M50455

M50455 is a Class 104 Driving Motor Brake Second (DMBS). Delivered to the North West (shed 9A) in 1957, M50455 was delivered as part of a 3-car set, alongside M59163 & M50507 (neither survive). This was just one of a large batch of 3-cars for the London Midland region of BR. It weighs 31 tons and seats 54 people in second class, with a brake van also being included at the rear. M50455 was fitted from new with two BUT standard Leyland 680 engines and transmissions and is wired as Blue Square, the most common of the DMU multiple working types.

M50455 was put to service in the Manchester area initially running to Stoke on Trent, Crewe, Birmingham, and Derby. It was then diagrammed to work suburban services around Manchester ultimately displacing older steam hauled vehicles on such lines as Manchester to Macclesfield, and Manchester to Buxton. The vehicle would have been in the early (malachite) green that 104s were delivered in, with the set receiving the more conventional green (darker, known as ‘loco green’) by 1960. A repaint into BR Blue would also follow, along with the removal of the blue asbestos insulation. This was done to many 104s, although none were included in the main refurbishment program, so the 104s were often clean of asbestos while retaining many of their original fittings. In the 1970's M50455 was classified as 104 and later renumbered to M53455 to avoid clashing with TOPS coded diesel locomotives. The route indicator situated under the centre cab window had also been plated over. During this decade, it was allocated to Newton Heath (Manchester) & Buxton, but enjoyed a further lease of life when it journeyed south to London's Old Oak Common depot to work the Gospel Oak to Barking services with other DMBS vehicles (such as 53437). It was refurbished in the late 80’s for this purpose and was renumbered again to 53455. Displaced by class 115's M50455 then moved to Reading to work Thames line DMU diagrams until in mid 1992 "Thames Turbo" (class 165) took over these duties. It was finally withdrawn in 1992 as set L730 – the vehicle had been reformed as it didn’t make much sense to keep the NSE 104 sets together with there being two brake vans in a 2-car set (no 104 DMCLs were refurbished for NSE).

M50455 was condemned for scrapping with other First Generation DMUs coming out of service at this time having been displaced by more modern units. However the vehicle was purchased in 1992 as part of a bulk buy of twelve vehicles from Kevin Dowd and Robert Simpson. M50455 was moved to the CVR some time later in the early 1990’s, where it saw limited use as hauled stock at the Cheddleton Steam Centre behind class 04 D2334. After the CVR’s purchase of the 7 mile Leekbrook-Oakamoor section in the mid 1990’s, M50455 was stored awaiting restoration at Oakamoor Sand Sidings. Luckily M50455 was regarded as the better of the two vehicles with a brake van on the railway so once external restoration of M50517 had come to a conclusion M50455 was taken out of store in 1999 for restoration to commence.

The extent of the corrosion found in this vehicle was legendary! The five year restoration was quicker than M50517’s, that vehicle always being the showcase, as many of M50455’s parts were suitable for re-use. Some seat cushions, interior panels and cab fittings only required spot repairs and a good clean, where as M50517 often needed new. Bodywork restoration was prolonged due to the sheer number of corners and spots round the Brakevan that has corroded. By the time the work was done and the vehicle was ready for priming, there was little of the NSE “toothpaste” livery left. By July 2002 the car had been hand painted and rolled out of the shed at Oakamoor sporting BR Green with whiskers. A further 18 months were spent getting the interior and mechanical parts to a standard suitable for public passenger service. This involved cleaning the seats and lino, rebuilding the wooden interior with a mix of new and reused panels and fitting the luggage racks, ceilings and associated electrics. M50455 & M50517 finally entered service on the CVR at the "Swansong of Steam" gala in September 2004.

The unit, in mint condition, debuted at the 2004 "Swansong of Steam" gala, before being whisked off to the Severn Valley Railway for the never-to-be-repeated Railcar50 event, the biggest gathering of running DMU sets to date. We flew the flag for BRCW alongside Class 118 from the Battlefield Railway and the weekend was an unforgettable experience. The two car set had the honor of leading the 12 car Fish & Chip special from Bridgnorth-Kidderminster on the Saturday night, the longest DMU to have ran in preservation. After the event, the DMU returned to the CVR for two years of intensive running, providing a mid-week service for the railway in August and during the school holidays. It also ran on off-peak Saturdays ensuring the railway was running every weekend from April-October. The line enjoyed this increased running from 2005-2006 before a review of services resulted in the midweek running being removed. 2007 & 2008 saw the vehicle used on Bank Holidays and Special Events only, providing a second train alongside a steam hauled set. M50455 has always ran as a power-twin set with M50517, the unit having 600hp for just two carriages.

M50455 is currently fully operational and running with M50517. At the moment the set can be enjoyed on roughly 20 days a year on bank holidays and some special events. The mechanics are currently being serviced, each component being removed, overhauled and but back on between running dates so the vehicle remains operational. In the short term future, it is planned to overhaul M50455 in 2009, with the interior having a quick tidy up and the Brakevan a more thorough refresh. The exterior will also be rubbed down and repainted, along with M50517. This repaint will coincide with the completion of centre car M59137 which will be inserted between M50455 & M50517, meaning a fully overhauled 3-car set can be launched into service. Running maintenance is just as important as vehicle restoration, and the more volunteers the group can attract, the higher the standard of our running vehicles can be. If you have any amount of spare time and interest then perhaps you should consider joining us?