LNER and GWR Pullman gangways

[bordercollie]

Hello

I have been searching books and internet but have not been able to establish some details of the Pullman Gangways as use by GWR. In my early edition of Harris' Great Western coaches he says "Nor were the Pullman gangways of the LNER type .....". What were the differences and more importantly would any such differences be noticable in 4mm?

Harris also says that Pullman gangways where first fitted to the 1922-1925 "South Wales" coaches. Was this the case for all of the Bow-ends, whether they had  Bow-ends at both or one end only or just some of them?

 

[The Stationmaster]

I believe the 'South Wales coaches'  were unique among GWR passenger stock - certainly in those days if not until the end of the company - in having Pullman gangways.  They were also rather different from some other buckeye coupled vehicles in having drop down buffers which were swivelled downwards out of use when the coaches were coupled using the buckeye coupling.   Additionally the gangway adaptor which had to be used when coupled to vehicles with standard gangways appears from the Instructions to have been considerably different from the normal style of gangway adaptor - no doubt as a consequence of using long drop down full length buffers instead of a saddle on the spindle of extendable buffers.

 

Overall they look to have been an unnecessarily complicated way of using a buckeye coupling/Pullman gangway and vehicles so equipped were supposed to remain in a set and were not permitted to work off the GWR.   According to Russell the idea of the bow end was to keep the gangway short and that certainly looks to be the case in a photo although that in turn added to the need for the gangway adaptor with a bellows of its own.

 

Incidentally it might be helpful to ask for this thread to be moved to the GWR Rolling stock etc area?

[Wenrash]

If you are able to find a copy of Vol 17 1996 of the Great Western Railway Journal, you will find an article by John Lewis on the "South Wales Coaches" 1923-1926. There are drawings and close up photographs of the Pullman Gangway Connectors, as well as the GWR suspended gangway.

 

Richard A

[Wenrash]

PS wrong  article for the GWR suspended gangway.

R