Milestone advances with our 1910 GCR Barnum
Two previously rust-encrusted Barnum bogie relics which left Ruddington on 12 August 2019, were returned in pristine condition from Nemesis Rail on Friday 14 October 2022; almost 3 years later. Our aim is to keep the GCR name alive and promote its style and innovation through the restoration of its classic railway carriages still held in the Rolling Stock Trust’s keep.
A fine example of a then-new suspension system, a bogie design setting a jealous standard for UK main line railway carriages, have had probably their first major rebuild since manufacture at the GCR’s brand new Carriage and Wagon works at Dukinfield in 1910, and have been returned fully restored to the Nottingham Transport Heritage Centre for their refit to Barnum no.228.
In a most generous sponsorship arrangement by rail engineering specialist Nemesis Rail, supported by TAS Engineering and the RST team at Ruddington, these two bogies have been dismantled, repaired, refurbished and re-equipped to near original GCR specification.
1915 Railway Engineering page272, Barnum Bogie detailed drawing revealing the complexity of the Spencer compensating patent.
Now here is the telling of the complexity of the new bogie design and what it delivered. The article in the 1915 edition of The Railway Engineer;
“Experience has shown that long and heavy vehicles run particularly smoothly when mounted on bogies provided with a Duplex Bolster, hung in such a manner that the weight of the carriage body is transmitted to the bogie frame through what are really two separate swing bolsters, each of which can swing independently of the other.
It is obvious that when centrifugal movement takes place while a carriage is travelling round a curve, and the bolsters consequently move towards the outer rail, the crossing of the suspension links causes the vertical movement of any part of the double bolster with relation to the bogie frame to be counterbalanced by vertical movement in the opposite direction of the corresponding part of the central bolster relative to the double bolster. The result of this is that the rocking motion of the central bolster such as takes place in an ordinary bogie is very much reduced.”
No.228 Barnum body on RVP stands enabled the extraction of the bogies – to reveal just how corroded they had become in Hull Dock’s extended time in sea atmosphere
The initial evidence…..
Departure from Nottingham Transport Heritage Centre for Nemesis Rail – 12 August 2019
As the Trust’s carriage historian Trustee John Quick explains: “The Company’s demand was for attention to ride comfort. So, the specification of a new patented Spencer mechanical suspension system was selected to provide the smoothest ride achievable over all the tracks that were likely to be encountered. That this should have been pioneered for GCR’s latest mainline excursion vehicles – travelling over GCR metals and over GNR and GER to the East Coast resorts – proved an important milestone of advanced engineering that GCR’s Chief Mechanical Engineer John G Robinson promoted, and was adopted into the major re-equipping of the GCR’s railway’s main line passenger stock over the next decade.
Roger Bulmer, a long term GCR supporter and a lead Director of specialist Nemesis Rail, got together with Trustee Mike Lang and came up with a sponsorship scheme that could not be either ignored or turned down. It made absolute sense. It was also aided by Roger’s personal involvement with Mike and Gordon Maslin in the original Barnum no.664 restoration. This ran on the Loughborough GCR for many years and is now awaiting further restoration at Ruddington as part of our collection.”
Dismantling at Nemesis Rail revealed the full extent of decay and damage sustained over 110 years
New parts are made at TAS Engineering – metalworking and machining and reassembly at Nemesis Rail begins
As CME Pat Sumner comments: “This really is a massive multi-faceted achievement. A real milestone. Having been denied access for the last two years at the Heritage Centre, the backroom work of the RST team has been impressive and relentless – and that is now showing with the galvanising of progress on the Barnum project. And what has been learned in that period on Barnum no.228 is entirely relevant to the planning of the restoration of the two other same style carriages in our possession.
Our big drives are now to find new enthusiastic volunteers to enable the underside of Barnum no.228 to be equipped sufficiently to allow the two re-built bogies to be reinstalled, the body lowered once again, and the carriage re-positioned in the main workshop at Ruddington.”
Triumphal return of Barnum no.228’s bogies to NTHC on Saturday 15 October 2022 with (centre) Trustee Mike Lang and RST team (l to r) Clyde Pennington, Steve Andrews, Ian Parker and Keith Stimpson. All provided essential and invaluable skills and knowledge
To support the Barnum rebuild and the Appeal for £50,000 to help in the ambitious 3-year project, please donate to assist seat purchasing – or contact Chairman Richard Tilden Smith by email – gcrrollingstocktrust@live.co.uk – for details.
We are pleased to acknowledge the very helpful of recording photography of the progress of the Barnum bogie restoration over three years by Andrew Coalwood, Mike Lang, Gareth Davies, Clyde Pennington.
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