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Trainspotting Rules

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bearhugger

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Following on from some discussion on the thread about CrossCountry Twitter not giving out unit numbers due to security, what are your 'rules' for trainspotting?
For example:
  • You must see the number of the unit yourself.
  • You can use various 'gen' sources such as a Facebook group, Railcam.UK data, or industry websites to get the numbers of locos / units you saw but were too far away to see the actual nmbers
  • If you see the loco on a webcam that is showing live / real time you can log the number but not log numbers seen on DVDs / YouTube pre-recorded videos etc

Interested to see how others do the hobby.
 
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6Gman

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Following on from some discussion on the thread about CrossCountry Twitter not giving out unit numbers due to security, what are your 'rules' for trainspotting?
For example:
  • You must see the number of the unit yourself.
  • You can use various 'gen' sources such as a Facebook group, Railcam.UK data, or industry websites to get the numbers of locos / units you saw but were too far away to see the actual nmbers
  • If you see the loco on a webcam that is showing live / real time you can log the number but not log numbers seen on DVDs / YouTube pre-recorded videos etc

Interested to see how others do the hobby.

Personally,

b. Have to physically see it, but can confirm its identity by any reliable means.

(On units I have to see every carriage within the unit)
 

GRALISTAIR

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Dalton GA USA & Preston Lancs
Following on from some discussion on the thread about CrossCountry Twitter not giving out unit numbers due to security, what are your 'rules' for trainspotting?
For example:
  • You must see the number of the unit yourself.
  • You can use various 'gen' sources such as a Facebook group, Railcam.UK data, or industry websites to get the numbers of locos / units you saw but were too far away to see the actual nmbers
  • If you see the loco on a webcam that is showing live / real time you can log the number but not log numbers seen on DVDs / YouTube pre-recorded videos etc

Interested to see how others do the hobby.
For my first time round - cleared July 25th 1976 - I did not need to see the number myself.
For my 2nd time Round November 1978 I had to see the number myself.
For my 3rd time round I had to take a photograph of every one for proof.
 

Mills444

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19 Sep 2018
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366
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Dorset
Following on from some discussion on the thread about CrossCountry Twitter not giving out unit numbers due to security, what are your 'rules' for trainspotting?
For example:
  • If you see the loco on a webcam that is showing live / real time you can log the number but not log numbers seen on DVDs / YouTube pre-recorded videos etc
Cheating much ?
 

Yindee8191

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16 Mar 2019
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I always have to see the train - but not necessarily the unit number. I’ve ID’d a couple of Pendos based on special plaques and liveries. Webcams are cheating imo - if I haven’t even been to that part of the country, it’s bad faith for me to have spotted trains there.
 

Phil G

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So not a spotter any more but, introduction of 800s on gwr has me collecting haulage on them. So the dilemma is 2 five cars together, have you had both for haulage? After a few weeks I decided no I have to be in each unit but can record the other. What's the normal here (is any of this normal;))
 

StephenHunter

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I don't tend to log haulage myself. Just spotting. I can say I have spotted every c2c multiple unit.
 

43096

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So not a spotter any more but, introduction of 800s on gwr has me collecting haulage on them. So the dilemma is 2 five cars together, have you had both for haulage? After a few weeks I decided no I have to be in each unit but can record the other. What's the normal here (is any of this normal;))
I record both. They both powered the train.
 

rgwwfc

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12 Dec 2018
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Following on from some discussion on the thread about CrossCountry Twitter not giving out unit numbers due to security, what are your 'rules' for trainspotting?
For example:
  • You must see the number of the unit yourself.
  • You can use various 'gen' sources such as a Facebook group, Railcam.UK data, or industry websites to get the numbers of locos / units you saw but were too far away to see the actual nmbers
  • If you see the loco on a webcam that is showing live / real time you can log the number but not log numbers seen on DVDs / YouTube pre-recorded videos etc

Interested to see how others do the hobby.
have to have seen it yourself to log it but I have to say I get great satisfaction from doing detective work to find numbers I may have missed.
I remember being on a service between Sheffield and Doncaster and a light engine class 20 in green livery passed in the opposite direction. I scoured YouTube the week after for videos uploaded from the route on that day to prove that it was in fact 20 007 that I still needed for sight.
that kind of hard work has to be allowed!
 

xotGD

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It is between the individual and their conscience. There is no Spotting Police and you don't need to visit a priest to confess that you fudged a loco for sight!

