Joff was working on the trains as a fireman on the footplate in 1955 on the Glascoed Workmens train. He used to drive the 55 class 45 class and 56 class trains . 57 Class being small tank trains.

He had 45mins at the start of the day to get the train ready, fill lamps (Parafin), get sand , and break up some large coal to small coal.

The carriages on the line were mostly non corridor although they did have some corridor not many though and with brown livery 2 coaches and engine would go to Ebbw Valve and 3 coaches plus engine to Brynmawr these two trains would then meet at Aberbeeg where the two engines would couple up “Bunker first to Glascoed Stack back to Aberbeeg “. They needed the two engines to get up the rise from the Royal Oak in llanhilheth to the High level line up the Swfrydd with the five coaches. Normally you would have either a 55 or 45 class first (Saddle tankers ?????) then a 57 or 37 class ( Little tank engine) followed by the five coaches

Note the firelighters at Aberbeeg sheds would light the fires in the hearths in the following manner. They would lay two sticks about 8 inches apart ( North South) then another two sticks (east West ) and so forth until you had a stack about 5 layer high this would then be stuffed with Paraffin soaked rag. About five or six of these were made and put onto the hearth and lit and slowly shoved in with a long shovel with loads of small coal around them.

Sometimes the engines would come back from Glascoed to Aberbeeg sidings and either be used for shunting or would be shutdown until the afternoon shift came in. Only on these days would he really have his bacon and egg of the shovel he still says it was a great taste.

Reported via a colleague by a former fireman