SECOND HAND N GAUGE MODELS #7 -- GWR RAILCAR W32W [Brunswick Green Livery]

GWR RAILCAR W32W
Ever since I was young had a fascination with the GWR railcars, never saw them running in their heyday, though that would have been fairly local to myself out of the Southwell yard, and always wanted one for my N Gauge layouts as a lad. I have picked up a few different liveries in OO Gauge but the N Gauge ones remained out of reach. 

Having been looking for a GWR Railcar in N Gauge it took us up until last year to finally obtain one, and having got one I almost immediately picked up another in traditional GWR Choc / Cream too. A happy lad indeed. Boxed and appeared in good order, the seller had no idea if it was a good runner or not, so with a small amount of fear I got the smaller test track wired up and gave it a nudge, to my delight there was movement even at slow speed, but that was all it had. Not a problem, we got the body off and immediately checked connections and current. Then a small clean down, light amount of lubrication applied (I use sewing machine oil for my models, seems to work fine) and back on the test track, success.

N Gauge model by manufacturer Graham Farish
W32W GWR Railcar in Brunswick Green livery with 'whiskers'.

GWR RAILCAR HISTORY

"This example, with its angular and wedge shaped ends, was constructed at Swindon, the last of the fourteen built there in 1940 and was based at Worcester in the mid 'fifties, one of six there in 1956, the most to have been allocated to one depot at that time although both Reading, Southall and Bristol all had five each on their respective books."

Noes 19–33 1940–41 built at Swindon

All ex GWR railcars were retired in 1962

The prototype unit, No. 1, made its first run on 1 December 1933 between London Paddington and Reading with a large number of press representatives. Three days later this unit entered public service between Slough, Windsor and Didcot. Soon after this the GWR ordered the next three production units, nos. 2 to 4, which were built with two engines (instead of one) which allowed them to reach a maximum speed of 80 mph (130 km/h), and included a buffet. These units were delivered in July 1934 and entered service on 15 July 1934 between Birmingham Snow Hill and Cardiff General. This was the first long distance diesel express service in Britain, and covered the 117.5 miles (189.1 km) miles between Birmingham and Cardiff in 2 hours 20 minutes. This was intended as a businessman's service, fares were charged at the normal rate, however bookings were limited by the number of seats on the railcar, which was limited to 44.

The next three units, nos. 5 to 7, entered service in July 1935 and had 70 seats. These were used on services between London, Oxford and Hereford. The next batches of railcars numbered 8 to 34 were of various different designs and entered service in batches between 1936 and 1941, two of these (nos. 17 and 34) were designed for express parcels services rather than passenger services.

RAILCAR PRESERVATION

The fleet were retired in 1962 but three survive in preservation: AEC/Park Royal built No. 4 at National Railway Museum and Swindon built numbers W20 / W22 on the Kent & East Sussex Railway and at Didcot respectively:

Vehicle No.	Builder	Year Built	Location	Comments	Photograph
W4W	Park Royal	1934	National Railway Museum, York	Static Display
W20W	GWR Swindon	1940	Kent & East Sussex Railway	Under restoration at Tenterden since 1983.
W22W	GWR Swindon	1940	Didcot Railway Centre	Operational.

HERITAGE RAILWAYS 2021 PART THREE - GREAT LITTLE TRAINS OF WALES

As we continue with the latest lockdown during 2021 having another look ahead to better times when hopefully we can visit some more of our Heritage Railways. In part one we took a look at some of the relatively local GWR based heritage railways and then we moved a little further down the line for part two towards Bristol and the West where there are several lines which have survived into preservation. 

In part three we head over the border into Wales, some of my favourite childhood memories of the many steam trains here and visits with my father. Summer holidays to Llandudno and Aberystwyth were not complete with the obligatory day out on the 'Great little trains of Wales'. I sadly haven't been to visit these for some time, and hopefully will be able to start rectifying that sometime this year.

