May News Part 3

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

Another week spent adjusting the sliding droplights so they operate freely. The landward side of the guards compartment and disabled area is now pretty much there.

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

Some more timber has been delivered which will allow the completion of the floor reconstruction at the luggage area end. From the same area, the handbrake wheel pedestal, where it sits in ther floor, has been removed and repaired as the original wooden base needed building up a bit where it had split and rotted slightly. However it was able to be retained rather than replaced. With this refitted, the wooden box which encases the operating column has been removed and is in the workshop now being cleaned up and repainted. Some replacement catches have been fitted to the side which hinges open - this allows the column to be accessed for oiling and maintenance. The old catches did not look very good, or original.

Externally, a lighting box (ex Gresley Buffet car), has been cleaned up, repainted in primer and has been refitted to the vehicle.

British Railways 1959 Brake Corridor Composite E21224 (GOLD)

The Sheringham end crash pillars repairs have now all been welded to the new baseplate (featured last week) which concludes the framework repairs in the lower part of this end (the corroded top end around the roof-line is still to tackle).

A return has been made to the new steam heat pipe installation project which stalled a few months ago. New flanges have now been machined to size and welded onto the extreme ends of the pipe which stick through the bufferbeam.

These are now ready to receive their bolts and will allow the steam heat shut off valves to be fixed onto each end, and the Sheringham end has already been trail fitted.

The current focus is securing the large water drain which sits in the middle of the coach at the bottom of the system, which involves more welding and flanges.

Due to running out of rivets, no more window frames have been able to be refitted to the exterior. However whilst we wait, the large task of machining new timber gripping bars to hold the main panes of glass in place has been progressing very well. This will allow the central area of the coach to become a sealed area. The gripper bars are held in with many small machine screws so each one must be fitted and drilled carefully in each window so it butts up to its neighbour neatly. We didn't have any surviving originals for these, as the previous owners destroyed them when they fitted thicker double glazing units to the coach.

"Project bogie" continues well, with many of the cleaned up components for the suspension now painted into primer and black undercoat. Once our needle gun is repaired, the rest of the kit should hopefully be able to be cleaned down to join the rest.

British Railways 1959 Tourist Second Open M4843 (SILVER)

Interior snagging and finishing has continued. The hinged corridor end door at the Holt end now catches shut properly, this was found to be a pin that had come adrift inside the mechanism. The sliding bolt to lock the door has also been adjusted as it wasn't securing properly either. Work on the sliding windows is now complete and they have been refitted back into place where they have had to be removed. The floor has also been painted in the Holt end vestibule around the toilets.

The corridor end faceplates have made it into black gloss and are now complete.

Mentioned last week but not photographed was the repainted roof.

Exterior painting will commence next week.

British Railways 1962 Tourist Second Open M4958 (REVARNISH)

This vehicle was moved back into the shed this week to be finished off. The ends were quickly repainted into black gloss followed by the "restriction C1" lettering. Some solebar lettering was also added and then the coach was released back into service and returned to Sheringham.

British Railways 1951 16 Ton Ballast Plough Brakevan DB993707 (BRONZE)

A slow week this week for the wagon. Some challenges and a broken steam cleaner meant that not much has been achieved, although a small part of underframe was cleaned down, removing a lot of loose black paint and revealing the grey undercoat below.

The ceiling inside the cabin has been rubbed down ready for repainting. The red paint also arrived (which we had run out of) which allowed the second coating of the red to be completed. The vehicle is now ready for its top coat, which will be varnish. Matt black chalk boards have been added to the ends, a feature which most of these vans had but this one hasn't had them so far in preservation.