GWR 4786 Full Third
| GWRGreat Western Railway 4786 Full Third | |
|---|---|
 GWRGreat Western Railway 4786 (Gareth Price) | |
| Built By | GWRGreat Western Railway Swindon |
| Status | Restoration in progress |
| Number | 4786 |
| Other numbers | DW 150208, KDW150208 |
| History | |
| Built | 1926 |
| Designed By | CollettCharles Benjamin Collett, Chief Mechanical Engineer (CME) of the Great Western Railway 1922-1941 |
| Diagram | C54 |
| Lot | 1369 |
| Type | TK |
| Length | 58ft 4½in |
| Weight | 30t 6cwt |
| Seats | 64 |
| 1986 | Arrived on SVRSevern Valley Railway |
| 2013 | Replaced as dormitory coach |
| 2018 | Restoration started |
GWRGreat Western Railway CollettCharles Benjamin Collett, Chief Mechanical Engineer (CME) of the Great Western Railway 1922-1941 Bow-Ended Coach No 4786 is a standard 57ft full third coach, completed in Spring 1926 to diagram C54, lot 1369 as part of a build of 79 vehicles. The internal layout as built seated 64 passengers in eight compartments, with a side corridor and a toilet cubicle at each end. 4786 was completed on 6 March 1926, one of 279 such carriages turned out from Swindon between 1925 and 1929. Although seven of these vehicles have been saved, none have been returned to original condition.
4786 in service
It graduated from main line long distance services in the 1920s and 1930s to cross country and secondary services in the 1940s and 1950s. It was withdrawn on 6th February 1960 and modified for departmental stock for signals and telegraph use as DW150208 by 2 September 1961 at Shrewsbury. An undated photograph in the David Rouse collection shows the vehicle marked as 'S&Tw Reading'[1].
4786 in preservation
The coach was originally bought by SVR(H), arriving from the Coleham Depot at Shrewsbury on 7 September 1986 along with former resident sister coach 4872.[2] The coach was fairly complete, with a surprising amount of the original having survived and much of the framework in good order. It was latterly used as accommodation at Kidderminster until October 2013.
In March 2017 the Great Western (SVR) Association exchanged GWR 9581 Wheelchair accessible Buffet Car (then GWRGreat Western Railway 5043 Full Third) for 4786 with the latter becoming their next project on completion of the restoration of GWR 6045 Bow-end Composite.[3]
4786 moved to Bewdley Down Yard in October 2018 for work to begin in earnest.[4][5] In August 2023 it was tripped to Kidderminster Carriage Repair Works, where it was lifted onto accommodation bogies to allow the overhaul of its own bogies to commence. It was also turned, before returning to Bewdley. In July 2024 it entered Bewdley paint shop for final body and roof repairs.[6]
When complete, it will go towards the 1920s GW set. Being from 1926, it will be returned to the fully lined GW livery with pseudo panelling and the ornate garter crest, as found on the 'Toplights'.[7]
Links to the GW(SVR)AGreat Western (SVR) Association 4786 restoration page and Facebook are shown below.
See also
List of carriages
Rolling stock currently under restoration
References
Railway Heritage Register Carriage Survey
- ↑ DW 150280 at Machynlleth, undated (a photograph), David Rouse collection/813 Fund
- ↑ SVRSevern Valley Railway Stock Book Ninth Edition
- ↑ SVRLive 30 March 2017
- ↑ GW(SVR)A website (Retrieved 24 September 2018)
- ↑ Unarchived SVR Forum, 24 September 2018 (link broken)
- ↑ GW(SVRA) website, June 2024 news update
- ↑ GW(SVR)A news (Retrieved 18 May 2017)
Links
- GW(SVR)A 4786 Restoration page
- GW(SVR)A Facebook page, with regular restoration updates
- GW(SVR)A stock page
- 4786 on Railway Heritage Register On-Line
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
