January News Part 4

Great Eastern Railway 1899 4 Wheel Brake Third 853

Fettling of the bodywork has continued, with the white primer revealing the next round of problem areas to tackle. Door reconstruction also progresses.

The four footboard supports mentioned last week have now been fitted to the underframe so these short boards should be appearing before too long which finishes that task. Also underneath, more brackets and adjustment work has been done to the the special valve which prevents vacuum being made if the handbrake is on.

All of this underframe work needs to be completed before the body is lifted back onto the underframe, as it is much easier to access when there is no body on top! Hopefully it will not be too long before the reunification of body and chassis is considered...

British Railways 1959 Brake Corridor Composite E21224

This coach is being progressed at present by a 100% volunteer workforce. The beading inside the storage cupboard has now been completed and fitted.

Some more of the exterior doors which missed out on paint stripping when we tackled the bodysides last year continue to be so treated.

The first of the large numbers of interior planking for the luggage and guards areas have been stripped back to bare wood and primed ready for refitting. This is another of those long laborious tasks but it will make the luggage van look really nice and smooth, which it most certainly wasn't before we dismantled it.

Another batch of components, the heater grills which locate under the seats, have now been primed. These were cleaned up some months ago and have been waiting for a rainy day to carry on with them, and we've had a few of those recently!

British Railways 1959 Tourist Second Open M4843

No progress to report, other than the Sheringham end interior getting ever closer to its interior refit being completed.

British Railways 1958 Class 101 Railcar Driving Trailer Second Lavatory M56352

The reupholstering production line continues quietly and efficiently!

British Railways 1960 Covered Carriage Truck E94464

The biggest transformation has been to the exterior of this vehicle. At the end of last week it had nearly been finished in primer. Monday morning saw this loose end tied up, before two days of undercoating and then two days of glossing.

The vehicle is now in maroon along both sides and the paintwork is now hardening between coats.

A lot of effort has also been going into the Sheringham end folding end doors. Framework now completed, these are starting to be panelled out and will be shortly ready for reassembly of some kind!

Southern Railway 1939 Parcels & Miscellaneous Van S1359S

This week saw the conclusion of the interior restoration work, with the gloss painting of the walls into white to freshen up the whole area.

The restoration work to this vehicle is now complete and it now simply awaits shunting back out into the big wide world!

Maintenance

Corridor Second vehicle 26012 has now had its main exam completed after it was shunted into position.

All of the the dining set has been examined including wheel measurements, underframe checks, the gangway ends and coupling equipment oiled and buckeye couplings gauged.

this means that all three sets are now examined and are ready to have the repair work (highlighted on the exams) done to get them fighting fit for running season.

January News Part 3

Great Eastern Railway 1899 4 Wheel Brake Third 853

Another week of progress on both body and chassis. Starting with the former, the white primer has now spread around the whole vehicle, with both of the ends and the landward side treated. This has made the remaining imperfections more obvious to the human eye, which helps volunteers who are undertaking the next "round" of filling and sanding.

On the underframe, a set of four extra supports have been produced and painted to hold the lower boards either side of the axleboxes. These extra supports are required as the new boards cannot cross over the front of the axleboxes like the originals did, so they are being done in separate pieces witha  small gap over the front of the axleboxes.

On the vacuum system, the special valve which prevents vacuum being made if the handbrake is on has been fitted into position on its bespoke brackets. It has also been "plumbed in" to the vacuum piping and now awaits the mechanical part to connect it to the handbrake mechanism.

British Railways 1959 Brake Corridor Composite E21224

Sole progress has been inside the store cupboard this week. It was a week of beading with some new quarter-round being produced from scratch using stock timber and routing tools. Some of these have now also been cut to size and positioned in the corners where they are needed. Some of the angles are quite unusual, especially where three separate pieces of beading all meet up in one location!

British Railways 1959 Tourist Second Open M4843

Another week of good progression with the Sheringham end seaward side corner. The corroded door pillar has now been replaced with a brand new example which means we have a full doorway again! The steel which has been cleaned or replaced has also been protected with an underseal-like product where it will be hidden, before the new steel outer panelling is welded over the framework.

The Sheringham end interior saloon reassembly also continues.

British Railways 1958 Class 101 Railcar Driving Trailer Second Lavatory M56352

Re-upholstery continues. It is hard to judge accurately based on a large pile of fresh seats awaiting refit, however there looks to be enough reupholstered examples to say that approximately two out of the three passenger saloons have been completed ready to refit, so we are certainly getting there.

Inside the vehicle itself, further seat dismantling sessions mean that the entire coach is now devoid of all of its seat cushions and backs, with just bare frames remaining in situ. Given this situation, the opportunity has been taken to give the seat frames a "top-up" coat of blue gloss to cover some of the chipped areas that were letting some of them down. We simply didn't have the time to do a proper strip down and repaint, however they look much improved. Over several days, all of the seat frames inside the vehicle were completed.

