Departmental Coach No. DW 80948?

[MerseyMan]

Quite a long shot I must admit but can anyone identify which type of coach this is. Or indeed any other information about it.

 

 

Photographed at Tywyn station with the down daily goods train to Pwllheli . 29th July 1964

[Wickham Green too]

The earliest DW list I have access to is far too late but includes three Inspection Saloons and a Tool Van in the 809xx sequence ...... so presumably a Saloon of some sort. ( most Western Departmentals were in the DW150xxx series, of course )

[keefer]

From Google Books preview of Geoff Plumb's "British Railways in the 1960s: Western Region", it was a 4-wheel coach "latterly a 'Sleeping and Messing Coach, Shrewsbury District'."

[keefer]

From http://www.nwrail.org.uk/nw1502b.htm

[MerseyMan]

Excellent. Thank you all.

[keefer]

DW80948 at Machynlleth in August 1960:

https://paulbartlett.zenfolio.com/gwrdeptcoach/h1cb6ef2f#h1cb6ef2f

https://rcts.zenfolio.com/coaching-stock/gwr/other/hA87088E3#ha87088e3

Edited August 5, 2022 by keefer

[Compound2632]

According to @Penrhos1920's excellent website, this was an ex-Barry Railway third, No. 52, converted in 1924. However he notes: "The origins of this coach are a bit of a mystery. The registers say that it was converted from Barry Railway Third no.52 which was originally built in 1894. However, 52 had 6 compartments, not 5 as the picture shows and the build date was also wrong."

Edited August 5, 2022 by Compound2632

[Penrhos1920]

I need to go and correct my website after I’ve been to Bernard Castle.   It’s Brecon & Merthyr, not Barry.  Built as a 5 compartment third in 1894 by Metro C & W.  Taken out of revenue stock in 1924 and converted to a Mess & Tool Van for the Engineering Dept, renumbered 80948.  Condemned at Shrewsbury in 1971.  So it had a much longer life in departmental service than revenue service!

[The Stationmaster]

18 hours ago, keefer said:

From http://www.nwrail.org.uk/nw1502b.htm

I'm not sure what the caption means about 'still using four wheeled vehicles in 1957'.  WR four wheeled mess and tool vans, probably including some used for overnight staff accommodation were still in use 7 years after that and maybe remained in use beyond then (as the 1971 condemnation of 80948 might indicate?),  But these were mess vehicles for the civil engineer (as indicated by the marking on 80948) or Signal Engineer and they were not used as riding vehicles (AFAIK) but were moved from site to site as needed to provide messing facilities during bifgger jobs such as relaying and resignalling work.

[Wickham Green too]

Indeed - the 'vehicle' next to it is also four-wheeled and as far as I know there might still be a few four-wheeled wagons in service to this day.

[hmrspaul]

4 hours ago, Wickham Green too said:

Indeed - the 'vehicle' next to it is also four-wheeled and as far as I know there might still be a few four-wheeled wagons in service to this day.

A lot more than a few wagons!

 

And of course it is quite recently we got rid of the last 4 wheel passenger vehicles - Pacers etc. 

 

Paul

Edited August 6, 2022 by hmrspaul

[hmrspaul]

Quote

 

On 05/08/2022 at 15:35, MerseyMan said:

Quite a long shot I must admit but can anyone identify which type of coach this is. Or indeed any other information about it.

 

 

Photographed at Tywyn station with the down daily goods train to Pwllheli . 29th July 1964

 

That is an amazing colour. It should have been black or (bright) red enamel if considered to be ex passenger stock in use for breakdown crane trains. And looks very newly done. No way is it gulf red, or is it? I suppose it is! Geoff Williams photo is earlier and I would suggest remains in black with the writing in different places https://PaulBartlett.zenfolio.com/gwrdeptcoach/e1cb6ef2f

 

Paul

[The Stationmaster]

2 hours ago, hmrspaul said:

 

That is an amazing colour. It should have been black or (bright) red enamel if considered to be ex passenger stock in use for breakdown crane trains. And looks very newly done. No way is it gulf red, or is it? I suppose it is! Geoff Williams photo is earlier and I would suggest remains in black with the writing in different places https://PaulBartlett.zenfolio.com/gwrdeptcoach/e1cb6ef2f

 

Paul

As it is a Civil Engineer's vehicle logically I suppose it could be Gulf Red but the tone might well have been 'modified' by the film stock used, the way in which teh original swas scanned, and - finally(?)  - the way in which colour is set for the site it appeared on and our own screens. (e.g. the lineside grass looks a bit too 'bright green'  to me on my 'puter screen