March News

Great Eastern Railway 1899 4 Wheel Brake Third 853 (BRONZE)

Painting and lining continues when weather conditions allow.

Great Eastern Railway 1907 Brake Third 295 (ASSESSMENT)

Not a coach that appears in these (virtual) pages very often, if at all, is the hidden and secretive Great Eastern bogie brake number 295. This coach arrived in the railway's very first consignment of rolling stock back in 1967 during the embryonic days along with the Quad-Art set, being a remarkable survivor from the 1907 dedicated "Norfolk Coast Express" rake, running to Sheringham itself from London Liverpool Street. Much like the Quads, in 1967 295 was too elderly and required too much work for the pioneers to be able to afford to restore, and was used instead as the railway's very first volunteer accommodation, its only appearance in the public eye being a filming job in the 1970's, this brief role in Dad's Army being followed by decades of storage, initially under a tarpaulin and latterly inside the carriage sheds at Bridge Road (Holt). For much of its 60 years in preservation, it has looked as it does now:

295 holds the record as the single item that has been located on the preserved NNR for the longest period of time (other items in the 1967 consignment such as the B12 loco and Quads all having spent periods away from the railway under overhaul or on holiday). It is also however the only item from those days that has not yet run on public trains! With a view to looking to change this fact, the vehicle was temporarily taken outside of the sheds, blinking in the light, for a photographic survey which will help funding applications to be made over the coming years. It is accepted that the railway does not have the resources (financial or physical) to restore this coach in-house for the duration of the Gresley train project as an absolute minimum, however conversely we are also committed to not disposing of this unique and cherished piece of "family silver". For these reasons, seeking help is the only option for the foreseeable future.

Observers should not get too excited, this process being merely an assessment at present, with no assurance of success or guarantee that anything will progress quickly. However, there is always hope that a route "may" progress, so fingers crossed and watch this space.

London North Eastern Railway 1950 Brake Corridor Third E1866E (GOLD)

The new roof canvas has finally arrived after a long lead time after ordering, at least after the wait it is now warmer than it has been which should make fitting more comfortable! There is also the added bonus that the local caravan parks are now open again for the season, which means the team working on this vehicle has near enough doubled in size compared to the winter crew! The new canvas, which smells delightfully fishy compared to the last one we ordered some years ago(!), has been opened out and spread over the length of the vehicle. After a week weighted down with paint tins on ropes to stretch it and acclimatise the canvas, it was bedded down underneath. The roof is now green in colour, for a limited time only.

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

No progress to report.

London North Eastern Railway 1945 Gangwayed Brake E70621E (SILVER)

Restoration has recommenced following its winter break. The mains wiring has now been completed, with sockets fitted all around the vehicle's interior and a central lighting strip running down the ceiling of the two main spaces. All have been wired up to a shore-line connector on the outside of the vehicle, with cabling fitted as sympathetically and discreetly as possible in case the vehicle is ever restored to original condition in the future. One advantage of completing this work now is that further overhaul works to the interior can now be done in very well lit conditions. Given the vehicle has virtually no windows, lots of work lights have been required before now to see what we are doing!

The second area of progress has been the conversion of the vacuum brake cylinders from LNER pattern to BR. This offers standardisation across the running fleet at the NNR and will make maintenance easier in the future. The conversion involved sourcing a pair of overhauled cylinders from stock and slightly modifying the mounting brackets, a bush being fitted as the LNER cylinders have larger pivots than their BR counterparts.

Finally, the vehicle has been lifted and its bogies swapped. The original bogies have been exchanged for a pair formerly under (donor) Gresley Buffet car number 9118 which continues to provide spares for the LNER train project. These bogies are actually spares for our own buffet car (9128) but experience tells us that bogies store much better under vehicles than they do outside on their own directly in the elements. Therefore 70621, which will not be used intensively at all in the future, will provide a good home for these bogies.

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

Door fitting has continued with the final two exterior doors on the vehicle, those at the Holt end, now permanently fitted, complete with wooden jambs and weather strips. This brings to a close a huge effort to get the eight doors to this point, slam doors always being a large part of the exterior of the vehicle to get right.

Work on the Holt end vestibule also continues internally, with the metalwork under and around the floor all now cleaned up and protected ready for the floor to be refitted. Now that the doors are complete, work is focusing on preparing the ring of supporting timber that bears the floor for fitting, using repaired original sections supplemented by replacements made from reclaimed hardwood from the luggage area of the coach.

