Class 304 Emu interior

[Simon Moore]

Hi guys,

It's time for a summer project & with plans for a layout based on what i saw in the Midlands during the eighties the 304 is what i have chosen. I've a Dc Kit's class 304 in the post & whilst the kit is winging it's way through the postal system i thought it was time to research prototypes & get a good background before i start building the kit.

 

As with all units around my time period the outer paint scheme is well documented & i have no trouble in painting the model in the blue grey livery we once had. What i'm currently having problems with is the interior paint scheme, i have no idea what shade to paint the inner body & what colour the seating was in the units. 

Is there anyone on here who has some good images of what i am looking for ?

Cheers,

Simon

[Ian Fisher]

From memory the interior was wood with fabric being deep sea grey with the coloured threads in the moquette, horse hair filled.

 

Ceiling a cream white aluminium luggage racks.

 

http://www.mattypsrailwaypics.com/class-304.html would seem to back up what I remembered!

 

 

Ian

[Simon Moore]

Thanks Ian thats great, 

I'm hoping that once the seating is painted i can get some prieser figures to break up the emptiness of coaching stock. My plan is to get some lighting in the coaching so they need to be well detailed.

Simon

[Robert Shrives]

Hi Ceilings were a lovely nicotene stained cream/brown - ugh !! Interiors I recall were varnished wood with light grey in vans and cabs - along with graffitti from staff - comments on other crews and "the management"  Seats i recall in the early black moquette with read and grey dotted lines and full of dust, mites,fleas etc. Recall saloon disappearing in a light grey fug when two children got loose from parents and started jumping on seats - stopped and they were loosely patted down and family "tutting at condition of dirty saloon departed to next coach ( which would have been the same of course! )

 

Robert    

[bennyboy]

Hi Ceilings were a lovely nicotene stained cream/brown - ugh !! Interiors I recall were varnished wood with light grey in vans and cabs - along with graffitti from staff - comments on other crews and "the management"  Seats i recall in the early black moquette with read and grey dotted lines and full of dust, mites,fleas etc. Recall saloon disappearing in a light grey fug when two children got loose from parents and started jumping on seats - stopped and they were loosely patted down and family "tutting at condition of dirty saloon departed to next coach ( which would have been the same of course! )

 

Robert    

 

It doesn't surprise me that kids used to bounce up and down on the seats as the one thing I always remember about the 304's was the ultra springy seats that were like a moquette trampoline!

[mcowgill]

Brings back memories of heading down to Crewe to sit on the platform ends all day (or go round the works), bouncing about something silly on those seats all the way from Piccadilly to Crewe.  The seats were definitely a dark grey moquette and I remember a generally gloomy interior.

 

Martin

[dmustu]

I think the material for the seats was called Trojan. I dont think the 304 were ever properly refurbished, and the trojan material was the original fitted from new, which would partly explain why it was so filthy. Not a good idea if wearing a white t-shirt! 

[bennyboy]

Wikipedia does seem to suggest that even though they were refurbished in the 80s, the interiors were left unmodifed until the end of their lives!

[SHMD]

I seem to recall that the refurbishment program consisted of making the crowded 4-car units 3-car units!

[roythebus]

Maybe the daftest use of 304s was during a traction engineer's strike at Willesden in about 1974, seeing 304s being used on 1H and 1L express services vice a class 81-86 and 10 inter-city coaches!

[stovepipe]

If you're doing one of the first 15 sets, remember the MBSs weren't opened out to MBSOs until quite some way into the 1980s. I remember jumping on one in rush-hour and being quite shocked that there was no spare seats, and no escape until the next stop either....