Although the Crich Tramway Village is closed to the public until March that does not mean that the site is all locked up and that nothing is happening. In fact that has been far from the case with work continuing in the workshop on both the long-term restoration projects as well as some general maintenance whilst there has also been a small shunt of trams between the depot and Great Exhibition Hall.
Saturday 2nd December was a cold day with a dusting of snow but that did not stop the volunteers at Crich getting into action with the main purpose of their day due to be swapping over Leeds 602 and Blackpool 762 again. As you’ll recall 602 had been taken out of the Great Exhibition Hall earlier this year so that it could play a role in events to celebrate the Coronation of King Charles III. Having originally entered service in 1953 (at the time of Queen Elizabeth II’s Coronation) the tram retains a special regal purple livery and so the chance was taken to display it outside of a number of occasions.
To allow it to be easily accessible it was moved out of the Great Exhibition Hall and placed into the depots. Its place in the Exhibition Hall was taken by Blackpool 762 throughout the year. With this always being intended to be a temporary move the two trams were moved back into their old positions once more.
Leeds 602 always makes a striking sight, but the novelty value of seeing it with a backdrop of snow and ice makes this scene extra special! 602 is seen in front of the Exhibition Hall shortly before it was put back into the Exhibition Hall, having spent the summer residing in the depots.
Blackpool Jubilee car 762 has once again swapped places with Leeds 602 and is seen here being moved on the traverser, with very little room to spare. This tram is now back in Depot VI.
The final assembly of Blackpool 298’s main body frame is at an advanced stage as is well illustrated in this view.
There are currently two Blackpool Brush cars in the Crich workshop as 630 is receiving some repairs to its platform frame. Alongside, Leeds 399 is having its paintwork touched up having completed another busy season of operation.
Another view of Blackpool 298 with London County Council 1 which is still being worked on, with its plough carrier being the current focus of attention. (All Photographs by Peter Whiteley, 2nd December 2023)
Looks impressive, but new body frames on a new underframe… Just now much (or how little) of Keith Terry’s 298 will be left, never mind how much of the 1937 original.
To me this is going to be a superb replica, but it can hardly claim you be the original vehicle.
Yes it has a new underframe and the main side frames have been replaced as without these the tram could only have been restored as a static BUT the air, electric, running gear (bogies etc) roof frame and all other internal fittings are original, even the sunsine roof (ex 675 and modified to the correct length for a Brush car).
Don’t forget the new body and underframe are built exactly to the original 1937 specification. It depends on how you want to define original vehicle, it will always a compromise to have it operational.
Any vehicle of any age has had parts replaced as they wore out.It is said that none of the Flying Scotsman is original except a brass strip on a window surround with the original number 1471 stamped on it. But if we are to have working preserved vehicles, then we must expect defective parts to be replaced by new ones. That’s the price we pay, loss of ‘authenticity’.
The National Railway museum would beg to disagree
https://blog.railwaymuseum.org.uk/how-much-flying-scotsman-original/
Am I alone in longing for the day when 762 is restored to her original Green & Cream?
Sadly, I think I probably am!
I like the advert, it shows the evolution of advertising on British trams. Part of me wished that the original Walls tram was at Crich, just to see peoples reactions to the bright colours and on board ice cream parlour
Geoff – I too would love that but it would require substantial work to the body to be put back into a correct condition to carry green again. And it does display the very end of main service double deck operation in the UK.
Yes, I know. Not to forget that, as someone at Crich said to me a few visits ago, ‘the kids like it.’
Sorry. I have been a member long enough to have a few brief periods of grumpy eccentricity sometimes!