Go to Latest Progress
Work has started on the overhaul of Collett Sunshine Coach 1645. The vehicle is a brake third built in 1938 and which was purchased originally by the Dean Forest Railway and resold to the SDR early last year. The purchase was made using funds from the Great Western Development Fund - a fund run by the SDR to enable strategic purchases such as this to be made quickly when the opportunity arises.

Initial work has now shown that the coach is much better than its outward appearance might otherwise suggest. The volunteers working on the project were delighted to find that almost all the original GW upholstery was stored in the baggage area under a mound of Mark 1 seating. All other fittings such as the luggage racks and brackets are also present. Work will concentrate on repairing the lower roof sections and an area of the bottom stringer that requires renewal.

Work is expected to take about a year.

Progress Report 10th April 2005
Just one week on from going into the works for a major overhaul progress on 1645 is meteoric. So much so that it is worth recording the progress with updated pictures! The gutters are off and under repair, the rusted roof panels are off, all rusted side panels are off and new metal sheets arrived ready for cutting drilling and fitting. Both sides of the carriage have been stripped of old paint and are ready to receive etch primer! The section of rotted bottom stringer has also been exposed and cut back ready for a new section to be scarfed into place. The strange item of equipment on the workbench in one of the pictures is the fly press which is used to form the countersinks in the new panels for the screw heads that hold them on.