March News Part 1

London North Eastern Railway 1950 Brake Corridor Third E1866 (GOLD)

A further two window frames have been cleaned down and lacquered.

London North Eastern Railway 1938 Brake Third Open E16631E (GOLD)

No progress to report.

British Railways 1961 Brake First Open (Kitchen) M14021 (GOLD)

Bodyside metalwork cleaning has continued with a further section completed.

British Railways 1958 Brake Corridor Second M35148 (SILVER)

The lining out of the carriage has been completed this week with the waist height lining being applied following the vehicle's move from the staging area back to ground level.

The new found access has also allowed a great start to be made cleaning down and repainting the visible areas of the underframe. The seaward side has been the focus so far with the solebar cleaned and undercoated and lots of battery box and electrical cupboard lids cleaned down and rust treated ready for further paint.

British Railways 1957 Class 101 Railcar Driving Trailer Composite Lavatory E56062 (SILVER)

As per last wee, the focus has remained on hanging the drivers door and prepping the bodysides for paint. The door is now complete from a setting up point of view and now opens and shuts correctly. Attention has now turned to the weather capping strips and the surrounding wooden jambs to compliment the door itself.

The vehicle's relocation into the staging temporarily has allowed better access to undertake sanding and filling to the upper areas which is progressing very well. The windows apertures on the landward side are also receiving much attention to achieve a better fit than last time.

British Railways 1954 13 Ton Pipe Open B740918

Limited work has restarted on this project, with the Holt end filled, rubbed down and given a first coat of brown, on one of the few dry days we have had recently!

British Railways (GWR Design) 1958 "Fruit D" W92097W (SILVER)

No progress to report.

Maintenance

Exams continue, with a major breakthrough to some of our vacuum brake issues in the form of BCK(D) E21103 passing its leakage test after much investigation. New piston seals in the vacuum cylinders have cured the leaks on the vehicle, so all being well further seals will work successfully unlike the previous "bad batch" we were working with.

February News Part 4

London North Eastern Railway 1950 Brake Corridor Third E1866 (GOLD)

No progress to report.

London North Eastern Railway 1938 Brake Third Open E16631E (GOLD)

The contractor visited Weybourne this week with many parts exchanged, both leftovers from the restoration coming our way and newly prepared parts going the other way to be fitted to 16631.

British Railways 1961 Brake First Open (Kitchen) M14021 (GOLD)

Cleaning down of the exterior paintwork back to bare metal has started on the landward side, with long way to go!

British Railways 1958 Brake Corridor Second M35148 (SILVER)

The repaint has now seen the upper lining applied to both sides along with the wheelchair symbols to the accessible area doors.

Also on the exterior, the Holt end corridor end hood has now been fully fitted and the end sliding doors have both been painted back in their original brown colour.

Internally has been steady, with further assembly of the Holt end vestibule ongoing. The toilet compartment is now finished after a final day was spent varnishing and cleaning in there.

British Railways 1957 Class 101 Railcar Driving Trailer Composite Lavatory E56062 (SILVER)

The paint preparation has continued on both sides of the vehicle, particularly towards the rear which is the most advanced end.

The drivers door is now fully repaired and is now in the process of being hung back onto the vehicle.

British Railways (GWR Design) 1958 "Fruit D" W92097W (SILVER)

Timbers continue to be replaced and the Holt end is now complete and in primer.

Maintenance

TSO 4641 has see some attention this week before it returns to service in the Spring. Three unstable door locks/catches have been re-secured properly which required quite a lot of stripping down. A saloon light which had failed is also being investigated.

February News Part 3

London North Eastern Railway 1950 Brake Corridor Third E1866 (GOLD)

No progress to report.

London North Eastern Railway 1938 Brake Third Open E16631E (GOLD)

Soon the contractor that is making so much good progress on 16631 in Derbyshire will be visiting HQ back at the NNR, so this week has been dedicated to gathering an preparing many parts ready to undertake an exchange. There was however still time o progress the handbrake wheel which is now built up to black gloss.

