Refreshing the interior

Above: Club Class seating in trailer 60501. The freshly-repainted ceiling is seen to advantage in this shot. (Since this photo was taken, the “Trojan” moquette has been swapped for red; details below.)

Above: The carpet, red seats, tables and off-white ceiling all complement the beautiful sycamore veneer which was an original feature of the Hastings DEMUs. This is our Club Class motor coach, 60118 Tunbridge Wells, seen in April 2012.

Above: Fast-forward two months, and as can be seen the seats throughout motor coach Tunbridge Wells have been re-trimmed in the same moquette. Photo by Andy Armitage.

Above: The woodwork in the saloon of motor coach Tunbridge Wells was re-varnished in autumn 2012.

Above: Club Class seating in the “long” (4 seating-bays) saloon of short-underframed trailer 60501. The distinctive “Trojan” moquette-design was first applied to Hastings DEMUs during their first refurbishment in the mid-1960s. As the next picture shows, in this vehicle we exchanged it for red moquette in July 2012.

Above: All change! To give all parts of our Club Class section a more uniform appearance, the seating in trailer 60501 was replaced in July 2012 with the red seating as used in our Club Class motor coach; the antimacassars enhance the smart appearance to the seating. Some of the better examples of “Trojan”-upholstered seats from 60501 have been cascaded into our Standard Class DEMU trailer 60529. Photo by Andy Armitage.

Above: The saloon of motor coach 60116 Mountfield, whose sycamore veneer is covered with the blue melamine panelling fitted in the 1960s.

Above: The narrow bodywork of the ‘Hastings’ sets precluded double seats either side of the sliding doors to vestibules; accordingly, every saloon has one extra-wide single seat at each end. As can be seen, this example in trailer car 60529 has been freshly re-trimmed in “Trojan” moquette.

Above & below: The blue moquette with which our ex-BIG Buffet car’s seats are trimmed is being renewed; this end pair of bays was completed in time for our November 2012 railtour, with the remainder of the saloon due for completion by Spring 2013. The comparison with the similar but worn moquette in the foreground is evident.

Above & below: All seats and armrests in the BIG buffet car were fully re-trimmed prior to our Weymouth Envoy railtour in July 2013. Photos by Andy Armitage.

Above: Whilst taking a general tour of the interior of our train, we felt it appropriate to show the servery area of our Buffet car 69337; it is seen here fully stocked and ready for service on our Canterbury Trail railtour.

Above: The 500hp power unit of motor coach Tunbridge Wells. Nearest the camera is the main generator, whose electrical connection-jumper is prominently visible. Beyond it is the English Electric 4SRKT diesel engine, and above it is the Napier MS100 turbo-charger. The walkway towards the guard’s van (R) is afforded some protection from the very hot exhaust-pipes by the grille seen at top right. Pink is for lubricating oil, blue for coolant, and orange for electrical conduits.

Above: The guard’s van of motor coach Mountfield. Visible are: an emergency coupler, a fire-extinguisher, track circuit operating clips, and an access-ramp for the assistance of wheelchairs, trolleys et cetera. The orange box contains OTMR equipment.

Above & Below: In the trailer vestibules, looking towards the adjacent motor-coach saloons. Above: In 60501, looking past the toilets and into the adjacent Club Class motor coach, Tunbridge Wells. Below: In 60529, looking towards motor coach Mountfield.