Vinelander

During 1983 the Vinelander went through many changes. Refurbished Orange steel cars began to appear including the BRS snack bar cars and the blue CE vans were replaced by CD vans hired from Australian National. By years end some of the consist was in V/Line colours.

In the Working Timetable the Vinelander was formed by runs 27 and 28. The standard consist of the train was CE-AZ-MRS(or MBS)-BZ-BS + sleepers, with 1 or 2 VMAP Motorail wagons and a louvre van (either a VBPY or VLPY) for parcels.

While in Melbourne the sitting portion of the set would run the 1345 service to Bendigo, arriving back at Spencer Street at 1915 where it would be reunited with the sleeping cars and motorail wagons to form that evenings Vinelander to Mildura. Departure from Spencer Street was scheduled for 9:20pm, running through Ballarat at 11:35pm and arriving the next morning in Mildura. The Up service would leave Mildura in the evening, pausing at Ballarat for 15 minutes the next day at 5:00am and arriving in Melbourne at 7.15am.

There were four ex Overland sleepers, 11, 12, 13 and 14 painted blue with stainless steel fluting, together with ex standard gauge sleeper 1VAM.

For the Vinelander service for ex Overland sleepers were repainted VR blue.

Vinelander Sleeper repainted in V/Line colours. A metal sheet had to be placed over the stainless steel fluting for the V/Line logo.

At this time the Motorail was loaded and then shunted to the front of the Mildura bound train in Melbourne. The Up services from Mildura to Melbourne always had the Motorail wagon at the rear of the train.

X31 hauling a Mildura bound Vinelander through Ballarat North. The VMAY Motorail wagon is the front of the sleeping cars.

VMAY Motorail wagon on the rear of Melbourne bound Vinelander. Two  Holdens are on the top deck, a HQ Kingswood and a VB Commodore.

At holiday times the train was often built up with extra sitting and sleeping cars. At Easter in 1983 an extra service operated to Mildura. Consist of the Vinelander and extra were:

23:35	8143	Vinelander	X35-T335	VMAY17-VMAY9-VMAY22-Sleepers (No.16-1VAM-No.12-No.13-8BS-6BZ-2MRS-7AZ-31CE
00:40		Mildura pass (extra)	X43	VMAY8-VMBX50-VMBX13-AMNX3158-Sleepers (No.4-No.1-No.2-No.3)-25BE-45BEL-60BES-19AE-CD1

In a previous post, I recorded that the Vinelander was affected by industrial action during May 1983. On the 4th May a N set used on the Vinelander for the first time. Consist was VLPY139-1BN-2BN-3ACN. On Friday 6th May Overland sleepers Chalaki, Tarwarri together with 1PCO were used in lieu of the normal sleepers. The following week the spare set consisting of 34BEa/c-1BG-Murray-4AS-5BCE were used (without sleeping cars and motorail) on Wednesday 11th, and again on Friday 13th May (with sleeping cars and motorail).

37CE was the regular guards van on the Vinelander for many years, even having Vinelander painted on the underframe. The CE van was scratchbuilt out of styrene sheet with Steam Era W car parts and Ian Lindsay Model roofs.

During May CD7 hired from ANR was regularly rostered on one of the Vinelander sets replacing the usual wooden CE van.

Hired Australian National guards van CD7 brings up the rear of a Mildura bound Vinelander. The van is BGB model.

After repainting orange and internal refurbishment 12BS was noted in service on one of the Vinelander sets on the 29th June 1983.

For the launch of V/Line, a VMAP Motorail wagon was painted orange. It was displayed at the Spencer St station on launch day, the 21st August 1983. The wagon was then used with one of the Vinelander sets.

Orange and grey locos began to appear soon after the launch of V/Line. On 16th September 1983, V/Line T350 back to back with X35 was noted hauling the Vinelander with a consist of VBPY (wagon red) - CD3-6AZ-3MBS-6BZ(orange)-12BS(orange)-N18 set (54ACN-52BRN-1BN)-wooden sleepers 4 and 5 - Vinelander sleepers 13 and 11 and Motorail (VMAP 9 and 8).

Some observations of the Vinelander during October included:
CD-AZ(blue)-MRS(blue)-BZ(orange)-BS(orange) - Up Vinelander 15/10/1983
33CE(orange)-8AZ(blue)-225BRS-2BZ(orange)-7BS(orange) Down Vinelander 30/10/1983

This was the first time that a BRS was recorded on the train, replacing either a MBS or MRS. 1VAM was repainted in V/Line colours and recoded SZ287 in October, being noted in service on the Vinelander on 30/10.

Unique orange 33CE on the rear of the Vinelander.

By this stage orange 33CE had moved to one of the Albury/Swan Hill sets, replaced on the Vinelander by a CD van.

On the layout one set is used for the both the up and down services, although I usually change a number of the cars to make the consists different, Usually I run one set all blue and gold (or almost all), the other I run as part way through the transition to orange, with one or two orange steel cars, a combination of blue and orange sleepers with orange 33CE or a CD as the guards van.

X31 leads an all blue Vinelander through Ballarat North. 

Teacup B81 leads a mixed orange and blue consist on a Mildura bound Vinelander. A Y class on Skipton - Ballarat Goods is almost at the end of its journey.

T321 leads the Vinelander past the Ballarat North Railway Workshops. The Vinelander was usually hauled by B or X,  X-T or B-T but occasionally a solo T class would be rostered for the long journey to Mildura.

Elevated view of X40 on the Vinelander from the Armstrong St Bridge.

Shortly after X40 pauses at Ballarat Station with the Vinelander. HIred AN guards vans CD7 is in front of the blue and gold sitting cars.