British Railways 1961 Brake First Open (Kitchen) M14021 (GOLD)

The bodyside paint cleaning has now reached the corner on the seaward side, which marks the official half way point. There are a few small areas still on the seaward side which were too high to reach on our smaller set of steps, but this can be finished off later once the coach is moved to an area where we can get access with the wider and taller steps. As part of cleaning to the end, the toilet window was finally removed from the bodyside. This window was left behind when we stripped all of the others out, as the toilet at that time still had residual asbestos in it, limiting access.

British Railways 1958 Brake Corridor Second M35148 (SILVER)

The painting work is now complete, with two coats of maroon applied to both sides. Lining will commence next week. The corridor connection rain hood has been fitted to the Sheringham end, with the Holt end equivalent now in progress.

On the interior, all of the seat bases have been rotated around, so that the most worn positions by the windows are now facing the corridor to even out the wear. At the same time, the upholstered side cards and armrests have all been checked and re-secured where necessary.

The Holt end vestibule continues to be a major focus. Ceiling panels have been adjusted to fit and most of the veneered wall panels are now back in place.

British Railways 1957 Class 101 Railcar Driving Trailer Composite Lavatory E56062 (SILVER)

This week a major milestone has been reached in the form of all of the welding having been completed along the landward side. As expected, much less was required compared to the earlier side.

Focus has now turned to the filling and paintwork preparation. The landward side has suffered much sun damage so despite the lack of welding there will be much required in terms of sanding and filling to get a sensible finish on this side. However we are now dedicating significant resource to the task so already some large areas of bodyside are starting to look good.

British Railways (GWR Design) 1958 "Fruit D" W92097W (SILVER)

No progress to report.

Maintenance 

The failed generator for the Gresley Buffet car (9128) has now been repaired and tested successfully, and will now await the coach's arrival at Weybourne to be fitted back into place.

A vacuum cylinder change has been made on dining car (FO) 3116 whilst it is with us at Weybourne, as part of the preparations for the new season.

Examinations and leak testing continue at Sheringham, with a four coach train prepared for Half Term week running.

February News Part 2

London North Eastern Railway 1950 Brake Corridor Third E1866 (GOLD)

No progress to report.

London North Eastern Railway 1938 Brake Third Open E16631E (GOLD)

Sadly after such an impressive pictorial update last week we cannot match it two weeks in a row! At Weybourne an LNER pattern handbrake wheel has been extracted, cleaned down and primed ready for reuse in the BTO when it returns, as its original was missing when the vehicle was purchased.

British Railways 1961 Brake First Open (Kitchen) M14021 (GOLD)

A further six feet (or so) of bodyside has been cleaned back to bare metal, a task which is getting close to reaching the half way point.

British Railways 1958 Brake Corridor Second M35148 (SILVER)

Painting is getting close to completion with the landward side now brought to the concluding stage of two coats of maroon gloss. Next week should see the seaward side, which has currently only had one coat of gloss, follow. The mechanism for the passenger communication apparatus has also been secured properly to the Holt end of the coach and at the Sheringham end, the rain hood which goes atop the corridor connection has almost been refitted.

On the interior, the door securing chains for the accessible area have been fitted to the relevant doors which was one of the final jobs to complete in this area. Thorough cleaning work to the toilet has also been completed with just some minor revarnishing to be done to finish off. The Holt end vestibule is also doping well, with the new ceiling panels now all in place and most of the varnished wall paneling refitted. The sliding door and its mechanism should be next.

British Railways 1957 Class 101 Railcar Driving Trailer Composite Lavatory E56062 (SILVER)

Further bodywork is being progressed. The third and final door to be rebuilt (the drivers door) has been a major focus this week with the corroded steel pillar being remade as required. Some areas of surrounding skin have also been chopped out and patched with new steel, which finishes all the welding work to the seaward side, an important milestone, especially so given that this side was far worse than the landward.

