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The SVR has five Wickham Trolleys in various states of repair. Originally built by D. Wickham & Co Ltd of Ware in Hertfordshire, these trolleys were used in service as railway engineering personnel carriers, transporting PW working parties and materials to sites along the line.
==General information==
The trolleys were designated 2w-2 PMR under the [[Whyte notation]], denoting that they were 4-wheeled, petrol-engined, mechanically driven and reversible. They were lightweight, cheap to operate and very flexible, so they were popular with operators of railways of all kinds. The SVR includes one Pre-War example; post-War more than 600 were built for BR before the Wickham factory closed in 1991.
Power is transmitted via a steel flywheel attached to the engine to a wheel with a friction lining on its surface which is able to slide along a splined shaft set at 90° to the crankshaft. Sliding the driven wheel towards the outer edge of the flywheel increases the gearing. Sliding it across to the opposite side of the flywheel reverses the drive.
<gallerymode=packed heights=200px style="text-align:left">File:Wickham 1.jpg | Detail of the Wickham transmission
File:Wickham 2.jpg | Detail of the Wickham transmission
</gallery>
Although the trolleys could travel in reverse when required, they were mainly used in the 'forward' direction, being manually lifted off the track and turned by hand when required. Some later type 27s were fitted with a built in turntable while others were provided with a simple portable turntable which could be carried on the trolley.<ref>[[Bibliography#Other References|Gunner and Kennard (2004)]] p.4.</ref>
==SVR Wickham Trolleys==
A number of different Wickham Trolleys have been at the SVR in preservation, although the precise details are a little unclear. The following references to Wickham Trolleys have been noted:
{| class="wikitablesortable"!Number(s)!!Works no!!Type!!Engineas built!!data-sort-type="date" |Arrived!!Still present?!!Links!!Status / Notes
|-
|[[Wickham Trolley LNER no 748 | 748]]||1580/1934||Type 17||2 cylinderJAP 1100||data-sort-value="01/01/1968"|Not recorded||Yes|| ||Operational
|-
| [[Wickham Trolley PWM 3189 | PWM 3189]]||5019/1949 ||Type 17A||2 cylinderJAP 1323|| data-sort-value="28/11/1968" |Ex Northampton 28 Nov 1968||Yes|| ||Unpowered trailer
|-
| [[Wickham Trolley DB965054 | DB965054]]||7577/1957||Not recordedType 17A||Not recordedJAP 1323 Twin sv||data-sort-value="01/01/1999"|Not recorded but post-1998?||Yes|| ||Unpowered trailer
|-
|[[Wickham Trolley TP49P | TP49P (PT1P)]] ||7690/1957||Type 17A||2 cylinderJAP 1323 Twin 4sv || data-sort-value="28/11/1968" |Ex Northampton 28 Nov 1968||Yes|| ||Awaiting restoration
|-
|[[Wickham Trolley 9021 | 9021]]||8085/1958 ||Type 27 Mk III ||4 cyl Ford ‘Anglia’10hp|| data-sort-value="1/7/1977" |Ex Longtown (Army) 1977||Yes|| ||Operational
|-
|B198W (P2P)||?/?1949||Type 17A?Not recorded||2 cylinder<ref name=SB6>SVR Stock Book Sixth Edition</ref>|| data-sort-value="28/11/1968" |Ex Northampton 28 Nov 1968||No|| [https://www.rcts.org.uk/photographs/archive/380/CUL/CUL2965.jpg RCTS Photo] ||Cannibalised for spares<ref>SVR Stock Book Sixth Edition</ref>
|-
|PWM2827 (B190W)Not recorded ||Unknown?/1949?||Not recorded||4 cyl Ford ‘Popular’2 cylinder<ref name=SB6/>|| data-sort-value="28/11/1968" |Ex Worcester 3 Apr 1971Northampton 28 Nov 1968|| No || || Cannibalised for spares<ref name=SB6/>
|-
|PWM3774 PWM2827 (B13WB190W)||66535005/19531949||Not recordedType 27A||4 cyl Ford ‘Popular’10hp Industrial||data-sort-value="3/4/1971" |Ex Worcester 3 Apr 1971||TBCNo || ||Listed as an unpowered trailer in 2006. Whereabouts now unknown.
|-
|PWM2830 PWM3774 (B193MB13W)||Unknown6653/19491953||Not recordedType 27A Mk III||4 cyl Ford ‘Popular’10hp|| data-sort-value="3/4/1971" |Ex Bilston 10 July Worcester 3 Apr 1971||NoTBC|| ||Now at Royal Deeside Railway.<ref>[http://wwwListed as unpowered trailer in 2006.ontrackplantWhereabouts now unknown.com/otp/PWM2830 Ontrack Plant]</ref>
|-
|PWM2830 (B193M)||5008/1949|| Type 27A || Ford 10hp Industrial || data-sort-value="10/7/1971" |Ex Bilston 10 July 1971||No|| ||Now at Royal Deeside Railway.<ref>[http://www.ontrackplant.com/otp/PWM2830 Ontrack Plant]</ref>|-|9032||8200?/Unknown1958||Type 27 Mk III ||4 cyl Ford ‘Anglia’10hp || data-sort-value="1/7/1977" |Ex Longtown (Army) 1977||No||[https://www.flickr.com/photos/71592768@N08/7157311136 Flickr photo] ||Still present in 1998.
|}
The picture of Bridgnorth Yard including TP49P shown below is dated at 17 September 1968 (Picture by Ben Brooksbank via Wikimedia Commons). SVR Stock Books date the arrival of the first trollies including TP49P to 28 November 1968. It is unclear which of these dates is incorrect.
Threads discussing the identity and fate three Type 27A trolleys can be found [https://groups.io/g/WickhamofWare/topic/severn_valley_railway_type/25209296?p=,,,20,0,0,0::recentpostdate%2Fsticky,,,20,2,0,25209296 here] and [https://groups.io/g/WickhamofWare/topic/severn_valley_railway_type/25618346?p=,,,20,0,0,0::recentpostdate%2Fsticky,,,20,2,0,25618346 here].
In the original numbers above, a PWM number referred to Permanent Way Machinery while a B prefix was used by the GWR to denote a Gang Trolley. DB indicated Departmental BR-era built plant. Type and original Engine are from [[Bibliography#Other References|Gunner and Kennard (2004)]] except where noted.
==Gallery==
<gallerymode=packed heights=200px style="text-align:left">LNER_748_20150214.jpg | Type 17 No 748
Wickham_Trolley_3189_20160213.jpg |Ex-Type 17A No PWM 3189
Wickham_Trolley_8085_20150725.jpg | Type 27 Mk III No 9021
Wickham Trolley Bewdley 20180311.jpg|Ex-Type 17A No DB965054 (left)
Wickham_Trolley_7690_20150307.jpg |Type 17A TP49P
Bridgnorth Severn Valley Railway Locomotive Yard and Station geograph-2781621-by-Ben-Brooksbank.jpg | Bridgnorth Yard including TP49P in 1968 (Ben Brooksbank)
</gallery>
==Links==
*Wickham Trolley page on [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wickham_trolley Wikipedia]<br>*Video of Wickham Trolley run from Highley to Arley on [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x19WbwVFSl0 YouTube]*[https://www.railtrolleytrust.co.uk/ The Rail Trolley Trust]*[https://groups.io/g/WickhamofWare WickhamofWare group]