What I find particularly iffy is where, for example, someone sees 2 66s at the same location and gets some gen as to which they were. However, they don't know which one was which!

There is also the reliability of the source of gen. TOPS can be wrong, people can make typos. Visual confirmation such as a photo of the given working posted on line is better.

Of course, you can end up in the situation where depending on your rules you can still need something for sight even though you've had it for haulage.
 

Peter C

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Personally, I just go with:
  • It counts if you see the engine/unit in person (not on webcams - I've seen a video relay of the train, not the train itself)
  • If I see one carriage in a multiple unit, that's the unit done for me - I can't be bothered trying to see every carriage in every unit and making a note of each one!
  • If I can't find which engine/unit worked a particular service (e.g. too far away), I'll normally ask on the TOPS thread of the Forums.
  • Photos of the units are preferred, but not required.
If it's for haulage, I'd probably say that if there are two units on one service and I ride in only one - both of the units count. I've only been recording haulage for a short while, though. I'm very much still new to it! :D

-Peter
 

The_Train

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What I find particularly iffy is where, for example, someone sees 2 66s at the same location and gets some gen as to which they were. However, they don't know which one was which!

In this case if it's reported as there only being 2 66s in the location you saw them then I don't see an issue. However, in instances where I've asked for someone to confirm the ID of a certain class of loco and they've reported back that there were multiple locos of that class in said location then I don't log any as I'd be guessing as to which it was.

My general rule is that if I've seen the loco/unit then I'll log it even if I have to do some research afterwards to find the number. Definitely don't use any cameras or videos to 'trainspot' as surely the fun of it is getting out there to see the trains through your own eyes!
 

The_Train

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Oh and in terms of haulage, I've been trained by the best of them on here so I'll happily include any units working in pairs for mileage even though I'll only physically travel in one of them. As others have said, they are both powering the train!

That said, I've stepped haulage up a notch recently and started to record the carriages I travel in (I blame reading trip reports on here haha) and once my spreadsheet database is fully operational, as I enter a carriage number into my haulage log, it will highlight said number in my unit database to indicate I've travelled in it. So I will have instances where a unit has mileage logged against it but no carriages highlighted which would indicate that I've been powered by the unit but not physically been on it - if that makes sense
 

sftfan1909

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I don't spot but haulage wise I count anything that is powering the train. I don't see the point in looking at individual carriages though.
 

87electric

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I don't spot but haulage wise I count anything that is powering the train. I don't see the point in looking at individual carriages though.
175004 is a 2 car unit but has been reformed with different carriages. It’s not in its original formation anymore. That’s why there is a point to looking at individual carriages.
 

xotGD

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OK, here's a scenario:

You're on a flight arriving into East Midlands Airport. You look out of the window and see Toton depot, with lines of locos clearly visible. Later, somebody sends you a list of what was there and not inside the shed. Do you count them all for sight?
 

sftfan1909

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175004 is a 2 car unit but has been reformed with different carriages. It’s not in its original formation anymore. That’s why there is a point to looking at individual carriages.
It's still numbered 175004 so that's what I say I travelled on. I'm not fussed if one carriage has been taken from another unit but I can see why people are.
 

The_Train

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OK, here's a scenario:

You're on a flight arriving into East Midlands Airport. You look out of the window and see Toton depot, with lines of locos clearly visible. Later, somebody sends you a list of what was there and not inside the shed. Do you count them all for sight?

Personally I wouldn't as I think it's a bit of a stretch to claim them as seen, particularly as there's no guarantee that what you see is everything that's there. The list you receive could easily have extra locos on there that aren't visible. I've driven along the A500 in Stoke a few times and whilst the trees are lacking at the moment you can clearly make out the 56/69s sat there along with any 66 that may be there but I have no clue as to their numbers and wouldn't try to ascertain which they are from a list
 
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