With our new member of staff getting into his stride, we have been able to double up the steelwork effort on this vehicle, with him starting a new front at the rear of the vehicle on the landward side. This week windows have been stripped out and the rear saloon investigated of all suspected areas and a good start made on those repairs. One new window bottom pressing is in the process of being fitted, and two smaller repairs done to the other windows in this saloon that are only corroded in very localised areas. A major area has been above the rearmost door, which was in bad order behind the gutter, but remarkably the doorway below and the door itself remain in good order so need no disturbance.

British Railways (GWR Design) 1958 "Fruit D" W92097W (SILVER)

No progress to report.

Workshop

The "drivers box" for the 7F steam locomotive pictured last week has been painted, completed and fitted back on the engine.

Maintenance

Vacuum leakage has been reduced a fair bit on TSO 4958, but a defective seal on one of the vacuum cylinders has been identified as the main remaining offender. None of our seals in stock are of the correct size (a quality control issue we seek to address with the supplier) so it will have to be investigated further at a later date, so for now we will seek to swap 4958 (and sister 4843) with TSO 4236 and BCK 21103 for the latter to have their C exams progressed prior to half term week.

Good Contractor Progress

London North Eastern Railway 1950 Brake Corridor Third E1866 (GOLD)

Windows continue to be the main focus, with a frame fitting device having been built, the design of which is inspired by a similar example showcased by the LNER Carriage Association at the North Yorkshire Moors Railway.

London North Eastern Railway 1938 Brake Third Open E16631E (GOLD)

We have received another bumper image update from our contractor who is doing an excellent job restoring the Gresley BTO. A brand new guards lookout ducket has been manufactured, fitted and painted. The sliding ventilator windows are being prepared and painted. The vehicle has also been glazed.

On the interior, the entire area has been sealed with aluminum wood primer and internal doors are being prepared for fitting. Internal woodwork containing passenger communication cord pipework has been prepared.

Perhaps most dramatically of all has been has been the exterior work, with more doors hung, paneling progressed and painting up to Crimson & Cream achieved in several areas.

Back at Weybourne, a more modest job has progressed with some painting of pipe brackets for the vacuum pipework being prepared.

British Railways 1961 Brake First Open (Kitchen) M14021 (GOLD)

Some more bodyside has been "bare metaled" on the seaward side which is steadily heading towards the end of the vehicle and therefore the half way point. This section in particular must have hit an area with lots of body filler as the surrounding area resembles Pompeii!

British Railways 1958 Brake Corridor Second M35148 (SILVER)

The paintwork has marched on steadily. The whole coach was undercoated last week with the first coat of gloss being applied this week. The landward side is glossed, with the seaward now following.

Some bits and bobs have been completed on the interior, such as the repainting of the fire bucket and the preparation of the accessible saloon door furniture (chains etc.) ready for fitting.

British Railways 1957 Class 101 Railcar Driving Trailer Composite Lavatory E56062 (SILVER)

This week has been all about windows. The disturbed metalwork along the window apertures along the seaward side were checked against the window frame units and not all was well. Numbers did not add up and even after allowing for the possibility that the new metal was in the wrong place, the window units still didn't appear to fit and the gaps which the fixing rubbers go in were badly inconsistent. After much investigation we couldn't come to a proper conclusion so we have had to move on and gently tailor each aperture to fit the windows better, in the hope that final assembly will be kinder this time around. The modifications have involved both shaving down of woodwork and steelwork to sit the windows centrally. This all has to be correct as we don't want to refit the windows until all the body preparation and painting is completed, so it will too late to modify when we are trying to fit the windows back in.

On the bench, a trial window frame has had its glass panels replaced with new internal rubbers, something that we believe has only been done once before on a Class 101 in preservation, at the Worth Valley Railway, and they reported that they were not happy with their results. Now that we know our sourced rubbers are a good fit, we will order much more, enough to complete this vehicle and its matching powercar.