The upholstery team have now also turned their attention fully to the seating so that they are ready in time to meet the rest of the coach. The first "production" twin seater has now been upholstered (except its box cushions) and looks very nice indeed.

British Railways 1953 Tourist Second Open NN3868 (BRONZE)

Window woodwork for the Sheringham end saloon has continued but has not progressed meaningfully owing to having to progress other tasks. However it is hoped to realise a set of window retaining bars soon so that glass can be refitted to the vehicle. The restoration of seat ends has progressed better, with a full set for the Sheringham end (50%) now stripped back to bare wood ready for bleaching.

February News

Our winter output continues to be reduced by involvement in locomotives, but we are still doing our best to progress our current suite of projects.

Great Eastern Railway 1899 4 Wheel Brake Third 853 (BRONZE)

Progress with the painting phase of the project has been very challenging since the beginning of year, primarily due to the cold and wet weather conditions. However just this last week, the sun has shone and work has gathered pace! The landward side of the vehicle has now had two gloss coats and the signwriting artistry has commenced.

Meanwhile the second gloss coat on the seaward side is causing minor problems. Following the first coat not taking well in places, a further sanding may well have to be carried out before second coat can be applied.

Additionally, the running boards have been primed and undercoated.

London North Eastern Railway 1950 Brake Corridor Third E1866E (GOLD)

No progress to report.

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

A list has been compiled of outstanding works that require completing before the vehicle arrives at the railway for the first time. Optimistically this is a sign that the home straight (of the outside contracting works) is now being looked at.

London North Eastern Railway 1945 Gangwayed Brake E70621E (SILVER)

Following completion of the Class 37, the vehicle has been moved back into the shed.

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

This vehicle has by some margin seen the most explicit progress of all over the past four weeks, somewhat logically as it is a priority project. There has been big progress on the exterior of the vehicle with a push on final sanding and filling which has culminated in both sides and the Sheringham end being handed over for painting. Whilst the final paint is some time away, the area has been sealed in a final primer coat making the majority of the coach all one colour, a real sign of a major milestone about to be reached!

 

This painting would also not be possible without further progress on door fitting. Both of the passenger doors in the centre vestibule have now been jambed and adjusted to their final permanent fit, meaning they could also be primed to join the rest of the bodysides.

The two passenger doors at the Holt end (the last doors on the vehicle) are now receiving the same process of final fitting - after which we can prime them along with the Holt end which will pretty much bring the curtain down on the exterior rebuild.

In preparation for the Holt end to be painted, the passenger communication apparatus handrail and access step have both been cleaned down, painted and mounted onto the replacement end. We have decided not to fit these steps and handrails to any of the other three corners of the coach, as they are not needed and it will reduce future common corrosion traps on the ends. 

With the sides complete, there has been time to get up onto the roof to undertake repairs there. Several rotten areas around the former toilet pipework at the Holt end have been welded up with galvanized material, along with the patches over the old periscopes above the guards compartment. These patches, originally rivetted, were sound but we have taken the opportunity to seam weld them as we have experience of the patches popping off, usually quietly and without telling us which leads to water ingress above the guards van. All of the air vents have also been removed, grit blasted and refitted to the coach with new sealant replacing the old perished gaskets. This completed the main job list for the roof, although we have left the vents off the kitchen area for now as once we know the pattern of appliances inside, we can determine the sizes of the custom extraction vents and holes required in the roof in that section. Given the current unknown nature of this, we will also paint the roof at a later date once these kitchen vents are fitted and we are happy with the final arrangement.

In between other duties, limited internal work to the two vestibules and sliding doors has also continued.

British Railways 1953 Tourist Second Open NN3868 (BRONZE)

Work to strip old varnish off the window surround woodwork and glass retaining bars has now been completed with the bulk of a set made ready for repairs and bleaching. The current focus is now on producing some new parts to replace extremely rotten items, along with the remaining outstanding repairs to original sections.

With the window woodwork in with the repairers, the hardly varnish stripping and sanding team have moved onto giving the seat ends some TLC, with four examples stripped already. These are proving to be in excellent condition so far so all being well will come out very well.

