Since the previous report we have continued to provide the A-timetable service on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. The Wickham class 109 unit worked the lion's share of them and was accompanied by the hybrid class 104/108 on Sunday 27th March when a 4-car unit was needed to cater for additional passengers.
We are always on the lookout for photographs that are taken from unusual vantage points, especially ones that show the railcars and the Dee Valley scenery at their most picturesque, so we are grateful to Karl Latham for supplying the following picture of the Wickham at Berwyn Station, viewed from the Chainbridge Hotel, on 26th March...
...and to James Hilton for the following picture of the same unit between Glyndyfrdwy and Deeside on Sunday 13th March...
On Sunday 20th March the Wickham was given a well-earned rest and a Fuel Point (FP) exam so the A-timetable service was provided by the hybrid class 104/108 unit. It was photographed by Mike Martin passing Pentrefelin on its way from Llangollen to Carrog...
As well as work on our railcars, there are a lot of other things that need to be done in order to keep the cogs whirring. That includes behind-the-scenes "homework" and jobs at our Pentrefelin and Butterley depots that cannot be attributed directly to railcars. For example, our most recent meeting at Pentrefelin included the need to carry out some Portable Appliance Tests (PAT) on electrical equipment...
...and paint some steps that were finally completed after being constructed as a low-priority, fill-in turn over a very long period of time. Perhaps we now need to find a local dignitary who is keen to go up in the world to declare them well-and-truly open?
Information about the work that is directly associated with railcars can be found in the unit-specific work sections below.
The front of the vehicle was given a clean because it was beginning to look rather sorry for itself after its time in 'canal siding'. It looks better as a result but some damage to the cab corners by what looks like tree sap will need to be attended to at a later date.
The inside of the vehicle was also subjected to a good clear out and looks much better for it...
The two windows in the first class section on the secondman's side were measured so that the Z-section beads and quadrant beading could be cut to size and the Z-section beads drilled so that they will slide over the securing bolts. The Z-section beads were then trial fitted...
Some stain and varnish will need to be applied before they are fitted for real.
The panel over the first vestibule door on the secondman's side was fitted along with the box for the passcom chain...
The Cravens Class 105 restoration team at Llangollen and the Gloucester Class 100 restoration team at Butterley comprise mostly the same people who therefore share their skills between two different sites and indeed two different countries! Ever resourceful, they realised that some old plastic vents that they discovered at Pentrefelin could be stripped from the remnants of the old ceilings to which they were still fastened, cleaned up, and taken to Butterley for use on the two Gloucester vehicles there. They just need to find one more vent to have a complete set...
Class 108 (51933/54504)
A door and one of the panels on 51933 that suffered graffiti damage last year had the paint flattened and were then given a coat of undercoat/gloss followed by a coat of gloss...
A couple of patches on 54504 where the paint was peeling off also got sanded, filled and primed. Meanwhile, repairs were carried out to some doors of the guard's compartment where a luggage door would not close properly and the associated inwards-opening one dragged on the floor...
Needless to say the onus was on the operator of the sander to keep the dust away from the area where painting was taking place!
As mentioned earlier, the train service on Sunday 20th March was provided by the hybrid class 104/108 unit so that the Wickham could be given a Fuel Point (FP) exam which was required due to the mileage that had been clocked up since the previous exam. The FP exam is a relatively minor one and, with good luck and a following wind, a team of 3-4 people can complete it in roughly half a day.
Gloucester class 100 trailer car no. 56097 (undergoing restoration at the Midland Railway, Butterley)
All of the wall panels for the secondman's side of the centre compartment were fitted, along with a couple of strips of beading...
The refurbished lifting cover for the cab sliding door mechanism was also fitted...
There was some measuring of the windows in the first class compartment so that an order can soon be placed for them. Also, the recently-installed destination box was wired up and awaits testing by someone who can supply some Volts.
Thanks to Allen Chatwood, James Hilton, John Joyce, Karl Latham and Mike Martin for supplying the pictures.
Since the previous report the Wickham class 109 unit has been busy providing the A-timetable service on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. The following picture shows it passing Pentrefelin on the approach to Llangollen with the first train from Carrog on Saturday 5th March...
The above picture also includes the unusual sight of the Cravens trailer 56456 visible for all to see in Pentrefelin Yard. For most of the period since it was withdrawn from service in 2010 it has been tucked down the side of the shed but, as part of a 'shunt-a-thon', the opportunity was taken to extract it and eventually move it to the 'road' on which our other railcars stable. As a result, members of its restoration team will, from now on, be provided with the additional mental stimulus of having to locate their worksite!
The aforementioned 'shunt-a-thon' also resulted in the two halves of the blue class 104 unit being coupled together the wrong way round...
The vehicle furthest from the camera (50528) is currently out of service for bodywork repairs and the one nearest the camera (50454) forms part of the operational blue/green class 104/108 hybrid unit together with class 108 trailer 56223...
Some information about the work that has been carried out at Pentrefelin and Butterley can be found in the unit-specific work sections below.
Two more window frame outers were fitted to windows in the rear compartment...
Also more aluminium beading was cut and fitted in the first class and centre compartments.
The 'C' exam continued with routine jobs that included brake adjustment, brakegear lubrication, vacuum test, fire system check, screw coupling and faceplate cleaning and greasing, buffer height checks, earth leakage checks, sliding ventilator checks and passcom test.
Something out of the ordinary, though, was the need to free up the screw coupling on the rear of 51933 using a generous dose of heat and oil...
More beading was fitted above the luggage rack backing panels in the first class section...
In the second class middle compartment a couple more timber wall supports were fitted, as was the first of the new wall panels above the luggage rack panels...
Light fittings were installed in the middle compartment and the rear vestibule...
...which only leaves the rear compartment devoid of light fittings.
The vestibule wall and aluminium lower panel was given a good clean in the middle compartment on the driver's side and the door lock on door 3 secondman's side was removed and serviced.
Thanks to Allen Chatwood, John Joyce and Mike Martin for supplying the pictures.