The cab refresh also continues to progress well. The Automatic Warning System equipment cover has been restored nicely for the first time in its preservation history and is now smooth and repainted ready to refit.

British Railways (GWR Design) 1958 "Fruit D" W92097W (SILVER)

Three planks on the Holt end have been cut and replaced in conditions that take some beating!

Workshop

A strange box-like structure, taken from steam engine 53809, is being replicated to assist our friends in the Loco Department with their winter maintenance program.

Maintenance

As part of the annual "C exam" program, A set stalwarts 4843 & 4958 are being investigated for vacuum leakage which has been a problem on and of in recent months. 4958 in particular has been "a bit of a leaker" and a variety of seals, pipes and components are being adjusted, resealed and improved to steadily reduce some of the leakage discovered during the exam.

Inside RBR kitchen car 1969, the generator/shore line switching cabinet (which featured in these notes a few months ago) has finally been finished off now that proper plastic labels have been attached to the face.

Painting Continues

London North Eastern Railway 1950 Brake Corridor Third E1866 (GOLD)

The brass window frames are now being lacquered, as part of the long quest to get them fit for service once more. Apparently this lacquer is particularly expensive so hopefully it will be worth it!

London North Eastern Railway 1938 Brake Third Open E16631E (GOLD)

The replacement vacuum pipework continues to be prepared with further layers of paint on good areas and several sections taken through into the Engineering side to be built up with weld over the weaker bits where the pipe has previously been sat in damp securing clamps.

Reclaimed battery box lids have also now emerged out of storage and are being repaired, cleaned up and repainted where required.

It was requested that it be pointed out that 1866 & 16631 are parallel projects so if one progresses well, the other tends to slow down and visa-versa.

British Railways 1961 Brake First Open (Kitchen) M14021 (GOLD)

Needle gunning of the sole-bar continues steadily and the process has now passed the half way point now that the seaward side and Holt end bufferbeam are both complete. Accordingly, attention has now turned to the landward side and around 1/3rd of this solebar has now been gunned and primed.

British Railways 1958 Brake Corridor Second M35148 (SILVER)

The exterior repainting of the coach has progressed with both corridor ends masked off and undercoated then glossed in black. The opportunity was also taken to undertake all the fiddly parts of the ends as well including the final black glossing inside the corridor connection/tunnel itself. A start has now been made on undercoating the landward side in red with all the window frames done ready for the main panels to follow.

Inside the vehicle, the Holt end vestibule ceilings continue to be built up and fresh panels to board out the ceiling have been cut to size and the rear faces painted to fight any condensation.

Painting work in the corridor adjacent to the guards compartment has now been completed with the area resplendent in cream.

Other, smaller, jobs have including refixing signage to the corridor which had been removed for varnishing.

British Railways 1957 Class 101 Railcar Driving Trailer Composite Lavatory E56062 (SILVER)

Cab refurbishment and mundane bodyside welding works continue.

British Railways (GWR Design) 1958 "Fruit D" W92097W (SILVER)

All the timber has now been stripped of paint to expose all planks that need replacing. On the Holt end four planks have been removed and three small sections cut out ready to insert sound timber. 

A start has also been made to cut rotten timber from the doors, but this is quite time consuming as the van has to be moved outside to get access to both sides of the doors. A plan has been formed for holding the doors together where all of the vertical planks need have the bottom part cut away.

Any rusted steel work is being chipped and treated with rust converter as and when exposed.

As repaired sections are completed, sanding down prior to painting is being completed.

The paint has been ordered and painting the repaired sections will commence soon as sections are repaired, weather conditions allowing of course!

New Member of Staff

We would like to welcome Neil Elvy to the small team of paid staff in the department. Neil will be starting in February and we hope will enjoy NNR C&W life!