British Railways 1960 Covered Carriage Truck E94464

Once again, this vehicle has probably seen the most progress overall this week. The finishing touches are being applied to the ceiling and walls inside the vehicle. The metal cages which surround the light bulbs to stop them getting broken are in the process of being refitted. On the sides, the light switch faceplates have been refitted, window bars returned to the windows, securing chains refitted to the doors and the lower vent grills repainted into gloss black. The sides are now complete, so we can now turn our attention tho the floor.

On the outside, we discovered that the some of the vehicle's doors/doorways have distorted when it was lifted, so two out of the four sets of double doors required major adjustment. This done, we have been able to progress exterior repainting. So far, 90% of the vehicle has been coated in primer, with just one set of doors unable to be painted this week as they were having the work described above applied to them.

Now that the vehicle is in the staged area, the roof was able to be cleaned down and given a quick coat of roof paint to boost it. As expected, its appearance is quite transformed.

The framework for the Sheringham end set of folding doors (which haven't been forgotten!) progressed to the stage where the doors (without panelling) were able to be dry fitted to the steel strapping on the vehicle itself, just to ensure that they are all the right size. They have now been removed again for further work, hole drilling and panelling out.

Southern Railway 1939 Parcels & Miscellaneous Van S1359S

Now also in the staging with E94464, this allowed its roof to also be repainted, in the slightly cheaper "bitumen spec". Giving the vehicle a black roof has improved its appearance greatly.

On the inside, the ceilings have received a coat of white gloss which makes them look so much better than the chalky flaking mess that they once were. Fueled by the success of the ceilings, the same treatment is now being given to the side walls. No picture this week sadly, as painting E94464 was too much of a distraction for me!

Maintenance

C Examinations continue. The main set (A Set) has now been reformed into a train again and is presumably in the format in which it will be used for the next trains, over the February half term week.

January News Part 2

Great Eastern Railway 1899 4 Wheel Brake Third 853

The vacuum piping, the installation of which has been ongoing for a few weeks now, has required some revision due to the exact location of the valve which stops the train brakes being taken off if the guard's handbrake is still applied. This valve is required in a particular place which has affected the arrangement of the pipes elsewhere. In any case, the new arrangement of "tees" and joints on the main vacuum pipe is now in place and supporting brackets for the valve itself created out of secondhand materials. Recycling Great Eastern style!

On the outside of the underframe, the footboards mentioned last week have now all been painted and the lower boards have been bolted into position for most of their length. The upper boards have also been fitted but will be taken off again when the body is required to be mated with the underframe. The addition of the boards to the underframe has made a significant visual difference and has changed the appearance of the underframe from a freight wagon-like affair to unmistakably a carriage chassis. Nothing says "vintage carriage" better than two full length boards...

Meanwhile on the body, sanding and filling work has progressed enough for the seaward side to receive a coat of white primer, to neautralise the appearance and bring out any further defects which need more cosmetic work. It has consequently gained a rather "ghost train-esque" air!

British Railways 1959 Brake Corridor Composite E21224

Floor repairs continue, with the affected panels in the side corridor now drilled out and each panel lifted out of place. They are currently laid back in position loose (to stop anyone falling through the holes!) until we make replacements.

Inside the store cupboard, more adjustment work has been required on the window surrounds. Once this was dry fitted satisfactorily, it was time to clean up the replacement glass for the window which was then fitted. Unfortunately this has made the store cupboard a more claustrophobic place to work, as the view has gone, however we cannot stand in the way of progress, and now that the window is in the cupboard is a step closer to being considered a "sealed unit" which can be shut off from other, dirty dust making elements of the vehicle's restoration.

British Railways 1959 Tourist Second Open M4843

We mentioned last week the sorry tale of the badly corroded cantrail above the Sheringham end, seaward side door. This week has seen a start made to reverse that bad fortune, with new curved sections for the cantrail being fabricated in house and then welded into position, returning strength, shape and structure to this "corner" of the carriage.

On the interior, good progress has been made with the reassembly of the Sheringham end saloon (the Holt end saloon has already been dealt with) with side panelling and seating units now being returned into position. This is being progressed by our weekend team who are doing an excellent job in making this end of the coach more more normal and complete every week!

British Railways 1958 Class 101 Railcar Driving Trailer Second Lavatory M56352

The dark early nights have prevented a picture being taken this time around, however after a big push by our star "ceiling whisperer" Roger Ison, the middle saloon and both passenger vestibules are now completed, having been fulled prepped and repainted. The two coats of gloss white were applied this week in challenging, foggy conditions outside. The low light made the painting difficult, but Roger persisted and deserves a special mention as he actually came in for no less than four days this week to get the job done, as the long range weather forecast suggested that this week was our last chance for some time for temperatures to remain above freezing overnight. Roger has our thanks for giving real dedication to the cause on this one.

Returning back indoors, re-upholstery work has started once more and the current batch of seating (for the middle saloon) is now pretty much completed and ready to return to the vehicle. A swap of old and new seating between the vehicle and the upholstery workshop will need to be done soon, which of course allows the prospect of seat refitting to start.

