Tube Life 1972-1977

A bit of a spoddy train-spotters post this, I’m afraid, as it’s about trains that I’ve driven on the London Underground. Some of you may be interested, and it makes a bit of a change.

My first five years were spent on the Northern Line, from ’72 to ’77. Based at Morden in Surrey.
1972 – The year I joined, the Northern Line’s trains were 1938 tube stock. The archtypical ‘Tube Train’. Painted red, they were heavy, rode well, and were fast. They were lovely to drive, but their problem was their age. In 1972, they were 34 years old, and LU decided that they had to go.
So, in 1973, we started taking delivery of brand new 1972 tube stock. These were lighter than the ‘38’s and were totally crap. They rode roughly, had rubbish brakes and were hated by most drivers. The old drivers in particular, found them hard work, as instead of a separate brake handle on the left, and control handle on the right, these were fitted with a combined control/brake handle, and it was on the left. The fact that most people are right-handed, didn’t seem to cross the mind of the designers.
Within a few years, the Piccadilly line was receiving new trains, and we were getting their old 1959 tube stock, to gradually replace the old ‘38’s.
So for some years, the Northern Line had THREE different types of train. A nightmare for maintenance staff.
The 1959’s looked like the old 38 stock, but were made from (unpainted) aluminium instead of steel. They were thus lighter, but not as fast as the 38’s, but the ride wasn’t too bad, and the brakes worked well.
As a footnote, some of the old 1938 stock trains were sold to the Isle of Wight Railway, and they are still running over there, even though they are 67 years old.

To be continued….if yer interested?????