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Ceiling Week- End of Week

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Both saloon ceilings are in place. By the end of the second day of panel fitting, we were able to install 5 saloon panels in a day, and we stopped at 5 again on the third session when we ran out of pins.

Sunday saw the last few saloon panels up, and then the vestibule panels were pinned up (just one mushroom per panel with these!). Toilet ceilings were a bit awkward to hang, and there isn’t space for the mushrooms, but we devised a little something with a slightly modified acrow prop and a pointy bit of wood.

The light bases have been machined based on an original that had fallen off 7991, and a quantity of beading made. Next job is preparing the ceiling for paint.

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Carriage Restorers resort to Magic Mushrooms!

You didn’t really think I meant those magic mushrooms did you?  Hey ho, several years ago LMSCA volunteers devised some supports to be used when putting up new ceilings in carriages and they came to be called ‘magic mushrooms’, you can see them in the accompanying photo of Third Open 7828 at Rowsley. After pinning the ceiling panel to the centre line of the roof and checking alignment it is then cajoled into the curve of the roof with the help of the mushrooms which force it into shape. The alternative would be to have lots of people doing the same job and getting in each other’s way.

If you had to get a locomotive overhauled you might go to Riley and Son Ltd, Ian Riley’s fine establishment at Bury, but if you want a ceiling put up the recommendation is Riley and son, i.e. Derek Riley and son Ben, here seen hard at work on 7828. They put up the whole ceiling over last weekend, and the result in the smaller saloon can be seen in the second photo. After snagging the ceiling will receive about five coats of paint. The completion of this job will mark a big step forward with 7828.

Dave Winter

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The Droplight No. 26

The Winter 2012/13 (no. 26) edition of The Droplight, Newsletter of the LMSCA, has recently been posted to members.

Contents:

  • The Chairman’s Ventilator
  • Membership
  • Important Gift Aid Changes
  • Seeking Volunteers for Promotional Activity
  • Digital Donations
  • Website News
  • 27001: The Fundraising Challenge
  • AGM Report
  • 27001 Update
  • BG Parts Recovery
  • 7828 Update
  • The LMR Overhead Construction Vehicle
  • The Design and Construction of Carriages and Wagons

If you are not yet a member and would like to receive this, why not consider joining us?

Ceiling Week- midweek report

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Full set of panels made for the ceiling now, vestibules and toilets included. Small saloon now has the ceiling fitted, large saloon to follow. Dave and I have started refurbishing the bulkheads around the toilet areas, and some new panels are due to be fitted.

Ceiling Week 1

So I’m on leave for 9 days, and it’s….. wait for it….. Ceiling Week!

The main saloon ceiling panels have been cut, shaped and painted with primer, undercoat and gloss over the last few weeks. Fire retardant emulsion is being applied to the top surface prior to fitting. The first pieces to go on have been the new bulkhead panels. Those in the coach were not original, but had been thoroughly chewed and modified and patched up so with the spare from the ceiling we’ve made a new set. These have been fitted, and the holes drilled for the passenger communication gear.

The whole underside of the roof has been painted with the same fire resistant emulsion, and several metres of new wooden conduit manufactured to replace broken and missing sections along the cant-rail. The ceiling springs off this, so it’s important that it fits properly.

Plan- tomorrow, two of us are going to run a covert operation to trial fit the first ceiling panel. 14 big ones, 4 vestibule panels, 2 toilet panels, 4 sections above the luggage racks and gangways, plus around 150′ of beading, 9 light bases, 16 ceiling vent covers and 120′ of passenger communication tube to fit. Best get started!

 

Happy Christmas 2012

I would like to take the opportunity to wish all our readers and indeed rail enthusiasts everywhere (especially carriage restorers!) a Happy Christmas and a peaceful and prosperous New Year. Thanks to Pete Stanley for the image which is Christmas 1937 edition of the LMS Magazine – LMS Christmas puds for all!

Happy Christmas from the LMSCA
Happy Christmas from the LMSCA

An introduction to the NRM online photo collection

The National Railway Museum have recently launched a railway photos section on their website, which of course includes some photos of interest in relation to LMS carriages.

