Boston Lodge Engineering

PAUL LEWIN General Manager

Ffestiniog & Welsh Highland Railways Harbour Station, Porthmadog

Gwynedd, LL49 9NF

Phone: 01766 516060 Fax: 01766 516006

Email: paul.lewin@festrail.co.uk

Boston Lodge is the engineering works of the Ffestiniog Railway Company, the oldest independent railway company in the world. The present workforce are continuing a long established tradition of innovation and quality stretching back more than one hundred and fifty years. Fifty years of preservation work have resulted in a wide range of expertise in the field of engineering at Boston Lodge. Heritage locomotives and carriages can be restored and repaired on site whilst we are also able to produce modern locomotives and stock. The Ffestiniog Railway passes through several miles of spectacular woodland which led to the conversion of many 19th Century coal-fired locomotives to oil firing to avoid the risk of forest fires. Our experience of oil-firing spans over thirty years. Our unrivalled knowledge in this field resulted in Indian Railways placing orders for oil-firing equipment for locomotives on the Darjeeling Himalaya Railway. Due to increases in fuel oil prices, we have adopted a programme of fuel-diversification and returned, or converted, many of our locomotives to coal-firing - so expanding our skills. In 2001 we completed the restoration of the first two iron-framed carriages built for use in the UK. This gave us the inspiration to accurately replicate the colourful trains of the FR’s past. One carriage rake has been completed in 1930s livery and another has been finished to emulate the elaborate livery used in 1878, including gold leaf lining. Since then we have expanded our Carriage Works in order to sustain this high quality craftsmanship and encourage its further development. Our expertise in the field of railway engineering is renowned among heritage railways who frequently commission work from us.

Past projects include two vehicles designed and constructed to replicate Darjeeling Himalayan Railway examples and the construction of two replica Pickering carriages for the Welshpool & Llanfair Light Railway. We have also designed and constructed a carriage based on the concept of the Sandy River & Rangeley Lakes Railroad parlor car. This entailed modifying the original design to suit the customer’s specifications - including the addition of a fully fitted kitchen. Aside from the Carriage Works we also maintain, and build, locomotives. We are particularly proud of the fact that we have built the new boiler for resident Hunslet 0-4-0ST ‘Lilla’ ourselves. Our well-equipped machine shops and highly trained staff ensure the vast majority of our work is carried out ‘in-house’. Our reputation is highly regarded both nationally and internationally and our services are frequently in demand from local business. We are regularly commissioned to carry out repairs on industrial machinery. Two of our most recent projects involve adapting trucks for use at a local slate quarry and engineering industrial mixers for a Caernarfon based firm. Let Us Help You… We have extensive experience of locomotive and rolling stock work and can carry out all aspects of manufacture from design to finished product. We have a dedicated and enthusiastic team who derive great satisfaction from the completion of the huge variety of jobs done in Boston Lodge Works. We will be very pleased for you to contact - or visit - us to see some of our products and to discuss your requirements.

Traditional Skills & Engineering Techniques

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3 Machining Steam Fountain for NG/G16 №87 4 Making vacuum cylinder patterns for replica L&B loco ‘Lyd’

Machining industrial tank stirrers Construction of traditional wooden footbridge

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Locomotive Overhaul & Restoration

1 White metalling axleboxes for Hunslet No.589 ‘Blanche’ 2 Woodworking shop scene 3 Painting loco frames 4 Rivetting the foundation ring on NG/G16 No.87

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Craftsmanship & Attention To Detail

1 Applying crests and lining to FR Heritage Carriages 2 Applying gold leaf to FR Heritage Carriages 3 Making carriage doors 4 Trial erection of FR Observation Carr 102

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Boston Lodge Carriage Works

Restoration - Metropolitan Railway Carriage No.353

1 Standard Gauge underframe being moved into welding bay 2 Carriage body, as received, being moved across A487 in Porthmadog 3 Original woodwork retained where practical, replaced when necessary 4 Carriage Works Manager Norman Bond, with one of the original doors 5 Upper panelling restored and interior partitions re-fitted

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New Build - Sandy River & Rangeley Lakes Parlor Car

1 Dining Area 2 Roof Panel Lining - applied by hand 3 Lounge & Balcony 4 Xmas Lunch on-board during acceptance trials

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New Build - Replica W&LLR Pickering Carriages

1 Alternating wood colours highlight the craftsmen’s skills 2 Hand-painted GWR Crest 3 Marquetry inlays on balcony floor 4 On delivery at Llanfair Caereinion

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New Build - Darjeeling Himalaya Railway Carriages

1 Completed chassis 2 Primed and undercoated - ready for the paintshop 3 Detail showing braking arrangements 4 Darjeeling train run for HMRI inspection of DHR ‘B’-class No.19

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New Build - FR Observation Carriage No.100

1 Observation saloon 2 Engraved FR Crests on glazed partitions 3 Pullman seating saloon 4 As delivered into traffic

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New Build - FR Super-Saloon No.103

