59510 Class 117 Trailer Composite Lavatory
Home Railway |
Location History |
West Somerset Railway Nov 95-Apr 05 |
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Current Location |
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Mid Hants Railway Apr 05-Oct 11 |
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Current Status |
Operational (For Sale) |
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Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway Oct 11-Present |
Current Livery |
BR Green |
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TRA Designation |
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Partner Vehicle(s) |
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Owner |
Cotswold Diesel Railcar Ltd |
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Website |
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Record Last Updated |
7 September 2024 |
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Preservation Modifications |
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Preservation Information By March 1996, 59510 (along with 59493, 59506 and 59515) had been painted into a non authentic carmine & cream livery and formed a vacuum braked 4-car hauled coaching stock rake. Like many suburban centre cars at this time, the vehicle was not maintained as a DMU vehicle, being used as hauled coaching stock because they looked similar externally to some designs of GWR coaching stock. By 2003 the vehicle had been repainted into chocolate & cream livery. This dedicated 4 coach set was later disbanded and 59510 was sold to Bob Allen, locomotive department manager of the Mid Hants Railway. After moving to the MHR, 59510 was refurbished and repainted into BR Green, and the vehicle took its place in the resident Class 117 set, between 51363 & 51405. This effectively returned the set to its original 3-car formation. During this repaint, 59510 was confusingly and incorrectly numbered 59515. The "real" 59515 also exists, preserved on the West Somerset Railway. Due to a change in employment in 2011, the owner left the MHR to take over the role of looking after steam loco 70000 Britannia, which resulted in the entire MHR DMU fleet being reluctanctly sold. The MHR itself were offered first refusal to buy 59510, but had to turn the offer down as funds had already been allocated for other projects on the railway. The 3-car set was purchased complete by Cotswold Diesel Railcar Ltd, who relocated the vehicle to the landslip-stricken Gloucestershire & Warwickshire Railway in October 2011. 59510 saw much use operating the "northern section" of the temporarily divided railway, and was part of the celebrations after the railway of two halves was reconnected in October 2012. In July 2015, the vehicle was taken into the shed at Winchcombe Carriage & Wagon Works for overhaul, as it had not received any major work since its arrival on the line four yeas previously. The first tasks were the stripping out of various components for overhaul and scraping the roof down of its old flaking paint. The ends of the vehicle and the roof above the toilet were found to require steelwork repairs. The doors were also checked and the locks examined. August saw a big push on the outside bodywork with one side and all of the tedious door edges fully sanded down, this was quickly followed by green gloss paint. The corridor ed repairs were concluded bringing the ends to the same stage as the bodysides. The roof was repainted and a start was also made on reupholstering the seating in authentic BR blue/green material. The replacement of the toilet floors was also started and several sections of new ceiling fitted. The interior wooden window frames were sanded down and repainted. September saw the second coat of green gloss applied to the exterior, lining then followed including the first class yellow stripe. The solebar was also repainted black. On the interior, the doors were repainted cream on the insides (their original colour) and the newly installed ceilings painted, followed by the removal of the 1980's wall coverings from the luggage rack areas which had new laminate spray mounted on. The toilet interiors were fully repainted and the floors re-lino'd before the refurbished interior doors were re-hung. During October the corridor connections were freed off and repaired as required, with the interior sections repainted orange. The passenger communication cord equipment made to work fully as it should do. The repaint was fully completed with all the finishing touches such as roundels and numbers applied, with ome nderframe boxe also being picked out and repainted. Work then focussed solely on the interior, the first class carpets receiving a deep clean and the lighting shades being refitted following cleaning. The seating was then refitted. 59510's overhaul was completed in late October 2015 and the vehicle returned to service in the line's Class 117 set. The remainder of 2015 saw the interior passenger saloons inside 59510 receive a further visual boost when the second class seating was fully reupholstered into authentic BR blue/green material. Unexpectedly, 59510 was put up for sale in September 2024 along with partners 51363 & 51405, the group wishing to reduce the size of their fleet to a manageable level. 59510 is currently for sale in an operating condition with its future, at the GWSR at least, in doubt. |
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Future Plans |
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W59510 stabled at Toddington, 24/4/22. Chris Moxon |
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W59510 looks good after having a wash and a brush up! 3/3/19. GWSR DMU Group |
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W59510, currently running between W51360 (left) and W51363 (right), 24/3/18. Chris Walker |
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W59510 in service at Toddington, 10/9/17. Paul Hughes |
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W59510 stands outside, its overhaul and repaint completed, 22/10/15. Neil Carr |
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Picking out some underframe boxes, 18/10/15. GWSR Carriage & Wagon Blog |
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Applying the lining, 15/9/15. GWSR Carriage & Wagon Blog |
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Rubbing down progresses on W59510, 25/8/15. GWSR Carriage & Wagon Blog |
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W59510's roof now repainted, 12/8/15. GWSR Carriage & Wagon Blog |
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"W59515", actually 59510, in service at Toddington between W51363 & W51405, 1/4/13. Peter Harris |
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The vehicle seen stabled at Alresford, now fully operational in BR Green in the Mid Hants Railways Class 117 set, 22/8/08. Chris Moxon |
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Now on the Mid Hants Railway, 1/5/06. Carl Watson |
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59510 stabled at Minehead (with 59505 behind), now repainted into chocolate & cream but still thought to be operating as a hauled coach, 25/5/03. Robert Frise |
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59510 stabled at Minehead, in Carmine & Cream livery during the days when it operated in a 4-car hauled coaching stock set, 3/10/99. Stuart Mackay |
Interior
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Repainted seat frames being refitted to the second class section, 10/10/15. GWSR Carriage & Wagon Blog |
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The inside of the doors after repainting, 1/9/15. GWSR Carriage & Wagon Blog |
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The first class saloon shortly after the overhaul work began, 18/7/15. GWSR Carriage & Wagon Blog |
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The small first class saloon, inside 59510, 4/10/13. Chris Moxon |
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The main first class saloon, inside 59510, 4/10/13. Chris Moxon |
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The main second class saloon, inside 59510, 4/10/13. Chris Moxon |
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The small second class saloon, inside 59510, 4/10/13. Chris Moxon |
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A view of a removed triple seat which accommodated a catering trolley, 4/10/13. Chris Moxon |