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Isle of Wight Steam Railway Carriage and Wagon updates

Discussion in 'Heritage Rolling Stock' started by gwalkeriow, Jul 28, 2011.

  1. martin1656

    martin1656 Nat Pres stalwart Friend

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    If I am honest, I have mixed feelings, happy that the IOWSR will have another suitable coach, that will replace one that was unable to be saved, so will fill a gap in their collection, and that under their care it will get done, Unhappy, that the KESR, appears to not value its historic coaches, from an commercial point of view, those that have been restored, were done because of a small group with in C&W with little input from the the board decided it was going to acquire and restore the old SECR coach bodies, and other vintage coaches, at one stage, there were more vintage coaches awaiting repair, than available to run as the vintage rake, hopefully this is no longer the case, and the KESR will in the future have an more enlightened policy towards its vintage stock.
     
  2. jma1009

    jma1009 Well-Known Member

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    There is now some further information on the "IWSR C&W happenings" Facebook page about SECR 1106 including:-

    "..this carriage was allocated diagram 159 by SR .A same length diagram no.158 consisting of 1 second ,a lav,5 thirds and a guards compartment when sent to the Island in 1948 had their lav removed and the guards comp converted to two third comps .They became diagram 40 8 1/2 third. They combined the 2nd class and the lav (1/2 comp) into a large third."

    And from Gary:-

    " 8 full compartments and a smaller one with seats just on one side. I believe that most if not all of the SECR 3rds on the Island were 8 and a half compartments."

    And from another poster:-

    " So it will become SR diagram No. 40 54' 1" underframe rebuilt from Diagram 158 for I.O.W. service SR Nos. 2438-2455 seating capacity 83 Third? David Gould's book has a plan."
     
  3. 60044

    60044 Member

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    Get used to it. As more railways move to more tourist railway business models they will favour vintage carriages less and less. We are seeing it on the NYMR, where the management have decided that they only want a single of Gresley teaks, preferably mostly high capacity open stock to be compatible with the Mk 1 fleet. Pre-Mk 1 stock is perceived as more expensive to maintain. Most of the coaches in the LNERCA collection, which were acquired with the aim of forming a second teak train, are likely to end up based on other railways once they are restored. So if you're railway has a set of restored vintage carriages, chances are that they will not want any more going forward.
     
  4. jma1009

    jma1009 Well-Known Member

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    Which must be why the IOWSR and it's collection of carriages make it so special. No Mk1s, no Formica, and a ride that is quite something in every respect.

    On the evening non stop run for members etc years ago at the August Bank Holiday Extravaganza I would not like to say that the speed limit was exceeded, but these old coaches definitely glided along. We would always choose a compartment in one of the LBSC bogie coaches, and on every other visit with a few exceptions.

    I would commend the Facebook page I've mentioned today with regular updates weekly or twice weekly.

    I am sure the C&W department of the IOWSR would welcome donations, and their work is absolutely fantastic!
     
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  5. dlaiow

    dlaiow New Member

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    Glad you're enjoying the Happenings page, rest assured it's in Bob & Gary's very safe hands now I've moved off the island. Yes the IWSR which welcome any donations to help with the high costs of restoration of the carriages & other vehicles.
     
  6. Paul Grant

    Paul Grant Well-Known Member

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    This feels super uncharitable. Rolling stock moves on all the time. And its hardly like KESR has put all its chips in with MK1s, there are still vintage carriages in use regularly there. Just have to look at photos and see how much work/ money is required to bring this back to service. Inevitably keeping the operational stock up to that is just running to standstill before looking at big restoration jobs. Just have to look at the sort of time the railcar has taken to get to where it is right now to see the sort of uphill battle KESR is facing with rapidly deteriorating stock.
     
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  7. 5944

    5944 Resident of Nat Pres

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    Talking of @Paulthehitch, he hasn't been online for a while. Anyone know if he's OK? Maybe if someone suggests the birdcage brake is being converted into a restaurant car he'll pop back up...
     