1 Improved ambience for passengers - light and airy interior with upgraded seating design and extended legroom 2 Improved accessibility with wide vestibules, hinged tables and collapsible seats forming wheelchair spaces 3 Wide doorways providing easier access for wheelchairs and less mobile passengers 4 FR Super-Saloon No.103 as delivered into traffic

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New Build - WHR Observation Carriage No.2100

1 Frame delivered to Minffordd by external contractors 2 Panelling being applied at Boston Lodge 3 Emergency/Accessible door 4 The freshly painted carriage sits at Boston Lodge

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New Build - WHR Service Carriage No.2010

1 Brake/Guards Compartment under construction 2 Generator Pack in place 3 Floor plan 4 Kitchen area during fitting out 5 As running in service on the Rheilffordd Eryri / Welsh Highland Railway

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New Build - WHR Enhanced Accessibility Carriages

1 Wheelchair accessible doors 2 Interior in Canadian Cedar 3 Detail of drop-down seat 4 Pre-delivery photograph

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Restoration - FR ‘Bowsider’ Composite No.19

1 Gold leaf lining 2 Balcony & Crest detail 3 1st, 2nd and 3rd Class compartments 4 Standing at Boston Lodge prior to a test run

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Refurbishment & Upgrade - FR Carriage No.116

1 Engraved FR Crest on internal glazed partitions 2 Interior prior to upgrade 3 Exterior prior to upgrade 4 Interior after upgrade - note the FR branding 5 Exterior after upgrade - note re-positioned window pillars and enhanced seat spacing (First Class compartment removed)

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Boston Lodge Locomotive Works

Restoration of Quarry Hunslet 0-4-0ST ‘Hugh Napier’

1 Extensive boilerwork included riveted front tubeplate and a new firebox 2 Successful steam test of the completed boiler at Boston Lodge 3 Trial movements of the loco taking place in Boston Lodge Yard 4 Resplendent in its freshly applied livery, ‘Hugh Napier’ poses in the sunshine

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New Boiler Constructed For Hunslet 0-4-0ST ‘Lilla’

1 Welding firebox stays 2 Prior to welding firebox stays 3 Inserting tubes into new boiler 4 Boiler test-mounted in chassis prior to lagging

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NG/G16 Beyer-Garratt No.87

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Condition as received at Boston Lodge

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NG/G16 Beyer-Garratt No.87

1 Outer and Inner Firebox Backhead removed 2 New cab structure erected by the ‘Taliesin’ team 3 New patterns for No.87 4 Coded welder Bob Yates works on the new outer backhead

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NG/G16 Beyer-Garratt No.87

1 Newly machined valves and glands 2 Hind power unit 3 New coal bunker 4 First steaming of the refurbished boiler

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NG/G16 Beyer-Garratt No.87

1 Turning the boiler to face Blaenau 2 Cab front sheet being fitted 3 In service - with over 30k miles of running to date 4 Official pre-delivery portrait - Boston Lodge, 13th January 2009

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Paint-Shop Perfection

1 ‘Earl of Merioneth’ - Smokebox, chimney and bogies masked 2 ‘Earl of Merioneth’ - Detail of lining out 3 ‘Earl of Merioneth’ - Seamus Rogers and Andy Williamson attend to the lining out 4 Hunslets ‘Linda’ and ‘Blanche’ show off their freshly-applied livery of post-restoration FR green

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Paint-Shop Perfection

1 Detail of new livery applied to NG/G16 No.138 in May 2010 2 Worksplate from NG/G16 No.143 3 Detail of new livery applied to NG/G16 No.143 in June 2011 4 Fresh from the paint-shop, NG/G16 No.143 basks in the sunshine at Boston Lodge

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Replica Lynton & Barnstaple Railway 2-6-2T ‘Lyd’

1 Valve gear mock-up 2 Pattern for vacuum cylinder 3 Balanced slide valve 4 Rear three-quarter view showing boiler lifting brackets

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Replica Lynton & Barnstaple Railway 2-6-2T ‘Lyd’

1 First loaded test run in August 2010 2 Visit to Woody Bay, L&BR in September 2010 3 Temporary pseudo-British Railways livery - April 2011 4 Resplendent in full Southern Railway livery - September 2011

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Re-Gauging of Plasser & Theurer KMX Tamper/Liner

1 Brake system 2 Control desk 3 Tamp head 4 Pre-delivery

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Appendix

Ffestiniog & Welsh Highland Railways Miscellany

Team-building weekend organised for Infraco Subsurface Overhauling carriage bogies for the Isle of Man Steam Railway

S&T Department ‘Cherry-Picker’ wagon Cosmetic restoration of a 1902 Merryweather ‘Gem’ Steam Fire Engine

If you would like to know more about our corporate events - contact Pauline Holloway on

01766 516062 for details of our bespoke service.

Ffestiniog & Welsh Highland Railways Route Map

FFESTINIOG & WELSH HIGHLAND RAILWAYS Harbour Station, Porthmadog, Gwynedd, LL49 9NF

Phone: 01766 516000 Email: enquiries@festrail.co.uk

www.festrail.co.uk