LMS Corridor Third 2300
| LMS Corridor Third 2300 | |
|---|---|
 LMS Corridor Third 2300 | |
| Built By | LMS Derby |
| Status | In service |
| Number | 2300 |
| Other numbers | SC2300M, W2300M |
| History | |
| Built | 1946 |
| Designed By | WM Stanier / HG Ivatt |
| Diagram | 2119 |
| Lot | 1407 |
| Type | CF, TK |
| Length | 57ft |
| Weight | 31T |
| Seats | 42 third |
| 1966 | Withdrawn |
| 1978 | Arrived on SVR |
| 1984 | Entered SVR service |
Contents
2300 in service
2300 was built at Derby in 1946 to diagram number 2119, lot number 1407.[2] After nationalisation it initially carried the number SC2300M, the prefix indicating a carriage allocated to BR's Scottish Region and the suffix denoting its LMS origin. It was later renumbered W2300M after being transferred to BR's Western Region, and was withdrawn from BR service in January 1966[3].
2300 in preservation
2300 was acquired by Bass Charrington in Plymouth where, after being internally stripped, it was used for the next 11 years as a store room by the barrel-making department. In mid-1977 it was identified as a candidate for acquisition by the SVR. At the time it appeared virtually complete externally with the bodywork in good condition, although a decision had yet to be taken on whether the carriage would ultimately be restored or stripped for parts for use in the SVR's other LMS carriages.[4]
2300 arrived on the SVR on 9 February 1978 as an empty shell having been donated by Bass Charrington; its owner on the SVR was subsequently recorded as a member of the L.M.S. & B.R. Coach Fund.[5] By late 1978 restoration at Bridgnorth was due to begin in earnest using the internal panelling from BRCW-built LMS Corridor Third 13045 whose bodywork was badly corroded and was later cut up.[6]
By June 1980 the partitions from 13045 had been installed and the windows re-bedded along one side, while work on stripping and priming the roof had begun. Work then stopped for three months while 13045 received attention. After resuming, the carriage was rewired with the work funded by the LMS Coach Fund.[7] By summer 1983 the carriage was mounted on a new set of bogies, with 2300's bogies destined for 27218 after refurbishment.[8]
The five-year plus restoration was finally completed when 2300 entered traffic on the 2.30 p.m. train ex Bridgnorth on Sunday 21 July 1984. As well as being one of the most comprehensive rebuilds undertaken at the time, it was also largely responsible for establishing the Bridgnorth C&W team, which began with five people at its start and had become a close team of around thirty by late 1983.[9]
By 1989 the carriage was still in good condition. The roof received attention to ensure it remained watertight, and later in the same year the carriage was repainted.[10]
During 1992 the LMS set was in limited use. After assessment of the whole set, 2300's bogies were found to be in the worst condition and the carriage was transferred onto a newly refurbished set originally intended for 12992.[11]
In spring 1997 the LMS set received attention to its upholstery. 2300 was re-upholstered with original LMS seats which had been in store at Kidderminster Carriage Repair Works. Most of the set also required repairs and repainting. 2300 underwent a ten week overhaul which involved a number of repairs including replacing a ten foot rotten strip of ash wood under one end of the roof, half of the floor in one vestibule and two step boards. The door locks were all removed and renovated. Finally 2300 became the first carriage to be repainted in the newly opened Kidderminster Carriage Works paint shop.[12]
In September 2002 2300 underwent a three week overhaul. Some 1200 external screws (mostly 1946 originals) were changed as they were coming loose and allowing the curved steel skin to return to a straight steel sheet. The windows were also re-bedded, having last been done during restoration. Frost-damaged plumbing in one lavatory was re-instated and some collapsed seat rails were reinforced. 2300 was not required on that year's Christmas services so spent the winter in the Carriage Shed where the opportunity was taken to replace a ripped gangway bellows.[13]
In 2007 the LMS & BR Coach Fund donated all its vehicles to the then SVR Rolling Stock Trust. The LMS set was in the course of overhaul and repainting, with 12992 completed at Bewdley Carriage and Wagon Department and 149 and 27220 at Kidderminster, when the June 2007 Storm Damage closed the line. The LMS set was trapped at Bridgnorth where it remained in the open for the next nine months. When the railway reopened on Good Friday 2008, the set returned to Kidderminster Carriage Shed. 2300 was found to have the floor of its battery box collapsed which was stripped out and rebuilt.[14] The overhauls resumed with 27270 in mid-2008. 2300's overhaul finally began in September 2008. A section of roof gutter was taken down to allow seven patches to be welded in. The seat bases were reversed to even out wear and extend their life. The ceilings were sugar-soaped and repainted, while all of the veneered walls re-varnished. Ten panels of veneer-faced plywood in the corridor were renewed, the old ones having delaminated due to damp incurred at Charrington's Brewery. One gangway also had its canvas bellow renewed. 2300 was fully repainted and returned to traffic in time to take part in the 2008 Christmas services.[15]
2300 is regularly used in the the LMS Maroon set (Set L).
See also
References
- ↑ SVR Stock Book Ninth Edition
- ↑ Jenkinson & Essery (1977) p. 109.
- ↑ Longworth Vol. 2 (2019) p.299.
- ↑ SVR News 35
- ↑ SVR Stock Book Eighth Edition
- ↑ SVR News 50
- ↑ SVR News 59
- ↑ SVR News 68
- ↑ SVR News 70, 73
- ↑ SVR News 92,94
- ↑ SVR News 102
- ↑ SVR News 122, 124
- ↑ SVR News 139
- ↑ SVR News 161
- ↑ SVR News 164
Links
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