London cambrian

Met 1 is also doing bodmin and wenford and swindon and cricklade, talk about doing the rounds! All this before she's even done the bluebell which i'd have thought woulda been sooner...

Cheers for that Gareth I got some photos of it too when i was there last weekend, has rather given me som interesting ideas for models, so may have to hunt out some really decent drawings at some point... When and if it gets its proper buffers back if you can please post a photo of the buffing gear and particularly how they go into the frame and spring off the frame... I may have to come down myself if this project gets off the ground Cheers again Mark

that settles it, am certainly making the trip down to MHR then hahah

Yes from what i hear, it was failed during the week by Dennis howell after suspect leaks under the smokebox, and i suspect a general feeling of poor pulling power... The concrete in the base of the smokebox was broken up and pulled out to reveal the problem which was apparently a crack/hole in the wall of the cylinder casting that had been previously repaired, hence the need to fail the lcomotive and call in L150 to do the honours...

I really look forward to reading this thread go on, Cwmafon was a layout i always remembered and admired from reading my dads old RMs (hope thats not making anyone feel old! haha), and was always very disappointed there werent more pictures, indeed this thread is the first time i've seen the bottom half of the layout other than as a plan! Haha As i say, look forward to it... Mark

yep, thats about the size of it. But really how big an interest in it is there? We've been discussing it on here, but only half a dozen or so people have expressed their interest in it here. Its a sad fact wagons are the over looked part of preservation. And restoring it would be a very large job as you rightly say. taking it apart is a challenge in itself, theres only a hand full of parts which are bolted, its all other wise rivetted, as well as removing the RSJs in the end of it, which for wall we know are holding to together! any strip down would mean a lot of work to drill out al the rivets, seperate the parts, which will no doubt be heavily corroded together, replace large sections of material which have just wasted beyond redemption, and then replace al the fixings which were removed. inevitably i reckon it would get to a kit of parts stage and be dropped because of other projects. plus there is still a lot unkown about this vehicle, i still havnt been able to confirm there was a central wooden floor on it, though i'm fairly certain looking at the holes in the supporting angle and their lower displacement to the rest of the floors. Its a pessimistic way of looking at it but thats facts. I'd whole heartedly support any attempts at its restoration and rebuild (and it most certainly is a rebuild, though fortunately the vast majority of parts are there for it) but it would require some serious impetus behind it for it to get anywhere in the current position!

I'd fear garath its getting towards that stage already! Its gotta be the only wagon onsite with exception of maybe the beetle (which is undercover) and the palvans (which arent much more than storage i dont think) that hasnt had any work done to it since it arrived. would make a very interesting addition to the freight set. And there obviously seems no reason for it not to be restored by didcot like they have at SVR apart from lack of interest, and what i consider may be a more relevant issue, the space it would take up in LOCOMOTIVE works, not the carriage and wagon, because it very definitely needs space in there which it would take up from other big name projects like Pendennis, the saint, the prairie, the county, the dock tank and the 72xx. i suspect thats the issue and obstacle to it. perhaps when a few have left there would be room to consider the coral A.

Cracking stuff there castle! Lovely little model thats turned out as! maybe showing around at didcot might fire some enthusiasm into restoration of what remains of the full size! Nice one! All the best Mark

I know whats being stamped on the boxes for inside my 5 inch gauge coral then... Does mean i'm going to have to make the inner crate frames now :/

Hi Paul Do you know why they were being carried on flat wagons at the time of your photographs? Were they on transfer to the NRM or something at the time?

Can i just boost the profile of the miniature railway part of this event? Amongst a small group of us we have (all in 5 inch gauge) upto 3 Metropolitan railway steam locomotives, of classes A, H and K, (no guarentee of steaming but will be on display), atleast 1 LT pannier almost certainly in steam, at least 2 metropolitan railway electric locomotives (others to be confirmed) 5 Met railway Dreadnoughts, 3 Jubilee coaches (including a model of the preserved 353) 14 Met railway wagons, Met non passenger stock, and many private owner wagons that would have seen service over met metals and behind Met engines. All this will be running in between public trains, in what we hope willbe the largest ever gathering of Met railway rolling tock in 5 inch gauge and 7 1/4 inch gauge. Please do come and see us over the weekend, and we may organise photographic opportunities to create scenes such as a Met H at the head of a dreadnought rake, A at the head of jubilees, and K at the head over a mixed freight... sorry, shameless plug over in other news it has been confirmed by EOR that whilst the GER N7 cannot make it, LT liveried prairie will take its place, and that TWO dreadnoughts will now also be visiting for the event, along with Met 1, coach 353 and the Milk van.

I'd tend to agree, most vehicles of this sort of type would tend to be required at odd times, or only moved periodically, so unless there was a big batch going somwhere they'd be formed into ordinary freight trains mostly. However if there was a permenant way train going that way, or certainly even on other railways, ther was no reason they wouldnt form such vehicles into any type of train, including ballast. But it was more likely to be coincidental it was in the train, not usually there for an associated reason, if you see what i mean. On some railways if particular vehicles were required at specific places, they would more than likely be attached to the next train going that way. Certainly round london, on the GCR london extension i have heard tales of the returning empty fish vans being tripped across london in the small hours of the morning on the back of permenant way trains on the old metropolitan railway so they could be taken back to grimsby for the morning catch. But essentially vehicles like this are in the main considered as stock fit to run in any train, including passenger (unsure of the GWs policy on them) so you may well find them in ordinary pick up goods trains. A point of query, Stationmaster mentioned painters vehicles, is that literally painters or am i missing something there? Cheers Mark

The way that 9466 came storming up the bank at chorleywood on sunday i think they may well have got their own back on that one tbh! Just a few from me because i didnt get the ones i really wanted, but these will do pretty well. I never got to see Met 1 which is a shame, but was always going to folow her round the gala's she is booked in for, if they get her fixed in time that is!

Ah a location i am well familiar with, getting odd looks from other visitors as i get on the ground measuring and crawling around the frames! hehe! But i'd love to see the aero wagon converted back, and with an appropriate load of course! Another to model one day. And good news that they want to restore it, but the problem with it is it needs space in the main loco workshop more than just the carriage shed, and what with Pendennis, 1366, the country, the saint and the prairie in there its a little way down the pecking order! But please do post the pics of the model, always good to see. Back on the transport wagons, my first thought was as a converted conflat, but theres the extra framing on there it would be interesting to see a better pic of. And especially some better indication of the lettering applied, how it was used (ie what did it carry, what sort of train did it travel in, the next freight going that way or was there dedicated stores trains etc etc) and some more background info, for anyone with access to the wagon lists particularly. Cheers Mark