Brake Van B954962 waiting to be removed from our shed after completion.


Our steam heat van, with the new roof section just visible. In front is the set of scrap bogies waiting to go to a scrap yard, to be exchanged for a set of B4's.

January and February have traditionally become the two months of the year that we set aside to overhaul and carry out maintenance to the service coaches. Many of the coaches have been running for ten months without a break. We work to an agreed programme, in that there is an annual maintenance plan for each coach based around our operating cycle.

The major servicing is when brake blocks are examined and exchanged; buckeye couplers are examined; brakes are adjusted and oil filled axleboxes are stripped and examined. For the rest of the year, the vehicles are checked on a regular basis by our mid week servicing gang led by Clive Thomas, and repairs and adjustments are carried out as necessary. The coaches do not overhaul and maintain themselves, and a dedicated plan is necessary to make sure that everything is done on time, and that records are up to date.

In addition to the servicing mentioned above, our team of upholsters has gone through the coaches and repaired all obvious defects in the upholstery. This makes a dramatic difference to the overall passenger comfort and ambience. This year, there was time to service the carmine & cream, and chocolate & cream sets at Winchcombe. They are the two rakes we shall start the season with. They left for Toddington on Sunday 24th February, all ready for another season's hard work.

Whilst all this was going on, in mid January we were asked to repaint into chocolate & cream a Mailvan which was to be used in the Elegant Excursions dining train. This mailvan has had a couple of dishwashers and some other kitchen equipment fitted inside. Six weeks is not long to paint such a large vehicle, and with a valiant effort from all concerned, it has just about been achieved to enable it to be ready for Mothering Sunday.

The request to paint the mailvan meant that our maroon TSO 5042 which had been progressing nicely before Christmas had to be parked outside, partially completed. The original plan had been to have this available for the start of the new running season. Work has been progressing on cleaning a set of seating for it, and making up new arm rests and side panels. Whilst the coach was outside we took the opportunity to lift it off its bogies, and lubricate and overhaul them. Some parts of the bogies were missing, so it was a good opportunity to obtain and fit replacement brake rods and associated fittings.

The internal flooring had been replaced with lino by BR at some time in its existence. The vehicle had obviously been standing vandalised in a depot for several years before we obtained it. The majority of windows were smashed, and the resultant water lying inside had caused the lino to shrink, lift and distort. There was no real hope of salvaging it, so all the lino has been stripped out. Very thin 3mm ply has been laid throughout to create a nice flat surface, and brand new lino will shortly be laid by a contractor.

Both of the vestibules had been painted by BR in a mid grey colour, over the original veneer. That was disappointing, because it means that there is no real chance of returning the veneer to look as it was originally. The paint gets in the grain and however carefully it is stripped the veneer is inevitably damaged, and traces of paint remain. The vestibules will therefore be repainted in smart executive grey. Three quarters of the exterior is repainted; all doors have been removed, overhauled and refitted and the roof has been repaired and repainted. When complete, it will be a very useful vehicle. If all goes according to plan, it should be ready for service by about the end of April.

After a considerable amount of work in recent weeks, the BR Brakevan 954962 is virtually complete. Only a small amount of painting is left to do; all glazing has been fitted; new canvas has been fitted on the roof; the brakes have been overhauled and lubricated and replacement panelling is now complete. Even the internal seating is being reupholstered. This vehicle was in a much worse state that we imagined when we began work on it, and it has taken far longer than we first thought it would. However, all the effort will be worthwhile as the van will give many years of service. I have attached a photograph which shows it lurking in the depths of our shed.

There has also been a considerable amount done to the steam heat van recovered from, Ireland some months ago. A vented roof panel over the top of the boiler was badly rusted and rotten. That was sent away to a firm of specialist contractors and was returned completely renewed. It was fitted by lifting it with the JCB, and the roof is now watertight again, and as good as new. The boiler has been filled and the burners lit just to make sure that all is working. What we are now concentrating on is getting the boiler inspected and certified so that we can use it. Obviously, as with all boilers the boiler inspector has to come along, and check it over thoroughly before he certifies it. This will probably mean stripping the boiler right down, as we do not have any history of when it was last serviced and certified. There is still a considerable amount to do on the vehicle and no work has yet started on the bodywork, but we are very much further forward than when it first arrived.

The plans for the future are that once 5042 is finished we shall then refurbish the maroon FK (Corridor First) 13326. Once that is done, it will complete the maroon rake, and allow that rake to go into service. Probably then, we shall concentrate on a few of the carmine & cream coaches which are in fairly urgent need of some work. It has been decided that the RBr (Restaurant Buffet) 1672 which the railway has just acquired from a private owner should be finished in carmine & cream and join that rake.

Some of you may know that we did a considerable amount of work on this coach about five years ago. Then, before it was finished issues arose with the owner and it was sidelined without ever going into service. Happily that was all sorted out recently when the company agreed to purchase it from the owner. We are now working to get it into use as soon as possible, and it is getting on very well.

The passenger compartment is complete. Chequer plate flooring has all been removed in the kitchen, and some rotten areas of wooden flooring replaced. Brand new non-slip floor covering is due to be laid very shortly, by the same contractors who will be attending to 5042. The electrical system has been fully overhauled, and work is currently under way on the water system. The plan is to get that working fully in the next few weeks. The coach was moved onto our jacks at the beginning of March so that we could lift it off its bogies and make plans for the replacement of the complete steam heating system (which was kindly removed by BR in the 1970's when the coach was refurbished). Without our carriage jacks, such work would be virtually impossible to contemplate.

Once that has been done, we shall concentrate on the gas system. This is largely complete, but all the pipework will need checking and testing, and once we have it all operational we shall need to call in a firm of outside contractors to certify it for us.  A gas powered electrical generator is going to be fitted as on our other RBr 1675, as experience shows that this seems to serve its purpose very well. Decisions have yet to be made about whether we buy a new boiler, or overhaul an original one that we have.

So, all in all it has been a very productive two months. Congratulations to all of the volunteer C&W team for achieving so much, and in particular to those half dozen new working members who have recently joined us.