Below: Work on L1833 is nearing completion and the waggon will be complete within the next fortnight. Here are two views of the work as it draws to a conclusion…

Below: The next waggon through the works will be a new-build chaldron style flat waggon with RCH/dumb buffing gear to act as a barrier waggon for locos not fitted with chaldron style buffers. This is based on a Seaham example and will also be a useful waggon in general.

After the completion of the flat, six chaldrons are to receive repairs (mainly missing or damaged planks and top rails) and repainting. This will give us a working rake of eight waggons with which to populate the colliery area next season – not as many as might be accurate, but a start! If anyone wants to sponsor further rebuilds, I’d be delighted to hear from them! Each waggon costs around £15,000 to build (using existing metalwork) and there are probably enough components to rebuild four more chaldrons, though one of these I would like to be of the ‘square’ variety. I would also like to construct a replica Londonderry Railway brick waggon – essentially a stretched chaldron chassis with flat sided body and flat floor.

Other waggon projects include rebuilding the South Pier waggons (a flat, a water tank waggon and the hand crane) and a major project to reconstruct a short rake of contractors waggons…