British Railways 1961 English Electric Type 3 D6732 (VARNISH)

Shortly after last month's update, the remaining rubbing down was completed on the locomotive. This was then washed down again and several areas of unstable metal and corrosion were chipped back and stabilized as best we could. Given the loco is just in for an intermediate revarnish, the corrosion was not tackled in the fullest sense, however it may keep the wolf from the door for a few more years and into the second part of the repaint's lifespan.

The treated areas were all patch painted with BR green, along with a series of grills and alcoves, both of which were too soiled to take varnish, so they were given a "top up" coat of gloss instead. With this completed, a few days were then spent applying the varnish coat itself to the remainder of the main bodysides and nose ends. The loco was then declared complete externally and was shunted back outside to await the remainder of the mechanical repairs (being undertaken by the Loco. Dept) and the refitting of reupholstered cab seating.

Maintenance

Annual C examinations are progressing well, with enough vehicles completed to operate a 4-coach + van set for the February Half Term running. This week ran very well with the vehicles completing their first 414 miles of the 2026 season without issue.

January News

We are now back and well into the swing of things following the Christmas and New Year break. Overall progress has slowed somewhat as we have been requested to help out the Locomotive Department with some of their winter maintenance tasks along with steam loco overhauls, both of which fall outside the scope of this blog. We even have part of our shed with a loco in (read on) so this winter will certainly be one of versatility.

Great Eastern Railway 1899 4 Wheel Brake Third 853 (BRONZE)

No progress to report.

Great Northern Railway (later M&GN) 1887 6 Wheel Third 129 (BRONZE)

This vehicle has now been completed and has exited the shed and returned to traffic, its refresh successfully concluded. This month saw the damaged landward side beading build up steadily with five coats of varnish followed by a sixth over the entire side to disguise the joins where we had been working on the water damage. This took a few weeks as low temperatures meant drying days were a necessary requirement.

We decided that despite our best efforts, the lining had been too damaged by the sanding process in December and that leaving it would not do the refreshed coach justice, so the whole landward side received new blue and gold lining on all the beading, which certainly boosted its appearance!

With the landward side finally repaired and varnished, the vehicle was keyed up once more and a final coat of varnish was applied around the entire vehicle. This coat was the seventh on the landward side damaged areas, and the second coat on the seaward side and two ends. We normally only put one extra coat on during these "refresh" visits (such as when the Quad-Arts come in), but as 129 has been somewhat neglected in our revarnishing programme, it was felt a double coat would build the depth we wanted. The coach now looks fantastic once again and can retake its rightful place in the vintage train as the high capacity and popular "teak temptation"!

Going forwards, the plan is to revarnish 129 (and Pigeon Van 6843) every two years rather than every 5-6 years, as the pattern of usage of the Vintage Train has changed significantly compared to the early 2010's when the set was first formed and only used a couple of weekends a year. It is felt the new frequency will be more responsible given the extra use the vehicles now see and will prevent the same degradation to the teak that admittedly caught us out on this occasion.

London North Eastern Railway 1950 Brake Corridor Third E1866E (GOLD)

The tables continue to be worked on, with staining of the modified "school bench" frames to make them better match the table tops.

The tops have now returned from Theaker Joinery (well known suppliers of heritage coach timber) and look resplendent following stripping, treating and varnishing.

Finally, the reason more hasn't been completed in the month is due to a massive tidy-up operation being undertaken inside the coach and in the areas around it. Whilst difficult to photograph, this process is essential from time-to-time to ensure things don't get lost and some form of suitable working environment is maintained! Unglamorous yes, but the tidy up had highlighted to regular visitors that the interior of this vehicle is not a million miles away from completion...

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

No progress to report.

London North Eastern Railway 1945 Gangwayed Brake E70621E (SILVER)

This coach is currently having a "winter getaway" outside in the yard with restoration work paused whilst we work on other projects over the shut down period. The (temporarily) white exterior cladding proved to be useful arctic camouflage when the snow came down some weeks ago!

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

More good progress has been made on the exterior with all the imitation doors, windows and furniture now secured permanently on the seaward side of the kitchen compartment. This is the last of the main exterior works so there will be a final sanding run over these areas before the whole Sheringham half of the vehicle can have permanent primer applied.

The main focus is now on door hanging and doorway jamb fitting. This is a huge process and includes all of the door lock fittings, dovetails etc. and takes a long time to get right. The Sheringham end vestibule has been the main target with the landward side door now completed and fitted with the seaward example currently in progress. Once this pair are completed we will only have two doors left to fit on the vehicle.

