Briefly mentioned in the blog entry for 14/12/08 was the Trust's Toastrack coach. This vehicle has been quietly progressing off-site, but its completed underframe has now arrived at Apedale (top photo). The vehicle will be a rebuild of a vehicle used on the Welsh Highland/Ffestiniog Railways in North Wales. The chassis of the Trust's vehicle was highly corroded upon arrival & has since been reconstructed, using the original as a pattern along with a few small salvaged parts. The bodywork will be all new to the original design and the 4 wheel bogies are substantially original. These Hudson toastrack coaches were supplied new to the Welsh Highland Railway in 1923 under the direction of Col. Stephens - allegedly they were built in just six weeks. The MRT may need a little longer to complete its vehicle. The bottom photos are the Hudson works photo of this type of vehicle, and one of the surviving Ffestiniog vehicles in use recently. The Welsh Highland had six such vehicles, but by the late 1920s four had their bodies removed and were being used to shift coal. Some of these survived into the preservation era, and the vehicle which the MRT acquired had been used latterly as a weedkiller wagon. The MRT vehicle will, when completed, be able to carry 32 passengers with the facility to carry two wheelchairs upon demand. As ever, we need your help with this and many other projects - contact us here.
