startup.

Their Turkish Cousins called DE 360XX's are pretty handsome, according to those on service in BR. Have good ways Mr. Engineer. 😊

Great videos on the 70, i dont see many FL 70s through Preston maybe i'm just not there at the right time

@Traindriverbrian1

8 ай бұрын

They don’t tend to go north of Acton grange jct

@chrisnicholls8636

8 ай бұрын

@@Traindriverbrian1 pity I wanted some photos of them, where's best to catch them Brian

@ooff6351

8 ай бұрын

Tamworth Both FL and Colas.@@chrisnicholls8636

@matthewdickson7838

8 ай бұрын

A fair few 70s laid up in leeds midland road ..

Seen the hoard of these in Leeds, but never running - sadly.

"sat here for another hour" 0:23 ah yes, inefficiency at its finest

@Traindriverbrian1

8 ай бұрын

No juts no trains back to Crewe That’s the price of operating trains overnight

@Traindriverbrian1 what sort of “sand” is used? Great content on here and Tik Tok. Keep it coming

@Traindriverbrian1

8 ай бұрын

Haven’t got a clue. Silica I believe as I don’t fill it up

Great video again. You clearly love the class 70. Do you know why they smoke so much? Much more than a 66 and very black smoke. Is it a maintenance issue? Keep up the excellent work.

@chrislittle3103

8 ай бұрын

It not a maintenance issue. The engine is designed to work within a set of parameters and at low engine speeds it will slightly over fuel.

Looks like garston

Exelkent

I’m pretty sure that’s an American fire detector

Brian what happens if the 70 overheats what happens next

Can we have a 66 walk round?

On the subject of power 4L99 on Monday 9th had 3 x66 on the front of 28 wagons well loaded near Colchester. Wasn’t close enough to hear how many were powered, probably 2. Maybe just 1. Would this be to get more locos to Ipswich?

@Traindriverbrian1

8 ай бұрын

1 was powered the other 2 were just hitching a ride

@robertfleming1204

8 ай бұрын

Thank you, quite a load for the working loco. Are trains towards the docks generally lighter than those coming away from dock? Thank you for al, your insights…really interesting.

A question Brian, why were the 70's taken of off the Felixstowe intermodals.

@Traindriverbrian1

8 ай бұрын

Number of drivers that sign them. The class is so small unless you allocate them regularly drivers go out of competency. They tend to be allocated on the Southampton jobs from Trafford and Leeds

@suffolkpompey

8 ай бұрын

Thanks Brian, the reason I asked was because I live in Ipswich and I used to love seeing them on the Felixstowe branch.@@Traindriverbrian1

What's the heaviest train can a class 70 or class 66 haul do you think they could have the power to haul the queen Elizabeth occean liner

I thought secondry suspension was between loco body and bogie?

The Class 70 is not a standard US GE locomotive. The prime mover is actually German, it's a Jenbacher petrol/gas motor which was specifically modified to diesel for the 70. (The original version can be found at certain UK rubbish tips using the gas from the tip to generate electriicity). The GE GEVO power unit gives 4400 hp in the 12 cylinder version, 6000 hp in the 16 cylinder version. The class 66 (or JT42CW in EMD speak) has a 12 cylinder 710, so the closest US equivalent would have been the SD69, had it been ordered by anyone. It's worth bearing in mind that the average 6 axle freight locomotive weighs something on the high side of 180 tonnes in the US. I don't think Network Rail would be happy! Yes, I'm nit picking, I've been interested in US railroads for a very long time. I like your videos though, freight tends to be somewhat of a poor relation on the UK scene.

@Traindriverbrian1

8 ай бұрын

Now we were always told it was an identical power unit and could with the right crankshaft operate at 4400hp Guess it was just rumours and things that over time have become accepted as fact Thankoyu for the info

@beeble2003

8 ай бұрын

If we're being picky, Jenbacher were Austrian, but they were bought by GE four years before Freightliner ordered the 70s.

Its curious G&W bought GE's when they are typically a EMD shill. I wonder what happened... Also fun fact: your employer started as a farmer who made absolute bank when a railroad bought a line in his property to build a new main line.. he then bought a clapped out new york shortline.

@Traindriverbrian1

3 ай бұрын

G&W didn’t own Freightliner when the 70 was ordered. GE pitched thev70 as the 66 was over ordered and the backlog was large at the time when Freightliner needed locomotives

I am going to ask a daft question. What does put a whole in the air brake mean

@Traindriverbrian1

8 ай бұрын

It literally opens hole in the air pipe like a flap and the air can escape much faster

Im supriced you dont have incab signaling. Just the TPWS/AWS. That is mainly used for signal aspects right? But you dont have speed indicators and such in the cab or am I wrong? Cool loco nonetheless :)

@Traindriverbrian1

8 ай бұрын

No the only speed is the speedometer on the screen In cab signalling is coming slowly with the new digital signalling on the east coast

@Mackank

8 ай бұрын

@@Traindriverbrian1 Ah yes I see. Over here in Sweden we have our ATC system- Almost all lines have it now but slow and steady its being replaced with ERTMS/ETCS.

Can sand be used while stopping or slowing a heavy train in damp conditions ?

@nounoufriend1442

8 ай бұрын

More useful for a scud though (light engine) worth laying sand when coming to stop with heavy train as you got sand under your wheels for grip

I’ve heard 70s are horrible to drive off another driver. He said it feels like your going to get thrown out your seat when opened up and at high speed

@Traindriverbrian1

8 ай бұрын

In rough track that is true

Certainly a locomotive that is lacking in beauty? But on the other hand, fit for purpose! Living in the shadow of the class 66 . You have to hand it to the US they know how to build a Locomotive.

pick your pies??? huh?

To bad it was 70001 not 70007

Why are they left running for so long surely its a waste of fuel

@Traindriverbrian1

8 ай бұрын

On idle they burn very little but the 70 shuts down at 10 minute or if the buttons pressed 30 minutes The reason fro the delay is as explained if they shut down they can take a while to fire up

They are evil .. Where's the 90s lol ..

Noisy ? 😂😂😂, never start a 37 dude

FUGLI

Given me a Class 33 any time, I don't like these rubbish locos

Why buy crap American locomotives, don't,Britain make decent locomotives anymore

@Traindriverbrian1

8 ай бұрын

No Britain has never build anything even half as reliable as a class 66

@alstonofalltrades3142

Ай бұрын

@@Traindriverbrian1 The class 60 is reliable. some say not and others say they only ever failed with them once. Britain was given one more chance to build a loco from our own industry. However it had a to the same ratings as the 59 for availability and reliability was promised to meet. Which it did after some teething issues. Unfortunately... the 59 true reliability was better than what they said it would be and the 66 they said was even more better and it too still under promised and over delivered. I was only young when the 60 came out but I still hear some rubbish about it. One lad said the 69's are down liverpool docks on the biomass because "The 60s are unreliable as F*#k". One I click on the biomass paths all the time for years. I've seen just one 60 fail and one 66. all the rest go Drax and back and are sometimes a little late or early is all. Two even If a 60 breaks down on that climb out of liverpool docks then no way can a 69 carry on pushing or pulling that weight and a dead loco up out of that incline even in the dry.