Mark 3 Sleeping cars

[Helvellyn]

Wonder if anyone can clear up a couple of things on the Mark 3A sleeping cars?

SLEs (Sleeping Car Either Class) 10733, 10734 and 10735 were not completed. I know 10734 was converted to Royal Sleeping Car 2914. Was 10735 converted to Royal Sleeping Car 2915? And was 10733 rebuilt as the Prince of Wales's Sleeping Car 2923, or was this vehicle new build?

Also, as the SLEP series ran from 10500 to 10619, but the SLE series started at 10646, was it originally planned that there would also be SLEPs 10620-10645 that were cancelled before construction? And were there planned to be further SLEs above 10735?

I know that the Sleeping Car network was starting to be cut back already when the Mark 3 vehicles were being built, and that many vehicles only had a few years active service before being stored/withdrawn (particularly after the withdrawal of East Coast Sleepers).

 

[theblackwatch]

Yes 10735 ended up being built as 2915. 10734/5 were never numbered as such until 2914 became 10734 when it was sold to Riviera or VSOE (can't remember which). 10733 did exist, it was an early casualty though - I think it was written off in the Morpeth derailment when 47452 came off the tracks.

With regards the others, you are correct in saying the order for 10620-645 was cancelled.

 

[Helvellyn]

Thanks theblackwatch. I thought it was just some of the early build SLEPs that were written off at Morpeth, but if 10733 was as well it can literally only have been months old.

It's surprising how things quickly changed, in that BR got authorisation to build 236 Mk 3 Sleeping Cars (146 SLEPs and 90 SLEs), yet by the early 1980s when it seems 26 SLEPs were cancelled it was struggling to get authorisation for additional Mk 3 stock (both HSTs and Mk 3B loco-halued). I know the recession in the early 1980s was severe, and that BR was starting to reduce the amount of "spare" rolling stock around, just a shame they couldn't get those existing orders switched to day coaches.

 

[GNERman]

GNER wanted to do that to strengthen their HST fleet, but due to the VXC fleet coming off lease they weren't needed.

 

[jamesontheroad]

Out of interest, what is the expected lifespan of the Mk. 3 SLE/SLEPs?

 

[87015]

GNER wanted to do that to strengthen their HST fleet, but due to the VXC fleet coming off lease they weren't needed.

Don't think they'd have got very far with that plan structurally. Best thing to do would to be to overhaul the bogies and shove em underneath the Irish MkIIIs.

 

[Helvellyn]

GNER wanted to do that to strengthen their HST fleet, but due to the VXC fleet coming off lease they weren't needed.

I don't mean structurally rebuild the vehicles like GNER proposed, which has already been suggested would have been expensive as the Sleeping cars were not built the way the other Mark 3 coaches were, i.e. easily able to be converted between types.

What I meant was that as funding had been agreed for a fleet of X Sleeping cars, if Y were cancelled then build Y FOs/TSOs instead. But by the early 1980s when this could have been done finances were stretcged and the country was in recession, so justifying new stock was difficult. Therefore just cancelling the SLEPs that weren't now required saved money.

 

[theblackwatch]

You are correct about 10733, it didn't last very long due to its accident. The Morpeth accident occurred in June 1984.

By the way I have changed the font of your posts in this threas to black and normal font, please use this in future.