Vale of Rheidol Railway
https://www.rheidolrailway.co.uk/

Former Great Western Railway line and run under British Railways from 1948 until privatisation in 1989, it's now a heritage line owned as a charitable trust with the original GWR loco's restored to their Green and Gold livery. The 11.75 mile journey takes approximately one hour in each direction. Listen to the sound of a powerful narrow-gauge steam locomotive working to climb up 700ft (200m) from Aberystwyth to Devil's Bridge

The Vale of Rheidol Railway re-creates the Edwardian spirit of adventure. Since opening in 1902, millions have enjoyed the scenic trip through the ancient woodlands to Devil’s Bridge, home of the famous waterfalls, nestled in the magnificent Cambrian Mountains. The railway is charming, a masterpiece of engineering opened to carry lead ore, timber and passenger traffic. The narrow-track gauge allows the railway to follow the contours of the terrain with many sharp curves and steep gradients. Trains normally wait for one hour at Devil's Bridge station before returning to Aberystwyth. You can also alight at one of the recently restored intermediate stations and explore the many walks the valley has to offer. The vintage steam engines and carriages were built for the line by the Great Western Railway in the 1920s / 30s, now restored, they are still operating on the trains today.

Talyllyn Railway
2021 Celebrating their 70th Anniversary.
https://www.talyllyn.co.uk/

Enjoy the stunning scenery of Southern Snowdonia, stepping back in time to enjoy the 14.5-mile round trip, which has been running along the same route since 1865 it's also the world's first preserved steam railway and would be looking to celebrate their 70th Anniversary in 2021. 

In 1951 the railway was taken over by the Talyllyn Railway Preservation Society, the first such in the world, and it is the volunteer members of the Society together with a small dedicated full-time workforce who run the Railway today. 

Two original Victorian steam locomotives and four passenger coaches are still in regular use, together with others which have been built or acquired over the years. The original Victorian train which opened the line runs on selected Thursdays, and this trip includes a personal tour guide. The stations are at Tywyn Wharf (connecting to the Cambrian Coast Line), Pendre, Rhydyronen, Brynglas, Dolgoch Falls, Abergynolwyn and Nant Gwernol.

UNESCO World Heritage Site Bid: Llechi Cymru Welsh Slate

The Talyllyn Railway, Bryneglwys quarry and Abergynolwyn village are an important part of this bid which has been through a lengthy submission process and is the UKs preferred application in 2019, the decision should be known sometime in 2021 from UNESCO. Good luck / Pob lwc. 

Ffestinogg Railway
https://www.festrail.co.uk/about/

The Ffestiniog Railway (above) is the oldest independent railway company in the World today, built to serve the slate industry of Blaenau Ffestiniog in 1832, now with the rebuilding of the pre-war Welsh Highland Railway complete, and a new £1.25 million two-platform layout at Harbour Station at Porthmadog (complete with a substantial semaphore signalling installation), it is now possible to connect with Caernarfon-bound trains and experience 40 unbroken miles of spectacular narrow-gauge steam. While the railway has a huge history with regards to the modern tourist railway we have now we have to bring us up to the 1990s, when the FR became involved with the Welsh Highland Railway (WHR) again with a plan to start at Caernarfon, rebuilding back to Porthmadog and connecting with the Ffestiniog to create a 40 mile railway – a new “Great Railway Journey”. Following the closure of the Beyer-Peacock works, the FR saved the pioneer Garratt locomotive ‘K1’, which had spent its early life in Tasmania. The locomotive became an exhibit at the National Railway Museum after plans to convert it to fit the FR loading gauge were dropped, so as not to affect the heritage outline of this historically important locomotive.

In 2003 the line was reopened as far as Rhyd Ddu and tracklaying was completed through to Porthmadog in early 2008, with the volunteer track gangs building a new railway the same length as the Ffestiniog in just three years. During the space of just one week, the tracklayers built a mile of railway! Public services started to Beddgelert, then Hafod y Llyn in 2009 and Pont Croesor in 2010. The final link to the FR opened in April 2011, finally enabling through services to operate between Blaenau Ffestiniog and Caernarfon. This is a MUST visit for me when it's possible to holiday again as it would required a week away to fully explore this location and the Snowdon mountains too.