This first five photos (NRM ref containing DY) illustrate various stages of the construction and assembly of railway carriages at Derby Carriage Works in Midland Railway days, prior to the formation of the LMS. The remaining photos (NRM ref containing W or WOL) show various stages of the construction and assembly of railway carriages at the ex-LNWR Wolverton Carriage Works in LMS days.

Carriage building at Derby works, 1921. NRM Ref: 1997-7397_DY_11795 © National Railway Museum and SSPL
Carriage building at Derby works, 1921. NRM Ref: 1997-7397_DY_11793 © National Railway Museum and SSPL
Carriage building at Derby works, 1921. NRM Ref: 1997-7397_DY_11791 © National Railway Museum and SSPL
NRM Ref: 1997-7397_DY_12841 © National Railway Museum and SSPL
Derby carriage and wagon works, 1910 NRM Ref: 1997-7397_DY_9315 © National Railway Museum and SSPL
Sewing room at Wolverton railway works, 1930 NRM Ref: 1996-7312_W_81 © National Railway Museum and SSPL
Wolverton railway works, 1930. NRM Ref: 1996-7312_W_84 © National Railway Museum and SSPL
Railway carriage components under construction, about 1928. NRM Ref: 1996-7312_WOL_2018 © National Railway Museum and SSPL
Wagon shop, about 1928. NRM Ref: 1996-7312_WOL_2023 © National Railway Museum and SSPL
Railway carriages being constructed at Wolverton works, 1930 NRM Ref: 1996-7312_W_83 © National Railway Museum and SSPL
Wolverton railway works carriage shop, about 1928. NRM Ref: 1996-7312_WOL_2026 © National Railway Museum and SSPL
Railway carriages under construction, about 1928. NRM Ref: 1996-7312_WOL_2017 © National Railway Museum and SSPL
Railway carriages under construction, about 1928. NRM Ref: 1996-7312_WOL_2015 © National Railway Museum and SSPL
Workers building a railway carriage, about 1928. NRM Ref: 1996-7312_WOL_2013 © National Railway Museum and SSPL
Workers constructing a railway carriage, about 1928. NRM Ref: 1996-7312_WOL_2012 © National Railway Museum and SSPL

I hope this serves as a useful introduction to this valuable resource, and await with anticipation for the NRM to publish further photos from their archives.

EARLY BOXING DAY FOR 7828 02 DEC 2012

The final piece of boxing-in

That should probably be ‘boxing-in day’ as the final pieces of tongue and groove boarding were fitted to 7828 at Rowsley. I’m not sure if boxing-in is the correct terminology, but it’s what we call the boarding that goes between the frame members on the inside of the coach. If you think it’s a bit rough you’d be right, it’s a support for the decorative interior panels and is never seen by the passenger so doesn’t have to look perfect, in fact a lot of the original boards are sawn but not planed. As far as the interior is concerned attention now turns to the ‘hoppers’ where the droplights live and once the rubber bump stops have been fitted in their new higher positions ( to prevent the droplights opening too far) we can think about replacing the long heater pipes. The latter are presently being rubbed down and painted ready for fitting – and they’re bloomin’ heavy!

Spot the Difference – the Wordy Bit

Somehow the text to accompany the photo of 7828 went into the ether – so here it is!

A milestone was reached in the restoration of the NRM’s LMS Third Open 7828 at Rowsley on the evening of Thursday 1st November when the final panel accepted its fate and bent to the typical LMS ‘tumblehome’ profile.  It seems to have been a long slog, but in fact it is just over a year since we turned 7828 on Rowsley turntable and started taking off the old panels and beading, the latter having been left on as a guide. As anticipated the frame on this side did not need as much repairing as the other side, but there was still plenty to do on the bottom rail and other horizontal sections. The new panels, which are 9mm WBP ply, were primed, undercoated and glossed on the interior side before fitting, the latter involving hundreds of Sheradised panel pins. Since then the new panels have received a coat of brushing filler, and two-pack filler in the panel joins and pin holes, and the long process of rubbing down has begun. You may wonder why we haven’t applied wood primer first, but a visit to the Carriage Convention at the Bluebell Railway (see a previous blog) revealed a very good finish on ply by using the filler first, after all, if you prime first you tend to sand most of it off!

Since putting the panels on several folk have commented ‘it’s starting to look like a coach now’ –  the restorers’ reaction is probably best left under a tarpaulin…

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