The LNER Encyclopedia

After looking at the Gresley coaches at the NYMR today a couple of questions popped up;

1) Was there a purpose for the clipped buffers?
Was it just a Gresley 'thing' so he was different from the rest of the 'Big 4' or did they have a purpose?

2) Why wern't locomotives given clipped buffers?

Regards

Karl

What do you mean by 'clipped buffers'?

Don't recall hearing that term before.

'Clipped' buffers have part of the edge of the buffer removed, so instead of a round shape they are flat along an edge, as below:

http://www.well-hill.demon.co.uk/lnerca ... CF0003.htm

(From the very interesting LNERCA site which is always worth a visit)

I have to say I don't know why they were used on coaches. On CCTs with end doors, they were used so that a flap door could be opened down onto them and vehicles driven/moved along a train from wagon to wagon. On coaches, I don't believe it's coincidence that they are below the level of the bodywork, but I find it very hard to see a scenario where the buffer is retracted to such an extent that it passes under the body.

IIRC earlier Gresley coach buffers were clipped top and bottom; later ones only at the top.

Non-corridor coaches had round buffers.

the one in the NRM scotsman story is the same.

http://www.4472.me.uk/photos/pages/story/1040.asp

jwealleans wrote: Non-corridor coaches had round buffers.

I thought I had read that somewhere but had not seen any proof of it in action apart from on our resident Thompson CL, which I thought may have had replacement buffers as IIRC it was built in BR days and not actually LNER days.

Regards

Karl

David Jenkinson hints at an answer in his British Railway Carriages in the 20th Century.

Longer carriages needed larger buffers because they could be prone to buffer locking on curves when marshalled with short wheelbase stock.

Some railways adopted oval buffers. If you think about it, it is quite difficult to turn a full size oval buffer on a lathe, but it is much easier to make a large round one and clip off the top (and the bottom). Why clip them? Could it be that large buffers were unsightly and got in the way of the corridors if they extended above solebar height? They were also heavier.

These Gresley corridor carriages also had buckeye couplings which rendered buffers unnecessary and so these were retracted to allow the buckeyes to keep the carriages apart. Continuous rakes of Gresley Corridor carriages should be modelled with retracted buffers and these are available. When I fitted mine with Kadees, I also fitted retracted buffers so that I could use a Kadee with a shorter shank. The carriages at the ends of rakes should have extended buffers.

Colombo

Clipped buffers are used because when the buffer is in the short position it is at risk of being pushed back into the bodywork. In particular those with rubber springs on the buffers. So the buffer top was clipped off, some other coaches have a recess cut out instead.

This thread has made me realise that I need to file the tops off my CCT buffers!

One got as far as having decals applied, and I didn't realise...

(the other two are half painted)


Richard

Richard,

This thread only applies to Gresley corridor stock with buckeye couplings.

Don't rush into anything rash.

Colombo

Some CCT's had clipped buffers. From drawings I know that NER diagram 207 216 and 207 had clipped buffers.

Regards

Karl

What CCTs are they? As per my earlier post, only those with end doors and drop flaps had the clipped buffers.

If they're the Parkside LWB ones then they do need to be clipped - in fact they're almost oval, clipped top and bottom.

These are the N Gauge ones from Chivers. "RC906 N Gauge LNER Extra Long CCT".

I was sorting out last night and found the instructions and noticed it said to file them - something I missed when I was making them. I also see on the diagram (the same one as is in Historic Carriage Drawings vol.3) that the tops are shorter.


Richard