Not a train, it is in fact a Class 25 diesel locomotive…
Thanks, I knew somebody would know. 🙂 You are spot-on with the location, and yes, it is a lovely route.
As I alluded to in my previous post,the unit is FILLED with oleo,from memory..the chap who designed the oleo/pneumatic shock absorber was italian.Oleo is italian/latinish for OIL .Not I think the company name.
I hadn’t actually made the connection with the Italian / Latin for oil, and you could well be right about the nationality of the designer. OLEO certainly is a company name though, and I’m fairly sure it was the company name in the 1930’s when they started designing aircraft undercarriage dampers. Surprisingly they are still going, in Coventry, but don’t do aircraft work now.
http://www.oleo.co.uk/
Anyway you score good points for the original aviation connection. 🙂
My comment about ‘Tommy Cookers’… I think the German tank crews may have used this nickname for our tanks because they used high octane petrol and ‘brewed up’ spectacularly.Good tanks would use diesel (GAZOLEO in latinish) which of course has a much higher flash point.
The fire risk of petrol in tank engines is debateable; British, American and (contrary to popular myth) German tanks almost all used petrol engines (of various octane ratings) while Russian, Italian and Japanese often used diesel. While you’re correct about the flash point issue current thinking is that the easy ‘brewing-up’ in the Sherman at least, was caused by ignition of the ammunition. Just to confuse the issue there were Sherman tanks fitted with diesel engines.
I’ve heard that Sherman tanks were referred to as ‘Ronsons’ by their crews because according to the advertising for that well known brand of cigarette lighter – ‘they light first time, every time’ – gallows humour par excellence!
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