Initial report prior to restoration

Dateline: 7th May 2013

Ray Maidstone here - currently I am the engineer in charge of the tramway rolling stock at the East Anglia Transport Museum [EATM] in Carlton Colville, near Lowestoft - a role which I've had for almost seven years. I have been asked to introduce myself and to talk about how I have come to be involved with the 488 Glasgow tramcar project.

Through a friend's recommendation, I had made my first visit to EATM in the spring of 2006. This quaint little Suffolk museum was a new and treasured find, as I'd never heard of it before, and during my visit I quickly realised that my ride on two vintage tramcars was something rather special, and I thought how interesting it must be to work behind the scenes on the vintage tram fleet. I couldn't ever have imagined when I turned up as a volunteer in late summer 2006 that this would lead to me being in the privileged position I'm in now, of being head of the tram depot! I was directed to see Jim Jordan , who was the person in charge of the trams at that time, and stated that I wanted to be involved with the trams, to which Jim, in his wry-faced style smiled, pointed behind me, and said, "There's a tram!" which at the time, happened to be the single-decker, Amsterdam 474 - and my work began then and there! Jim became my very highly valued mentor in the weeks and months which followed, and a passion for preserving vintage tramcars developed from there.

However, this wasn't my first introduction into the rolling stock world, which in fact started much earlier in life - when I was eight years old to be precise, namely because way back in 1959, my grandfather was the senior depot head in charge of electrical and electro-mechanical fabrication and safety routines at Norwich, Thorpe - so the world of steam and vehicles on permanent way was no stranger to me. Being taken into and onto these hot steaming monsters was quite exhilarating for a young boy, but I clearly remember the day when my grandfather took me down to Thorpe station to meet my first Diesel-electric "Deltic" CO-CO. I can't remember its number, only that it was dark green, very big and very noisy, and the driver allowed my grandfather to take me through the engine compartment via a small, narrow grey corridor with square windows, and I got to see just how big the engine assembly was. It was interesting to note how clean the shiny green paintwork was, because in all my time growing up, I never saw one that clean again!

I spent many happy years of school holidays with my grandfather, and I have to admit that I learnt far more from him than I ever did from school [having attended the Neatishead School, and latterly Paston Grammar, North Walsham]. It was interesting when my grandfather asked me to build his transistor radio kit at age nine and a half, using germanium transistors! Following which I built a fully working oscilloscope at the age of ten and a half. In the course of these boyish meddling's I can admit that I do know what it's like to get a 470 volt D.C. belt, because I got one off the power supply of the oscilloscope! But he must have trusted me, because it wasn't long after, that my grandfather allowed me to dismantle an unexploded parachute phosphorous incendiary bomb [unbeknown to my parents or my grandmother of course!].

In fact, this and the work I did for my dad's repair business meant that at the age of fourteen I was already self-employed and so with my headmaster's permission, I left school. In the course of being self-employed, I have designed and built numerous specialised machines for customers including items for packaging, welding, leisure cruisers, founding, and rail guide systems - at one point I worked on the Pleasure Beach rollercoaster and the dodgems and rail system at Joyland in Great Yarmouth. However, my specific introduction into tramcar systems started with the Showman's Guild in Norwich, which happens to be housed up the lane which goes past my house. Most of the fairground rides back in the seventies were driven with D.C. equipment using old tramcar controllers and resistor units, and many electro-mechanical projects needed my intervention. It was very satisfying to design and invent equipment to solve their requirements. I have also spent much of my working life as a prototyping engineer so all in all, arriving at EATM and taking over tramcar repairs and design requirements was almost second nature!

So far within my time at EATM I have among many other things, been responsible for completing some of the prototyping in Blackpool 'VAMBAC' railcar 11 as it wasn't capable of running reliably in its ex-Blackpool state [since one or two essential items in the design were missing - like a stabilised power supply to control the pilot motor], and I have been responsible for re-working the worn out brake linkages in the afore-mentioned car 474, as well as re-building and fabricating new drum parts for the internals of the controllers of this and our London 'HR2' double-deck car 1858. Likewise, I have undertaken a complete re-working of the mechanical brake linkage components of 1858, meaning that the car now stops more efficiently; moreover 1858 now runs very happily with its electric braking system, since I perfected it. I have found it particularly satisfying to receive compliments from veteran enthusiasts who've now ridden on the London car in its corrected condition, passing comments like, "Yes! This is how the old girl used to sound!".

Keeping the service fleet of five active trams running at our museum is quite a challenge, and in the course of the past seven years these vehicles have required a vast amount of input from myself and my small team, but I've brought the standard of our cars up such that its now becoming easier to maintain them [much to the relief of my family and friends who are seeing a bit more of me these days!]. Before I veer from EATM and talk more about Glasgow 488, allow me to mention my involvement in a very compelling project at our museum, working with the team who are presently re-building someone's ex-summerhouse to its former glory - which is none other than our Lowestoft open top tram 14, of course! It is a project which never fails to offer up challenges to myself and the others who are involved in it, because we're constantly having to 're-invent the wheel'. At the moment I am engaged in engineering the truck, and in sorting out the design for the car's electrics - this will include me making a suitable resistor unit and stripping and refurbishing two of the museum's spare controllers to put into 14. Currently in my workshop at home, I am in the middle of sorting out a pair of old Glasgow breakers for it!

