MULTIPLE UNIT NOTES
■ Most of the multiple unit stock that was advertised for sale as a result of the demise of the Dartmoor Railway has now been sold, with a two-car Thumper unit reported to be heading for the Brechin Railway in Scotland. Unit 1132, which is Driving Motor Brake 60150 and Driving Trailer 60831, had been at the Devon line for 16 years and was once a staple part of the fleet. It left the Meldon Quarry storage area in early June. The destination of other sold vehicles is not yet known, although some of the loco-hauled coaches, which are in the worst condition, have already been consigned for scrap. The line-up includes another Thumper unit plus examples of Class 411 and 412 EMUS, as well as a number of Mk 2 and Mk 3 coaches.
■ A pair of Class 144 DMUS that have been in open store at Gobowen station in Shropshire have been moved to their new home at the Cambrian Railways Society at Oswestry. The pair, 144006-007, made their way to Shropshire last year by rail from storage at the Keighley & Worth Valley Railway and were stabled in the old coal sidings at Gobowen. This site is part of the Cambrian Railways and is rail-connected to Oswestry, but currently the company is not permitted to allow rail traffic to cross a busy main road between the two towns. This resulted in the decision that was finally taken to move the two units by rail. It is intended eventually that a service will be provided from Oswestry to Gobowen, but this relies on road improvements being made that will include a bridge to separate rail and road traffic.
■ The 4DD Group has announced that it has been successful in obtaining the second doubledeck EMU coach, which will join its collection at Sellindge in Kent. Driving Motor Brake 13004 has been at the Northamptonshire Ironstone Railway Trust for a number of years, but has been in open store and has suffered significant deterioration. Now, following the death of its owner, Nick Robinson, the coach has been donated to the Group and will be reunited with similar vehicle 13003, which is slowly being restored at its current private home.
The Southern Railway built two four-car DD sets to Bulleid’s design in 1949 as an experiment to see if capacity could be increased without extending train length, but they were unsuccessful due to increased station dwell time. Withdrawn in 1971, a three-car set was preserved but was later split up, with the centre car being scrapped.
■ Waggon und Maschinenbau railbus 79962 is having body panels replaced in the Vintage Carriage Trust shed at Ingrow on the Keighley & Worth Valley Railway. Panels below the windows at one end have been removed due to corrosion issues and are being replaced with new. The railbus, which arrived on the railway in 1968, has been out of traffic since the 1990s but is slowly being rebuilt with the intention of returning it to traffic.
■ The Llangollen Railcar Group has been simultaneously fitting out the interiors of two of its coaches, both of which are under long-term restoration. Cravens Driving Trailer 56456 is having its interior walls refitted at Pentrefelin Depot, while Gloucester Driving Trailer 56097 has had its ceilings refitted, and a start has been made on the walls, at the subdepot at Butterley at the Midland Railway. The Cravens last ran in 2010, while the Gloucester has never worked under Llangollen ownership, having last carried a passenger in 1994.
■ Restoration of the solesurviving Class 104 Driving Trailer has reached a significant stage at the Mid-norfolk Railway, with the completion of the exterior welding. 56182 has required considerable attention to the mountings for the bodyside members as well as panel work. Grit blasting is now taking place on the rear portion of the body to prepare it for painting. Bogie overhauls have now been completed and the coach is back on its own wheels once again.
■ At the Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway, Class 117 Driving Motor Brake 53160 has had a completely new corner section welded into the secondman’s side of the cab. Also receiving attention has been one of the guard’s van doors and the associated frame.
■ Weardale Railway-based Bubble Car 55012 has had a replacement floor fitted in the guard’s van and repairs to its No 1 engine, which had injectors blowing back into the rocker covers. The line’s Class 108 is having its roof painted and an interior upgrade before the summer’s services.
■ The Wensleydale Railway has become the first heritage line in the UK to regularly use Class 142s in passenger service, and it has turned out 142060 and 142090 as it relaunches its services after the COVID-19 lockdown, with the sets working in multiple. Services have been running between Bedale and Scruton. The Llanelli and Mynydd Mawr has also turned out its Class 142, 142006, for a launch day.
■ Volunteers from the Hitachi factory at nearby Newton Aycliffe have been assisting Kirk Merrington Primary School in bringing its static Class 142 unit into use. Interior panels have been removed from 142045 so that additional insulation can be fitted.