December News Part 1

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

More major progress on this project, with no time being wasted. The big news can only be that this week the "big lift" occurred with the body transferring permanently onto its new 6-wheeled underframe.

Before this could be done, the holes marked out last week were drilled and tapped to receive the bolts which come through the wooden body through into the steel underframe. The rubber mounting blocks, which sit between the two steel/wooden elements, were then glued into place around the bolt holes having been transferred across between the two underframes.

After the lift, the bolts themselves were of course fitted properly and officially marrying the two parts back together. The addition of the extra wheelset in the middle, plus the "solid" look of the solebar (in contrast to the "C section" appearance of the previous wagon underframe), makes a remarkable difference to the entire "look" of the vehicle. I believe fellow carriage aficionados are likely to concur that the conversion work has made the vehicle look more Victorian. It would seem 129's Feng Shui is much improved!

Rubbing down of the exterior paneling on the body for a re-varnish is complete. The underframe itself has also has some more areas of rust which were discovered chipped off and patch primed. Meanwhile, the modifications to the brackets which will hold the footboards has continues, this will take a while as there are quite a few of them.

The spreader bars which could possibly have been used to lift 129 have now been completed in gloss paint. In the end 129 was lifted on jacks but these bars will have other uses in the future.

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

No progress to report.

British Railways 1959 Brake Corridor Composite E21224 (GOLD)

The toilet door mentioned last week has now been eased in its frame and is opening and closing nicely. The problem was the bulkhead wall that it hinged from had moved slightly during the replacement of the floor.

Reassembly of compartments continues with more fittings now in place inside Compartment No3.

It goes without saying that the fitting of the multiple doors around the guards/luggage van end of the vehicle has continued - a huge task!

Also at the luggage end, the panels to the right of the corridor gangway, which had been sanded but not painted, have now been primed to match the surrounding areas.

The large sliding door over the corridor end has been fitted into place, complete with runner, mechanism, handles and locks. These have all been brought through to completion, so it all shuts and locks correctly. The outside face of the door, which again had been sanded only, was also painted in primer.

Three out of the four ceiling panels required to renew the ceiling over the luggage area have been cut to size and primed on both sides. The fourth panel will wait until new timber arrives as it is an unusual size.

Exterior work has been limited to some more door components for the Holt end doors being painted up ready for refitting.

British Railways 1957 Tourist Second Open E4521 (SILVER)

The welding repairs to the lower parts of the Sheringham end have been protected with anti-rust paint.

British Railways 1957 Corridor Second W25189 (BRONZE)

Exterior paintwork preparation has been completed this week, with both sides now smooth and ready for primer.

Finishing works to the corridor ends are still underway, with an uneven step at the Sheringham end to remedy.

On the roof, the original plan was to reseal the vents above compartment 6, which had suffered a water leak. However once up there all of the vents looked the same so it wasn't obvious where the leak was coming from. After checking a sample of other vents on the roof it became known that the original sealant had perished and gone hard and powdery. Seeing as water leaks are the beginning of the end for any coach, particularly the interior, we decided every vent should be stripped off, fully cleaned up and re-bedded down with new sealant. This has been 90% completed this week with the last stragglers to follow next week.

Stripping of the old paint on the roof, ready for repainting, has continued witgh the sides and gutters now complete. Next week should see a start made on the remaining centre section, up on the roof itself.

Internally, compartment 6's re-varnishing is now completed which means that compartment 6 has now "caught up" with all the others. This done, the re-varnishing eyes turned towards the inside of the sliding compartment doors, which have now all received a coat of satin varnish.

The ceiling repainting is progressing well, with the centre vestibule and corridors repainted, leaving just the two end vestibules still to complete.

British Railways 1958 Covered Carriage Truck M94125 (REPAIR)

The newly tyre turned wheelset is now in undercoat, whilst the axleboxes have made it to gloss.

Workshop

One of the platform barrows which has been with us for some time undergoing repair, has received final painting and sign-writing this week.