Wagon Repair Works

[MattWallace]

Do they still exist, and if so, how big do they tend to be and what would the protoypical workings look like?

 

My wife got me thinking this morning about building a number of smaller layouts over the next couple of years and although she started me thinking about it for different reasons it means I'd spend less time in the loft, and therefore less time creeping around above the baby's head (when she arrives next month!).

 

This got me thinking about "portable layouts" and combined with a late evening trip to IKEA yesterday, I'm starting to wonder what the options are for a modern image layout on a LACK shelf.  This gives me 1900x260mm to play with in 00 and although I've seen a lot of shelf layouts and shunting puzzles, they all seem to be for Big Four/Pre-Tops and not Modern Image (my personal interest).

 

I'm now wondering if I could get a small wagon works into that kind of space with an 08 to shunt the wagons around, however I don't know if this would be prototypical.

 

Can anyone "shed" (groan....) some light on the workings of carriage/wagon repair depots?

 

Thanks in advance,

 

Matt

Edited August 17, 2013 by MattWallace

[pitbull1845]

Westbury still have one, don't have any pictures to hand but I'm sure a flickr search or similar may reveal some images.   It's pretty much a single road pikestuff style shed from memory. 

 

Edit: a quick snapshot from Bing maps... Not the best quality but shows you how basic it is.

 

 

Cheers

 

Scott

Edited August 17, 2013 by pitbull1845

[96701]

Peterborough Crescent was open until recently (in terms of it's lifespan). http://www.transportheritage.com/find-heritage-locations.html?sobi2Task=sobi2Details&catid=32&sobi2Id=848

Depends what you want.

[dvdlcs]

Back in Speedlink days, Carlisle Currock was a/the wagon works for the fleet.

 

Have wondered about a wagon works myself, so that you can run individual (or low numbers) of vehicles that usually only appear in block trains.

[RobR]

Rail Express Modeller June 2013 has a section on wagon works. One of those featured is the DBS facility at Tees yard, opened as recently as last year. This consists of a fan of three fairly short sidings, plus a stabling siding alongside. One of the sidings goes up to the door of a workshop building, but it's difficult to tell from the photos if it goes inside.

Wagons are shown on lifting jacks outside. the Tees Yard refuelling point is on the headshunt to the sidings. Might be worth getting hold of a copy. Rob

[Dave47549]

.

Edited October 1, 2021 by Dave47549
Removed pointless guff

[Torr Giffard LSWR 1951-71]

'Through Countryside and Coalfield' by Mike Vincent ISBN 0-86093-428-4 has some excellent pictures of the Marcroft wagon works, Radstock.

 

Dave

[Rivercider]

Pitbull1845 mentioned the Westbury wagon repair facility,

there were a number of good pictures of it in the 'EWS yards' thread in June posted by Glorious NSE,

 

Barton Hill in Bristol also still repairs wagons, mostly bogie coal hoppers,

and still has a class 08 pilot loco, a small section of that might work,

 

cheers

[MattWallace]

Thanks all, that's a great help.

 

Matt

[hmrspaul]

Matt

 

There are lots of photos on my site taken at wagon works of various sizes. Here is Barton Hill http://paulbartlett.zenfolio.com/bartoncandw

 

There are several Wagon works in this directory http://paulbartlett.zenfolio.com/industrialinternalwagons

 

Regards

 

Paul Bartlett

[MattWallace]

Thank Paul.

[ess1uk]

Peterborough Crescent was open until recently (in terms of it's lifespan). http://www.transportheritage.com/find-heritage-locations.html?sobi2Task=sobi2Details&catid=32&sobi2Id=848

Depends what you want.

A few years ago there was an article in Model Rail of the Peterborough Crescent works.

Very run down recently though, if not quite falling down.

 

I sometimes see the odd wagon being shunted into the DBS shed at Didcot when I'm working down there.

Edited August 24, 2013 by ess1uk

[11B]

There was a small wagon works at Carnforth station (in the triangle just West of the station between the Leeds line, Barrow line and the former siding that had the Leeds/Barrow line that avoided the station). It was a single road shed with two short lines next to it. I am not sure when it closed, but if memory serves me correctly it was around ten years back. It always had an 08 there and some rusty P Way wagons........

 

I can't seems to copy a link to, or a photo from Google earth. But if you type "Carnforth station, Warton Road" in, and look at the area between Warton Road and Shore Road. It now look like a trading estate, but the track work is still in place.

 

Hope this may be of some use

 

Ian

[xw1]

_{Worksop WRD was open up until a few years ago, when at the christmas closure the roller doors were dropped and welded to the rails. I believe it was one of the main depots for MGR wagons, but repairs were carried out on other wagons as required. This was latterly also the Worksop signing on point for EWS Drivers.}

 

_{With regards to the Crescent Wagon Works, this was described and modelled as a diorama by Chris Leigh (if I recall correctly) in one of the first issues of Model Rail as a magazine in it's own right. After spending many years OOU in his garage it was put up for charity auction, the successful purchaser being David Palmer, who carefully renovated and made the diorama into a working layout including making the traverser fully operational,}

 

_{The layout enjoyed travelling to a number of shows up and down the UK including Warley and Spalding as examples. This I know from personal experience as I used to help and generally made a mess of helping to operate the layout.}

 

_{Today it is now in the ownership of James Cullen, who I believe is renovating the layout and will possibly be exhibiting it at exhibitions in the future.}

 

_{Hope this was of interest.}

 

_XW

Edited November 6, 2013 by xw1

[MattWallace]

Thanks Chris, I'll keep an eye out for that last one

[GordonC]

There was a feature a while ago with a few pictures of EJ Steeles yard in Hamilton. I think it was in Model Rail, possibly up to a year or 18 months ago

[KeithMacdonald]

There are some pictures of the Marcroft Wagon Works at Radstock on this site:

http://www.radstocktofromerailwaytrust.co.uk/gallery.htm

[wagonman]

There are some pictures of the Marcroft Wagon Works at Radstock on this site:

http://www.radstocktofromerailwaytrust.co.uk/gallery.htm

 

 

Interesting site though there are a few weird captions: the reference to the Brunel shed at Radstock – Brunel died in 1859, B&NSR line to Radstock opened in1873. 

The great photo of the employees at "Marcrofts Wagon Works in 1900" – good to know the peoples' names but they weren't working for Marcroft as he was still living in Rotherham in 1900. The works in fact belonged to the Radstock Wagon Co, part of the Beauchamp family 'empire'.