LMS 149 Buffet Car
| LMS 149 Buffet Car | |
|---|---|
 LMS 149 Buffet Car | |
| Built By | BRCW, Smethwick |
| Status | In service |
| Number | 149 |
| Other numbers | 9355, M9355M, CTL2S |
| History | |
| Built | 1936 |
| Designed By | Stanier |
| Diagram | 1915 |
| Lot | 954 |
| Type | QF, TO (as built) |
| Length | 57ft |
| Weight | 31T (plated 30) |
| Seats | 27 third (60 as built) |
| 1971 | Arrived on SVR |
| 1986-87 | Refitted as Bar Car 149 |
| 1996 | Operated in chocolate and cream as 9355 |
| 2006 | Reverted to maroon and 149 |
LMS Buffet Car 149 began life as LMS Open Third (TO) 9355 and was designed by W A (later Sir William) Stanier following his appointment as CME to the LMS.
Contents
Construction and service
9355 was built by the BRC&W at Smethwick in 1936 as lot number 954 to Diagram 1915, that diagram being for the ‘excursion version’ of the Period III Vestibule coach ('Vestibule' being the LMS term for an Open coach) which included 7½ seating bays giving 60 seats rather than the normal 56. Lot 954 was plated at 30 Tons rather than the actual weight of 31 Tons.[1] Following nationalisation, BR re-numbered the coach M9355M in accordance with normal practice for an ex-LMS carriage in use on the BR London Midland region. Service with BR continued until December 1964.[2]
After service with the LMS and BR, 7511 and 9355 were acquired by Gilt Edge Carpets (formerly Carpet Trades Limited) of Kidderminster for use as a mobile carpet showroom, the train being hauled by former SVR resident 61994 The Great Marquess.[3] The two carriages carried the numbers CTL1N and CTL2S respectively[4]
Preservation
Gilt Edge Carpets donated it to the SVR in 1971. On arrival on 23 August the interior had pegboard clad walls with no internal fittings. It was initially used as a Bar Car with loose plastic tables and chairs. During 1977 the Manpower Services Commission helped carry out a renovation which saw the exterior re-panelled to resemble a Stanier Buffet Car and the interior refurbished with a more traditional décor including 3½ bays of ex-BR fixed seating and a counter; the vehicle was also rewired and fitted with calor gas equipment.[5] After a repaint it re-entered service in summer 1978.[6]
In 1981 9355 moved to Bridgnorth, where what began as a simple repaint “turned into the usual nightmare of rotten panels and even more rotten timber, all of which had to be replaced, emphasizing the need again for covered accommodation.”[7] After a further short period of service further major work was again required. During 1986 all the old panels were removed to reveal “the usual rot and decay”. The bottom edges of the roof were cut back and new sections welded in. The affected parts were renewed and the opportunity taken to add two extra doors and move three windows to make 9355 look much more like 131, the vehicle it was modelled on.[8] Following the conversion to this design of a 1930s LMS Buffet Car with 27 seats, 9355 was given the fictitious number 149 as a continuation of the original 1932 145 - 148 Bar Car series.[9]
In April 1996 it was repainted in GWR livery for use in the SVR Dining Car set.[10] It remained in this condition, numbered 9355, for ten years. In 2006 it was again repainted in LMS livery as 149[11] and now is regularly used in the LMS Maroon set (Set L). With the exception of the half-bay near the vestibule, it is fitted with the same style of table lamps as fitted to LMS 7511 Restaurant First Open. It was again repainted in 2020 at Kidderminster Carriage Shed[12] and in 2023 at Bridgnorth Loco Works.
See also
References
Links
- 9355 on Railway Heritage Register On-Line
- Sharpo's World blog, 16 February 2005 (Retrieved 1 January 2019)
- Images of the Gilt Edge Carpets train at Kidderminster station in 1965, 'Nostalgia: How the train helped to sell Kidderminster carpet', Kidderminster Shuttle, 19 September 2021
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