Internal work on the same vestibule has continued with the sliding door between the vestibule and the passenger saloon, rescued from a scrapped Mark 1 Tourist Second Open many years ago, receiving a lot of work to nurse it back to good health. The wheeled mechanism at the bottom required extracting and overhauling along with the sliders at the top. The door itself has been stripped back to bare wood for treating and a damaged wood surround around the sheet of glass has been remade along once edge. Much of this work has been fairly fiddly but is required for a top notch Gold standard product at the end, a standard we are determined this coach will make!

British Railways 1953 Tourist Second Open NN3868 (BRONZE)

This coach has progressed well and has been wholly in the charge of the volunteer teams so far. The stripping out of the Sheringham end passenger saloons is now complete following the removal of the seating which has left a bare saloon in which to work!

The first area of attack has been the alloy window frames, which whilst being in good enough condition to stay rivetted into the bodyside, have required working through making sure all of the window glass fixings are sounds with re-tapping of threads being done where required. This work is completely invisible but required to help prevent water ingress in the future when the glass goes back in.

The current main task is stripping off of all old varnish and paint from the window surround woodwork. This is a very labour intensive task, and also highlights many repairs that will be needed on this woodwork before it can be treated and varnished up again ready for refitting.

British Railways 1961 English Electric Type 3 D6732 (VARNISH)

Replacing 129 in the shed is the Class 37, somewhat younger and more powerful it has to be said! So far the loco has been given a thorough external wash, moved inside to dry out and around 75% of the loco rubbed back.

The plan is to do a few minor repairs and then revarnish it, as it is four years since it was repainted. We are also in the process of reupholstering the cab seats. The Loco Department will additionally undertake repairs to the vacuum and cooling systems whilst it is in with us.

Maintenance

This year we have to undertake C Exams on TSO's 4843 and 4958, Kitchen Car 81033 and CCT 94464. So far 81033 has been completed with the two TSO's now in progress. Some additional work to 4843's bogies is also required after wear was identified during the exam. 94464 is still to start, but it has been up at Weybourne to allow the generators that power the festive lights trains to be removed.

REVIEW OF THE YEAR 2025

As is traditional, the final Blog post of the year looks back on the year behind us and all we have achieved, with a comparison with other recent years. This year, eight vehicles have been through the workshops with one of them being a mid-life varnish, five Bronze level overhauls and two Silvers. Five examples were coaches, with two railcars and a single wagon. This is around half what was out-shopped in 2024 (which had a total of 16 vehicles), however 2024's figures were boosted by revarnishing the Quad-Art set (adding four to the total) and a run on quick wagon repaints, both of which boost total figures without having to expend too much resource.

What rarely adds to the yearly totals however is the steady progression on our larger Silver and Gold overhauls, which have featured more heavily this year. No less than three LNER design vehicles (Gresley Brake Third Open 16631, Thompson Full Brake 70621 and Thompson Brake First Open 1866) have been progressed significantly but remain in progress. It is a similar story for Mark 1 Brake First Open (Kitchen) 14021 which has seen a huge amount of resource directed towards it but won't be completed for some time.

The following Carriage & Wagon strategic aims have been worked on over 2025:

1. Vintage Train Refresh: Three out of five vintage set coaches were successfully refreshed with the remaining two currently in works and due to be completed for the 2026 season.
2. Dining Train Completion: Brake First Open 14021's major rebuild continues, with an additional temporary generator car (CCT 94125) completed, following generator failures on the existing dining train.
3. Restoring "B Set" to Full Strength: The progress to major LNER overhauls 1866 & 16631 contributes to this aim.
4. Static Coach Improvements: The commencement of LNER 70621 to become a multi-purpose events vehicle.
5. Main Service Fleet Maintenance: The Silver overhaul of Mk1 3868 was completed.
6. Railcar Fleet Maintenance: Bronze overhauls of powercars 51192 & 51505 were undertaken.
7. Wagon Fleet Maintenance: An intermediate overhaul and repaint of plough brakevan 993707 was completed.

Viewing what we have achieved against all of the improvement programmes currently in place at the railway is probably a better way to view progress than simply numbers of vehicles completed. It also shows how the different vehicles are selected and feed into the direction the railway is trying to head toward. The selection is far from random!

