Milk Tank photos

[Keith1500]

I found these photo on an excellent Flickr website.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/28083135@N06/"

Quite a good collection of intersting photos. These milk tank ones caught my eye.

Vauxall. Note the pipework and also the covers are open on the tanks and a hose in place for washing?



and West Ealing



Morden with a small Hunslet Yardmaster shunter



Keith

[Richard Phillips]

Good photos, but I still don't think I've ever seen a colour photo of any of the pre-BR era milk tanks - we may never know what those colourful private-owner liveries really were!

[alan w]

These pics remind me of my days as railway fireman at Willesden M.P.D. in the early 1960's. Carlisle Milk Trains were relieved by 1A men just outside Willesden shed by the Willesden A sidings on the up goods line, frequently I have been the fireman in the 1A crew relieving probably Carlisle men. Sadly with the demise of steam traction the Loco was sometimes a Stanier Duchess or a Jubilee on a train of six or so milk tanks for U.Dairies Mitre siding at the top of north pole bank. After the train had been disposed of the same Loco would go light engine to Euston to pick up empty coaches for cleaning and servicing at stonebridge park carriage sidings, quite a demeaning task for such majestic express Locomotives.

[R Willis]

As the tanks have been unloaded presumably the hoses are for cleaning out before the remaining milk can go off!!!

There is some corrospondance in the February 'Railway Modeller' about milk train workings in the London area and also the statement that milk tanks were loaded from a valve at the bottom to avoid the milk frothing.

[Dave Noble]

Filling from the bottom to avoid frothing makes sense, but my LMS drawing shows a 4" BSP inlet on the top as well as the manhole. The bottom connections are marked as 3" milk cock.

Perhaps the inlet (that's the word used on the drawing) was piped to the bottom internally. But why 4". If a 3" connection was enough to empty the tank under gravity, you wouldn't normally use a bigger one to accept a pumped supply. So maybe the inlet was just for taking in water for washing out - who knows?

[R Willis]

I'm unable to say what each pipe did, the 'RM' letters do say something about a high pressure hot water pipe attaching to the top for a spray ball.