July News Part 1

 The last few weeks have been very busy and a week' holiday away from the railway have both contributed to a lack of updates recently, apologies!

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

Regrettably I forgot to obtain a proper update on the Thompson project this week, but things have been progressing well on most fronts. Of note is the completion of the sausage shaped apertures in the guards and luggage areas which has changed the external look of the vehicle for the better.

London North Eastern Railway 1924 Quad Articulated Set 74

Unfortunately the portable ground lathe turning encountered problems which required the company to return to their base to manufacture new parts.

Due to the estimated lead time on these the Quad set has been removed from the shed/yard and stored undercover up at Holt again until the works can recommence. The repaired and re-varnished exterior glowed in the sunshine once the set was moved out!

British Railways 1956 Brake Corridor Composite E21103 (SILVER)

A set of batteries was made up for the vehicle with some results (lights go on, lights go off!) but there were issues holding the charge so some cells have been substituted in and out. They are currently disconnected again and we shall see whether a secondhand set will indeed prove good enough. If not we will have to investigate in a new set as this coach is sue to be used on the Norfolk Lights Express this year so requires winter-spec battery power!

The painting has been the main focus of the exterior. The coach has been moved into the staging area which allowed the safety line to be utilised to first repair some broken toilet filler pipes on the roof before a coat of paint was applied.

With the roof now completed, work to the bodysides and ends are all that is left. The exterior sliding doors are now gloss painted brown and the end bodywork itself is black glossed and awaiting signwriting/lettering.

The sides have all been given the first coat of maroon, with the second coat now progressing. This has been challenging in summer temperatures, which are only scheduled to get hotter! Support work, which must never been forgotten, includes rubbing down between coats of paint and cleaning the outstanding aluminium sliding windows back to their natural shine.

The last parts of the wheelchair saloon have been painted in cream gloss which was delayed after we received a paint of special mix which didn't match the normal supply. The lino flooring in this area has been cleaned up as well so we are calling this area complete now.

The remaining floors in the compartment and guards areas, which are painted, have been given a new coat of green floor paint which is rather bright but will weather down. The only tasks left for the interior are the installation of various items of emergency equipment which were robbed from the coach whilst it was withdrawn from service for other brake vehicles around the railway.

British Railways 1962 Tourist Second Open M4958 (BRONZE)

The reupholstering of the seating has now been completed, a major milestone for the vehicle. The backs, which previously were loose fitted, are now being screwed into position permanently and the varnished wooden tops being installed to cap them off.

The remaining vestibules have now also been re-varnished so they are now glossy again for the first time in some years!

Once the seating is refitted and the toilets repaired the coach will be returned to service.

British Railways 1958 Covered Carriage Truck M94125 & 1960 Covered Carriage Truck E94464 (REPAIR)

CCT van E94464 has been removed from the main train for various repairs before the main school holidays kick in. The two sets of opening end doors, which have been getting very stiff and reluctant to close in wet weather, were eased before they became a problem during the Norfolk Lights season when this vehicle is used as a generator car.

Juddering brakegear which was traced to a bent vacuum cross shaft has been repaired by swapping the shafts between this CCT and the other one (M94125) which was withdrawn from service a few years ago.

The latter vehicle has also surrendered its steam heat and vacuum pipes for use on other vehicles, along with its vacuum cylinders.

E94464 also had a twisting drawhook at one end due to excessive wear in the slot in the bufferbeam. This has now been removed and the slot welded up to take out the wear. It is due to be refitted next week.

London Transport 1955 20 Ton Ballast Hopper HW426

Painting has continued to be the focus, with all areas now in undercoat or higher. More than half of the wagon is glossed, with some areas getting one coat and others two.

The Gulf Red hopper body is now complete with lettering due to be applied soon. Various details are now starting to be picked out in white.

As with many of the projects currently in the workshop, the end is definitely in sight for this wagon, which is due to make its debut at the Steam Gala in late August.

British Railways 1953 20 Ton Lowmac TDB904093

This project has stepped up a gear as the work parties are moving from monthly to weekly. The previously cleaned and primed areas have quickly progressed to undercoat and plans are in place of how to tackle the oil stained decking and tractor which lies on top of it.

Much research has been done on the vehicle to enable a proper plan of what parts of the wagon are going to be what colour etc. We now have our brief so it won't be long before the railway's youngest division are delivering!

Hurst Nelson 1944 4 Wheel Petroleum Tank 5304

A good move forward with the project has been the start of signwriting, after the tanker was moved slightly to improve access. The move was greeted with thanks from the Museum as M&GN 12 (the museum brake) is in a better place for them. A tower was borrowed from Building Dept. which made life a lot easier for signwriting.

Before the signwriting started the silver top coats were applied to the tank barrel. 

The black gloss on the axle boxes, underframe items etc has been applied. As has the red on the solebars, all of which are complete. I would expect this wagon to make its debut at the same time as the hopper, so two wagons launched/relaunched at one event.

Workshop

A set of guards oil lamps have been rubbed down and repainted for use on the goods train.

Maintenance

A examinations are progressing throughout the fleet with the dining set completed and the suburbans and main Mark 1 sets not far behind.

The biggest headache has been a consistently troublesome generator on the dining train kitchen car which has been behaving strangely. It is very important for the running of the train so repairs have had to be swift and haven't been very successful. A test diner (utilising the visiting Class 25) was operated one evening to test out the latest repairs and hopefully we are making progress!