This brings me abruptly into the present, and I hope my rather lengthy introduction has provided an insight into my appointment as Project Manager for 488 on behalf of EATM and the project's executors. It is a project that I am very enthusiastic to see flourish, and I am looking forward to working closely with the workshop staff of the Ffestiniog Railway [FR] to ensure that we preserve as much of the historic nature as possible, as we return 488 to full working service.

As has already been reported within the picture gallery, I made an initial visit to Minffordd on Tuesday 23rd April, having been briefed that the car's top deck was en route to FR and would be arriving by lorry that afternoon to be unloaded the following morning. I had been entrusted with overseeing its safe unloading, with strict instructions to the driver that it must not be unloaded until the morning of Wednesday 24th. Of course, in true cowboy style, the top deck was unceremoniously deposited in the damp and drizzle next to the lower deck on Tuesday afternoon, so that when my wife Antonia and I pulled into the campsite at Minffordd on a rather dismal Tuesday evening, seeing no sign of a lorry and so being unaware that the top deck was in sight, it wasn't until our guide pointed out, "It's been put on the ground over there," that we realised what had happened, and this obviously didn't impress us much!

However, in the morning I had a very worthwhile meeting with Norman Bond, the Works Manager for FR, and met several of his colleagues, and at last I got to meet 488 in two halves. Although thrilled to be in the presence of this extraordinary car, the engineering aspect of me was in quite a state of perplexity. I had read various documentation about 488 prior to my visit, and am well used to working on aged vehicles in varying states of disrepair, however I wasn't prepared for what was now in front of me.

Firstly, having a general look around the upper deck, it was slightly disheartening to see that wherever 488 had been kept at AMTUIR, it had obviously had temperature problems - the woodwork very clearly displays evidence of having been hot and cold - i.e. expansion and contraction, and generally shows signs that panels and framework are no longer properly intact with each other. It is quite likely that the car has been stood under a glass roof for a long period, as many of the surface areas facing in a particular direction have had the paint faded and blistered almost as destructively as someone having used a gas blowtorch!

It was alarming to see this level of destruction, especially when one views the antique photographs of 488, gleaming in its fresh paint job, departing for a new life in France in November 1961. Getting to see the returning items fifty odd years later, I have to say it's all very well to read historic accounts and literature claiming one thing or another about 488, but when I was viewing the relic, examining it all over, it was immediately evident that either this wasn't the same car I'd been reading about, or - more to the point, that what has been written isn't accurate, as I will try to explain. For example, never mind that I discovered the paintwork has been destroyed by heat, even more disappointingly, when the car was re-painted in Glasgow prior to its big move to Paris, it is evident that the paint was merely slapped straight over the top of previous paintwork without any preparation having been done first!

It was also strange to see that wood screws had been installed from the inside in antiquity, straight through the panels, with rusty points protruding from the outside! It made me wonder what level of quality was actually involved in such work back in the fifties and early sixties. Over all, I couldn't quite believe what I was seeing as it clearly shows that very sloppy workmanship has been employed at some stage in the car's history - and not just in preparation for its move abroad. Moreover, I had been led to believe that an exchange of components took place before the tram was shipped over to Paris in order to give it a superior demeanor. I took time looking round the upper deck, at panel work, glazing, framework, etc. and came away with quite a feeling of disappointment as I didn't like what I was seeing. On viewing the lower deck I didn't feel much better, as nowhere was I seeing what had been heralded in the various reports of 488. I was viewing a very tired, well worn, un-cared for ex-museum exhibit that had a very 'past it' feel. I made a brief examination of one of the controllers and was saddened to see how much play was present in its shafts; clearly a very worn item. I could see I was going to have my hands full restoring the electro-mechanical equipment. Where was all this new and re-conditioned stuff that was supposed to have been fitted?

So, feeling rather deflated, I spoke with Norman, and to lighten my saddened state, he offered me a ride on one of the FR trains, or a tour of his workshops, and as I've never been much of a 'rides' man I took him up on his offer of a workshop tour.

This was a much better part of the day, and I soon lost my disappointed countenance - as it soon became clear to me that these people were very good at what they did, and proud of it. I feel that Boston Lodge has what's needed to sort out 488's coachwork and am confident that in re-building 488, any of the original structure and fittings that can be retained, will be. The level of craftsmanship employed in their works is of an extremely skilled, professional standard, and in all honesty, I was quite blown away with it. So it's by no means all bad news!

In closing, I felt that my initial visit to FR was a fairly good one, and it enabled me to make a reasonable assessment of what work will be needed on 488. I felt at ease with Norman and the others who I met at FR, and the tour of the workshop at Boston Lodge was simply amazing. Preparations are currently being made to move both the upper and lower decks of 488 into the workshop on two foot gauge trucks, and I am keeping tabs on this progress. I would expect that on my next visit, I will be taking large quantities of measurements and making preparations to remove the controllers, breakers, compressor, switch gear and motors.




Ray Maidstone
488 Technical Consultant