GWR 6045 Bow-end Composite
| GWRGreat Western Railway 6045 Bow-end CompositeCarriage having more than one class of seating, ie First and Third or latterly First and Standard. | |
|---|---|
 6045 on its official launch into traffic 17 October 2021 | |
| Built By | GWRGreat Western Railway Swindon |
| Status | In service |
| Number | 6045 |
| Other numbers | DW150293 |
| History | |
| Built | 1928 |
| Designed By | CollettCharles Benjamin Collett, Chief Mechanical Engineer (CME) of the Great Western Railway 1922-1941 |
| Diagram | E132 |
| Lot | 1382 |
| Type | CK |
| Length | 57ft 4½in |
| Weight | 31t 3cwt |
| Seats | 24 first, 24 third |
| 1961 | To departmental service |
| 1973 | Preserved on SVRSevern Valley Railway |
| 2014 | Restoration commenced |
| 2020 | Restoration completed |
GWRGreat Western Railway 6045 is a 57' Corridor CompositeCarriage having more than one class of seating, ie First and Third or latterly First and Standard. (CK) carriage, having four first class compartments to seat 24 passengers and three third class compartments also to seat 24 passengers. It has toilets at each end and external doors to each compartment on the non-corridor side. It is the only surviving example of a GWRGreat Western Railway 'bow-ended' composite.
CollettCharles Benjamin Collett, Chief Mechanical Engineer (CME) of the Great Western Railway 1922-1941 bow-ended stock
When CB CollettCharles Benjamin Collett, Chief Mechanical Engineer (CME) of the Great Western Railway 1922-1941 succeeded GW ChurchwardGeorge Jackson Churchward, Chief Mechanical Engineer (CME) of the Great Western Railway 1902-1922 as CMEChief Mechanical Engineer of the GWRGreat Western Railway after the first World War, he introduced a new range of standard 57' carriages starting in 1923. These were a development of ChurchwardGeorge Jackson Churchward, Chief Mechanical Engineer (CME) of the Great Western Railway 1902-1922's later 'toplight' carriages, having a cleaner exterior with flush steel panels over oak framing and a higher waistline. From late 1925 'bow-ends' were added to reduce the length of the gangway connections (following complaints of swaying from nervous passengers), giving the stock its distinctive 'bow-ended' profile. Internally they had a simpler finish; the corridor stock had first class compartments the trimmed in walnut and the third class in mahogany.[1]
A total of 781 carriages were built between 1923 and 1929, of which 104 were composites.[note 1] The later batches continued in general service until around 1961, after which the preliminary stages of the Beeching plan saw the elimination of almost all remaining pre-1935 stock during 1962[2].
6045 in service
6045 was built in 1928 to Lot 1382, Diagram E132. It was based in Devon and Cornwall for most of its mainline service.[3] The type were used initially on expresses and later on semi-fast cross-country services, including the Birmingham to Cardiff trains which passed through Kidderminster.[1]
Following nationalisation, it was renumbered W6045W by BRBritish Rail or British Railways(W). It was withdrawn from passenger use in September 1961[4] and transferred into DepartmentalRolling stock used for the railway’s own functions (engineering etc.) rather than for general passenger or goods traffic. stock as no. DW150293, where it was converted for use as an R&M Sleeping and Mess Coach.[5] It was condemned in 1971 at Bristol and offered for sale as scrap[3].
6045 in preservation
6045 was acquired by Robert Smallman in 1972 for the cost of £200 plus £24 for delivery by rail to Kidderminster.[3] It arrived at Kidderminster (then still BRBritish Rail or British Railways property) on 6 January 1973 with five other coaches (LMSLondon Midland & Scottish Railway 26668, LMSLondon Midland & Scottish Railway LMS 26880, GWR 9615, GWRGreat Western Railway 7972 and GWR Collett bow-ended Corridor Third 4886). The day also saw the arrival of a convoy from Barry with 4141, 5164, 7819 Hinton Manor and 4930 Hagley Hall.[6] BRBritish Rail or British Railways Sulzer Type 2The British Railways classification for diesel locomotives of 1001 bhp to 1499 bhp No 7655 tripped 6045 and the other rolling stock from Kidderminster to the SVRSevern Valley Railway's rented area in Bewdley Down Yard.[7]
6045 became part of the Great Western (SVR) Association's collection and was subsequently purchased by the Association in 1976. While at Bewdley some work began on the restoration, including waterproofing the roof[8] and reinstating the missing third class compartment structure with parts from 4886,[3] which had been acquired to be scrapped for parts mainly for 6046.[6] However work on other carriages took priority and 6045 was moved to Highley where it would spend 25 years in storage before a further move to Kidderminster in the late 1990s.[9]
By 2007, 6045 and 2426 (then still in use as accommodation at Hampton Loade) were the only two unrestored carriages in the GW(SVR)AGreat Western (SVR) Association's collection.[10] After further fundraising by the Association, 6045 finally moved to Bewdley Down Yard in 2014 for its restoration to be resumed.
Work began in earnest in 2015 with the carriage being stripped back to its frames. Changes made to the underframe in DepartmentalRolling stock used for the railway’s own functions (engineering etc.) rather than for general passenger or goods traffic. use, including the addition of a handbrake, were removed to return it to its original condition. A new floor of modern buffalo board was laid. Key structural framework components were built using best quality sapele to replace the original oak. The old asbestos steam heat pipe lagging was safely removed and new steam heat pipework and radiators fitted.[11]
Partially restored first class compartment
6045 Shewing new body panels on refurbished framework in December 2016
Work on rebuilding the interior continued through 2016 and in May 2017 6045 entered Bewdley Paint Shop for attention to the roof edges, fitting of new roof hoop covers, toilet tanks, ventilators and gutters.[12] In October 2018 the coach moved to Kidderminster, initially into storage in the Carriage shed while awaiting entry to the Carriage Repair Works for bogie work.[13] The bogie overhaul was carried out for the GW(SVR)AGreat Western (SVR) Association as a contract job by the SVRSevern Valley Railway.[14] The coach was finish-painted in Kidderminster Carriage shed during 2019 in the livery it carried in 1930[15] and the restoration finally completed in April 2020, with the work costing around £150,000.[1]
On 17 October 2021 a special train ran with 1501 and the Great Western set to officially launch 6045, with special guest passengers involved in its return to traffic.[1] Originally planned for May 2020, it was delayed by the 2020 coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic[16][17].
See also
Notes
- ↑ After that time GWRGreat Western Railway introduced the more modern stock without the bow-ends.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Branch Lines, October 2021
- ↑ Harris (1966) p.84.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 SVRSevern Valley Railway News 216, Winter 2021, pp. 41-44
- ↑ Longworth (2018) p.91.
- ↑ Longworth (2018) p.170.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 SVRSevern Valley Railway News 27
- ↑ Branch Lines, January 2023
- ↑ SVRSevern Valley Railway News 28
- ↑ SVRSevern Valley Railway News 128
- ↑ SVRSevern Valley Railway News 157
- ↑ SVRSevern Valley Railway News 192
- ↑ SVRSevern Valley Railway News 199
- ↑ SVRSevern Valley Railway News 204
- ↑ SVRSevern Valley Railway News 207
- ↑ SVRSevern Valley Railway News 208
- ↑ GW(SVR)AGreat Western (SVR) Association Newsletter, Winter 2020 edition
- ↑ GW(SVR)A News page, April 2020
Links
- 6045 on Railway Heritage Register On-Line
- 6045 on gw-svr-a.org.uk
- Restoration progress on gw-svr-a.org.uk
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