Bala Lake Railway
https://bala-lake-railway.co.uk/

The Bala Lake Railway is a 4½-mile narrow gauge railway, established over 40 years ago on a former Great Western Railway track bed. The visitors are almost all entirely tourists and it is one of the thirteen narrow gauge railways of Wales. Deep in the heart of the Snowdonia National Park from its start point at Llanuwchllyn, the line runs parallel to Bala Lake and descends to almost lake level offering the visitor spectacular views of the lake itself and the lush surrounding pasture and woodlands that leads the eye to the stunning vista of mountains Arenig Fawr, Aran Benllyn and Aran Fawddwy. Picnic sites at Llangower provide the perfect spot for a break in the journey on a summer's day for a picnic on the foreshore.

The line currently terminates at Pen y Bont, a remote terminus some 1,200m from the town itself. With limited parking, a poor visible profile and no amenities, passengers rarely venture into Bala Town and visitors to Bala Town are largely unaware of the railway's existence. 

The Red Dragon Project, under the auspices of the Bala Lake Railway Trust, has been established to build a £3.5 million extension into the town of Bala and fulfil the potential of one of Wales' most scenically beautiful railways.

RAILTOURS 2021 - MARCH / APRIL? What chance...

Lockdown has seen everything sadly cancelled during February, was going to see if any of the March ones survive, and that doesn't seem to be the case either looking at the list of tour operating services, so perhaps April / May at the earliest for 2021. The opening week in April sees the West Coast Railways steam railway tour 'The Jacobite' a regular daily service from Fort William to Mallaig and return hopefully that will be the start of a return to service with Easter a traditional popular period for heritage railways and tours. 

Let's take a look at some of the forthcoming tours from different tour operating companies as things stand right now, appreciate that things will continue to change from week to week;

http://www.ukrailtours.com
THE WEST HIGHLAND AND ROYAL DEESIDE
Friday 9 April to Monday 12 April 2021

Already deferred from April 2020 looks like this one has again been delayed. 

THE MERCHANT OF NORFOLK
Saturday 24 April 2021

A springtime trip from London over to Norwich sounds appealing enough, but add to that our favourite locomotive, the magnificent Merchant Navy class Pacific 35028 ‘Clan Line’, and we have a perfect Main Line Steam tour on our hands. This will be the first time in over two years that Clan Line has hauled a non-Pullman railtour, and it’s also her first trip to Norwich ever!

https://saphostrains.com/trips-tours/
This operator has updated their site and the first available rail tours are not until early May 2021. 

THE FELLSMAN TOUR 12th MAY 2021
The popular ‘Fellsman’ runs again in summer 2021 for its 13th season offering a 300-mile return steam hauled journey from Crewe on the spectacular ‘Settle to Carlisle Railway’ as we travel through the Yorkshire Dales and climb high towards the roof of England. With at least a dozen tours showing on the site around the country during May and June it's a very positive sign and hopefully a return to Steam action on the mainline. 

https://www.statesmanrail.com/
Another operator with plenty of planned tours for May and June, the 1st May offering a trip from Ely to Llandudno. 
“The Statesman” land cruise train travels across the Cheshire Plain with views of Beeston Castle, then through the Roman Walls of historic Chester and after crossing the River Dee we take the route along the spectacular Welsh coast past Rhyl and Colwyn Bay offering sweeping sea views for a visit to the beautiful Victorian seaside resort of Llandudno with its two sandy bays and traditional pier. Also the location for the Great Orme railway and links to Blaenau Ffestiniog although not sure if these will reopen in time as Wales have their own rules. There are plenty of interesting tours planned though. 

The Branch Line Society

While current tours are cancelled hoping to be rescheduled, they are asking for interest in overseas tours to Germany and Poland. I think in light of Travel restrictions you need to take additional care to research these beforehand, but at least they are European tours and in spite of Brexit should still be possible. The Branch Line Society do put on some interesting and unique tours.