January is normally a quiet and cold month with this year being no exception. We started the year with Thompson Brake First Open 1866 (Gold), Gresley Pigeon Van 6843 (Bronze), Mark 1 Brake First Open 14021 (Gold), Mark 1 Tourist Second Open 3868 (Silver) and Ballast Plough Brakevan 993707 inside the shed all being progressed.

February sharply contrasted with January after we returned three vehicles to traffic, with the Pigeon Van's repairs and revarnishing complete, the brakevan finished, and the entry into passenger service of railcar trailer car 79263 which had received the bulk of its works in 2024 and had just received its finishing touches for half term services.

March was a steady month working towards more completions, with Mark 1 3868 in particular receiving a lot of attention to complete repairs in time for the start of the main running season at Easter. This also involved repainting it for one year only into Midland & Great Northern Railway brown livery, replicating what the early NNR preservations did in 1975. This was done as part of our 50th anniversary celebrations and the coach quickly drew in a marmite effect!

In April the season started properly and we released 3868 into service for the anniversary year. Also completed for the season commencing was the return to service of railcar powercar 51192 which had been out of service for repairs for around six years. Although exterior works were limited, the front end received a bright full yellow end, recreating a rare livery variation carried during the late 1960's transition era. 

In May we started the transformation of Thompson Full Brake 70621 from a rotten wreck into a multi-purpose events vehicle, designed to travel the line wherever required and be used for static exhibitions, temporary storage space or as a large equipment carrier.

In June it was time to say goodbye to Corridor Composite 15997 which had been sold to the Mid Norfolk Railway. Bought by the railway 30 years ago as a future restoration project and to allow expansion, its future place in the fleet had been gradually replaced by the Quad-Art, Suburban and Gresley train projects. At the same time we also welcomed railcar powercar 51505 which joined the fleet and would require remedial attention (more of which below).

July saw a big step in the refresh of the vintage train with the repairs and full repaint of M&GN Picnic Saloon No3 being completed at the C&W outpost at Holt. This was one of the hardest vehicles of the five to bring back into a respectable condition so was a relief to see back out and in service. The second worst member of the set, Great Eastern Brake 853, was immediately put in No3's place and similar works started.

With the summer season and lots of maintenance in full swing, we didn't outshop any vehicles in August, however good progress was being made on all of the long running projects including Gresley Brake Third Open 16631 being steadily worked on at the contractor's in Derbyshire.

In September the salvation of Covered Carriage Truck 94125 and conversion into a generator car had been completed and the vehicle added onto the rear of the dining train. This was a real surprise to everyone as 94125 had actually been considered for disposal until this new role for it suddenly leapt out of nowhere.

October's highlight was the return to traffic of the new arrival, railcar 51505. Having only arrived in late June, amazingly all the required repairs were able to be completed in time for it to carry passengers again before the end of the diesel running season.

In November, the Vintage Train refresh project marched on with the completion of the Wisbech and Upwell tramcar, which despite having run in the set for almost the longest was in the best shape of the five. Nothing more than a good wash and a revarnish was required to return the shine to this one. As a result, its stay was swift and unproblematic.

As expected with Christmas taking out part of the month, no vehicles were released in December.

So what is 2026 expected to bring? We will continue with our aims and expect the following to be involved:

1. Vintage Train Refresh: Completion of the remaining two vehicles (M&GN 6 wheel Third 129 & GER Brake Third 853) for the start of the main season which will also bring an end to this programme.
2. Dining Train Completion: Brake First Open 14021's major rebuild is set to continue for at least another 12 months.
3. Restoring "B Set" to Full Strength: The major overhauls of BFO 1866 and BTO 16631 will continue, with a possibility that the overhaul of Tourist Third Open 13548 may commence.
4. Static Coach Improvements: The possibility of completing LNER full brake 70621 to start its role as a multi-purpose events vehicle.
5. Main Service Fleet Maintenance: Mk1 3868 is expected to be repainted into a more suitable livery and will be followed by ordinary repairs and repaints to Tourist Second Open 4641 and Corridor Second 25189.
6. Railcar Fleet Maintenance: Further work to 51505 is expected along with starting the body overhaul of powercar 51228.
7. Wagon Fleet Maintenance: Following the completion of GER 853 at Holt, further wagons may receive cosmetic work.

We can finish with a tease... Keep an eye out for one or two new arrivals next year which will fine-tune the existing fleet going forwards...