Peter Fidczuk

Interesting to see that the Glenfinnan van is still on its underframe. Usually just the body was sold for further use and the underframe cut up. Pete

I've not followed the earliest contributions to this thread so I don't know if this van has been featured already but I thought that I would share this recent picture (11th June) of a BR van with a pitched roof grounded at Southwold Harbour next to a fish and chip cafe. There are some well recorded coaches with this type of addition but this is the first time I have seen a van adapted in this way. Best, Pete

Following on from the last post. The Pulverite and PDAC fleets transported coal which had been pulverised at the colliery and one reason that these fleets were small might be because coal was pulverised at the power station, rather than at the colliery. Pulverised coal is a very hazardous explosive commodity and so its transport is therefore a risky enterprise. Pulverisation at the power station removes this risk. Best, Pete

Hi Tony, Thanks for posting this nice picture. Some time ago I wrote a short article for British Railways Illustrated which is attached and which gives some of their back story. As Mark has posted there were two fleets of triple silo powdered coal wagons : Yorkshire/Durham wagons lettered 'Pulverite' and owned by the Standard Pulverised Fuel Company, dating from the mid 1930s. South Wales wagons which were originally developed by Powell Duffryn Amalgamated Collieries in the 1940s and then subsequently passed to NCB ownership. I have a very poor view of Pulverite 1016 at Brancepeth Colliery in 1962 so that is where they were loaded at that period. However their destination remains unknown but it would have to have been a plant equipped with discharge gear specifically built for these wagons, possibly dating from the mid 1930s when they were brought into service. Best, Pete