The LNER Encyclopedia

I found this drawing the other day whilst looking for bogie pulley wagon details in the Darlington boxes.
Drawing 10376D Bogie Pully Wagon for Conveyance of Propellers by Express Passenger Train (no date), but a Vincent Raven stamp.
Some questions.
1I've not got access to my NER dia books, does anyone know the dia number.
2 When were they built, sometime during WW1 onwards, I would guess, and how many.
3 How long did they last.

Interesting wagon riding on 8'-0" fox bogies with stepboards, fully piped with vac, westinghouse and heating pipes. The upper body is the same as a standard pulley wagon.

Any help appreciated.

Thanks for the email replies gents.

Of course it's mentioned in LNER Wagons Vol 2 as built for the Navy by the NER......I took my brain out and thought aircraft.

Wagon solved.

The existence of such a specialised express freight wagon for moving spares quickly probably hints at how often pilots - tranees especially - munched their way through propellors.

Well considering the average life of an RFC pilot in the first war was something like a fortnight, it is no wonder they needed some help moving stuff around.

What is of much more interest is what and how these specialised wagons were used in Grouping times. The pre grouping companies were certainly keen to take up any business opportunity that was presented hence the number of specialist wagons in photos.

Somehow you cannot believe that a car company would create a special vehicle to take their competitors up to Scotland for instance with early motor cars on specially built wagons and vans. In fact even during my apprenticeship in the 60's it was a common sight to see both vans and lorries being transshipped on railway flats, from Luton, Dunstable, Dagenham, Southampton and Liverpool, let alone the cars themselves.

Paul

Dave's drawing refers to 4 wagons built by the NER for the Admiralty.

John

Hatfield Shed wrote:The existence of such a specialised express freight wagon for moving spares quickly probably hints at how often pilots - trainees especially - munched their way through propellors.

Not surprising really if a massive bronze ship propeller was screwed onto the front of the aircraft

john coffin wrote:In fact even during my apprenticeship in the 60's it was a common sight to see both vans and lorries being transshipped on railway flats, from Luton, Dunstable, Dagenham, Southampton and Liverpool, let alone the cars themselves.

Also not surprising given the parlous state of the road network even in the 1960s, the lack of reliability of cars at that time, and the risk of damage during a long distance journey. It was both quicker and cheaper by train and did not need loads of drivers either.

Only those of us of a certain age can recall what driving and the road network were like in the 1960s, or worse the occasional journey by car in the 1950s.

I think the NER Diagram is E15 but I cannot trace a drawing number on the amendment in my Diagram Book. Nothing is mentioned about attaching these to an express train.

The 20ton wagons were built at Shildon in February 1914 and numbered 38590 and 4792. The Special Wagon Diagram Book dated 1917 shows another vehicle, No 77756, to this diagram. The latter was stationed at Darlington as was 38590 and 4792 was stationed at Heaton Junction. There is a footnote stating that the minimum radius was 70' .

Diagram E8 was a similar vehicle built in 1903. Same general dimensions but different in some detail.

The NER did of course have a separate set of diagrams for their (ship) propeller wagons.

Dixie, you are correct E15 is the dia number for a 20 ton pulley L which is unfitted, but does not relate to the ones built for the Admiralty.
Interestingly the drawing has LNER written in one corner which begs the question raised by JASd17, did these wagons come back into railway ownership.
One more question, in Admiralty service anyone got any idea on livery/lettering, I would have thought battleship grey.

Hi Dave,

I did raise the question about the Admiralty wagons coming into LNER ownership, but privately not on the Forum, just in case anyone is confused.

John

anyone got any idea on livery/lettering

Best I can offer are these, ex-Devonport and now at Beamish.

Cheers JW for the pics. Although I feel the livery is probably to modern.

Just to point out that until April 1st 1918, aeroplane propeller wagons could well have been produced for the Admiralty.
Have not checked, but I'm sure that the RNAS had bases on the North East coast.
The RNAS also used airships, which also would have needed replacement propellers!

Anyone up for catching the mooring lines of a blimp in a strong wind?

good morning all

Good thinking DRM, the R.N.A.S. had a seaplane base at South Shields and probably more.

Earlswood nob