  8. burnham-t

    burnham-t New Member

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  9. Fireline

    Fireline Well-Known Member

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    This vehicle has gone to the Isle of Wight precisely BECAUSE the KESR has thought about it's vintage stock. This vehicle would have rotted to nothing before we had a chance to restore it. By letting it go to the IoW, we have secured it a better future. Would you rather the railway had hung on to it, without the ability to restore it? It's easy to say that the railway should have restored it, but what vehicle that has already been restored would you have had them throw aside to fit it in? The KESR was running a vintage train before most other lines, so I think they saw the commercial possibilities early enough, too.
     
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  10. Paul Grant

    Paul Grant Well-Known Member

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    KESR isn't the first railway either that came to rely on tired but structurally sound MK1s they picked up for pennies on the shilling (At the time) over the tired and likely structurally wobbly pre-nationalisation carriages they'd acquired and subsequently left in sidings with maybe a tarp. Whilst I know large parts of the movement are stuck in 1973, the youngest MK1s are nearly 60 years old. You could barely pick up 60 year old and up carriages in the earliest days of the movement that hadn't been axed through to make a kitchen space or in use as housing.
     
  11. 61624

    61624 Part of the furniture

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    That has become less of an excuse as time has gone by with restoration work needed on Mk 1s getting ever expensive. It would be a dull world indeed if all lines were to rely too heavily on them. . More examples of pre-BR stock should always be welcomed!
     
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  12. burnham-t

    burnham-t New Member

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    And older compartment stock can also give more seats for a given tare weight or train length. At busy periods I'm sure the Bluebell are grateful for their 100-seater 10-compartment thirds.
     
  13. Jamessquared

    Jamessquared Nat Pres stalwart

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    We've certainly been grateful to have had a lot of compartment stock for the last 18 months, given the business model adapted for much of last year.

    There is a nuance though, not often remarked on, which is the willingness (or not) of people to share compartments up to the nominal capacity. The hundred seaters supposedly sit ten to a compartment, but often if there is, say, a family of four already occupying the compartment (or even just a couple) people seek out an otherwise empty one, not always being keen to share even (say) eight in a ten seater compartment.

    This week, we have a six-coach train running, 140 tons tare, so within the weight limit of a class 1 loco, and a nominal capacity of 381 seats (48 first and 333 3rd). But I suspect you might get complaints if it regularly loaded to 381 people. (OTOH - with 200 people it is probably more comfortable than if 200 people tried to get into 140 tons of Mark 1s, i.e. four.).

    Tom
     
    Last edited: Oct 27, 2021
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  14. M59137

    M59137 Well-Known Member

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    This is absolutely true in my experience on the North Norfolk. Despite personally pushing for compartment stock NOT to be blacklisted, through observations I have to readily admit that during the main season, a 64 seat TSO will load higher than the 108 seat suburban S. The train has to completely fill up before the bulk of people "resort" to sharing compartments.

    It is for this reason that our railway always favoured TSO over SK pre Covid - platform lengths dictate 5 coach service trains which do fill up in summer so reluctance to enter occupied compartments isn't good.



    Sent from my moto g(8) power using Tapatalk
     
  15. Paulthehitch

    Paulthehitch Well-Known Member

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    As Mark Twain put it, reports of my death have been exaggerated.

    The use of luncheon baskets has been successful on the IOWSR. It would avoid the use of NAAFI like RMB's in other places..
     
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  16. Paulthehitch

    Paulthehitch Well-Known Member

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    Well, like most of the IWSR rescues it has the enormous advantage of a teak body frame. The doors have been removed at some point and plonked on the underframe.

    Although I really do think carriage sheds should be prioritised over extension projects, carriage repair facilities well staffed and equipped matter just as much. Havenstreet C&W people repair old furniture, make field gates and produce museum display cases. All this apart from training the next generation of skilled people on C and W. Rolling stock work as well!
     
    Last edited: Nov 17, 2021
  17. gwalkeriow

    gwalkeriow Well-Known Member

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    Peter Jardine has been awarded an MBE for services to Railway Heritage, he has been the lead on 9 restorations of grounded bodies, eight 4 wheel coaches and a bogie coach and still counting! Many congratulations to a very deserving hard working carriage restorer.
     
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  18. iowcr3429

    iowcr3429 New Member

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    Second that
     
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  19. dlaiow

    dlaiow New Member

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    Having worked for Pete for quite a few years I can say this award is totally justified, without him Havenstreet wouldn't anywhere near number the expertly restored carriages they now have.
     
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