British Railways 1960 Covered Carriage Truck E94464

The vehicle has now been moved into the staging area to be painted. Before this was done, as much of the remaining tasks on the underframe and running gear were completed as possible. This involved freeing up all of the brakework to ensure it moved properly, adding extra springing to one of the drawhooks which had worked slightly loose, and overhaulling the two screw couplings. We also discovered the vehicle was sitting about an inch too low so the ride heights had to be adjusted on the springs to bring the vehicle into line.

The interior has also moved along very well. The walls have now been painted into gloss brown and one plank painted in chalk board paint which sets it off nicely. There are some fittings still left to refit on the interior before we can then move onto the next phase, the floor.

Southern Railway 1939 Parcels & Miscellaneous Van S1359S

This van has moved into the staging area with E94464 so that it's roof can be painted. In the meantime however, a start has been made on quickly repainting the ceiling. So far, a good proportion of the vehicle has had all the loose flaky paint chipped off and a coat of white primer applied. This job is in addition to the "original spec" and isn't a full strip down, however it will improve the light levels on the interior and help reduce the dust (and flakes of paint!) falling down onto the occupants!

Maintenance

The C Exams are now in full swing at Sheringham, headed by Dan Broughton, who has been supported on certain days by a second C&W person and of course the operations department who are essential in splitting and joining coach sets so all the proper tests can be undertaken. All of the service stock coaches (basically all the Mark 1's that are not in the dining set) have had their buckeyes and draw bars tested, wheel measurements taken and axle box oil pads checked. All of the general checks for the undersides have been completed as well.

January News Part 1

Another year another Blog post! (this is the 143rd for anyone interested!)

Great Eastern Railway 1899 4 Wheel Brake Third 853

Work has resumed on "the old girl", although the volunteer team is still not back up to full strength just yet as this week was still quite close to the Christmas/New Year period. Nevertheless some minor tweaks to the newly installed vacuum piping has been made, and some more sections of it painted. Also on the underframe, the long footboards (which run along the full length of the vehicle) are being prepared for fitting and are being cut to length and having various end pieces fitted and holes drilled to allow them to be bolted to their supports in due course.

British Railways 1959 Brake Corridor Composite E21224

The latest job this week to be started has been an assessment of the plywood floors inside the compartments and along the side corridor. One or two sections inside a few of the compartments require replacement, as does at least 50% of the side corridor, which has suffered water ingress. One thing you do not want is fare paying passengers to make a hole in the floor with their ankle as they walk along the train!

Work inside the store cupboard continues, with the wooden window surrounds being dry fitted to the window (the glass for which hasn't been fitted yet). This work has required quite a bit of adjustment to the frames and surrounding panel work to make them fit in a satisfactory manner.

British Railways 1959 Tourist Second Open M4843

Welding work on the horribly corroded Sheringham end has resumed in the New Year, thankfully as it's a big job that needs to be progressed! The seaward side corner  and top rail above the doorway has now been completely stripped off for a new doorway to be welded in. This of course required the door itself to be taken off. This now paves the way for new steel to be added in, much the same way as was done a few weeks ago on the opposite corner. At this stage of the process with less ans less of the original coach present, accurate measuring is absolutely essential, as the image depicts:

British Railways 1958 Class 101 Railcar Driving Trailer Second Lavatory M56352

No progress to report.

British Railways 1960 Covered Carriage Truck E94464

The focus to try and finish this vehicle is now starting to show. The underframe has progressed as the vehicle was lifted on jacks again this week and re-wheeled onto its refurbished wheelsets. This has in turn allowed the rest of the mechanical work to progress, namely fitting new brake blocks and adjusting the brakes. It has been discovered that the linkages underneath are all stuck after 10 years of little use, so we intend to revisit next week for a serious session to free everything up properly. This must be done before final adjustments and vacuum brake testing can be done.

Moving onto the exterior of the body, the big news is that the paint preparation work (sanding and filling) is complete! Woo hoo! All that remains now is some more minor fettling to the doorways and the vehicle will then be ready for exterior painting... The supporting straps for the Sheringham end doors have also now been cleaned up, primed and undercoated.

On the interior, the vehicle's original lights (which haven't been used for about 30 years we think!) actually work after we put some batteries on the vehicle and put some bulbs in the holders! The main focus however has been the two planked sides and Holt end doors which over a couple of days have received their undercoat paint, which means they are all one colour for the first time in a  while.

Southern Railway 1939 Parcels & Miscellaneous Van S1359S

A final (small) repair has now been made to the air vent situated near the roof on the Holt end of the vehicle, which has been painted black to match the rest. The vehicle is now on hold to await movement into the staging area so its roof can be painted.

Maintenance

The New Year brings with it more maintenance commitments. The forthcoming weeks will see members based at Sheringham to tackle "C Exams" to most of the operational Mark 1 vehicles to ready them for the season that lies ahead.