Carriage Summary

Where two figures are given for the number of seats, the lower figure is for normal use and the higher for heavily loaded trains.

Original Carriages

Brown, Marshalls Carriages Nos. 1-3

Carriages 1, 2 and 3 (together with brake van 5) formed the original rolling stock supplied in 1866 and 1867. They were built by Brown, Marshalls & Co of Birmingham, and have been in continuous service for more than 150 years. No. 3 was the first to be delivered, and is 1 foot shorter than Nos. 1 and 2. All three are 3-compartment four-wheelers entirely open inside above the seat backs, except for No. 3 which has one compartment at the west end partitioned off.

Lancaster Carriage No. 4

No. 4 (known as “Lulu” to railway staff) followed in 1867 from the Lancaster Wagon Co. and was a rather cheaper and less robust 3-compartment four-wheeler. It has been considerably modified over the years, with the doors being extended upwards and a second, outer body skin added. Its wheels project above the floor where they are covered by small wheel arches.

Brown, Marshalls Brake Van No. 5

No. 5 was supplied in 1866 by Brown, Marshalls with sliding double doors on each side and a semi-open verandah at the east end. The original maker’s drawing survives in Birmingham Central Library. Around 1900 the verandah was closed in and small projecting lookouts added, a ticket window being provided in the north side ducket. A sliding hatch in the east end provides access to the handbrake handle, which is located outside the van body. The double doors and lookout on the south side have since been removed.

Modern Carriages

The Semi-Opens (Nos. 8, 11, 12 & 13)

The railway has four semi-open carriages, all three compartment four-wheelers. The first such vehicles were Nos. 7 and 8, acquired from the Penrhyn Quarry Railway in 1953. No. 7 was subsequently rebuilt as a tea-van and eventually into its current form (see below). Nos. 11, 12 and 13 entered service in 1955, 1956 and 1957 respectively and are somewhat larger and more substantially built than the Penrhyn quarrymen’s carriages. No. 8 was renewed to a similar design in 1966.

Wheelchair and Guard’s Van No. 7

After being used to serve teas at Abergynolwyn from 1963-68, No. 7 was used as a mess van on the construction of the Nant Gwernol extension. Eventually, the running gear was used under a new four-wheeled wheelchair saloon designed to match the standard bogie stock but glazed all round in the same way as the Corris coach, entering service in 1992.

The “Cardboard Carriages” (Nos. 9 & 10)

Two bogie underframes were supplied in 1954 by W.G. Allen Ltd of Tipton, based on man-riding cars for the National Coal Board. No. 9 was fitted with Penrhyn quarrymen’s carriage bodies, with a new six-compartment body in 1955; No. 10 received a a semi-open body with a small enclosed brake compartment using some parts of two other Penrhyn vehicles. The two, known locally as the “cardboard carriages”, received new bodies to the later standard TR design in 1967 (No. 10: 3 compartments and Guard’s van) and 1967-68 (No. 9: 5 compartments).

The Stanton (No. 16)

No. 16 started life as a 3ft gauge bogie carriage with end balconies and was purchased in 1957 from Boden’s Stone Ltd at Stanton-in-the-Peak, Derbyshire. A new five compartment body was built on the extended underframe, with a guard’s compartment being subsequently fitted at the east end and later enlarged. A new body to the standard TR design was fitted in 1981 with 3 compartments and Guard’s van. A Guard’s look-out was fitted in 1998.

No. 18 and the Standard Bogies

In 1959 it was decided that new carriages would be required to cope with increasing traffic levels, and No. 18 was built between 1961 and 1965. The body design is based on the style of the Glyn Valley Tramway cariages, with six compartments. Subsequent vehicles were built by Raymond Tisdale & Co. Ltd. on underframes by the Midland Furnace Co.; as built, they were:

Nos. 20 and 21 have subsequently had three compartments at the east end converted to form a wheelchair saloon, with an end observation window.

Carriages from Other Lines

Corris Railway Brake Van No. 6

In 1951 the railway obtained the remaining stock from the nearby Corris Railway, including this small brake van built in 1885 by Falcon Works in Loughborough. It was used for some years for luggage on passenger trains, but is nowadays relegated to engineering duties. A replacement body was constructed in 1958, the original being used as a shelter at Quarry Siding for some years.

Glyn Valley Tramway Carriages Nos. 14 & 15

These carriages were built for the Glyn Valley Tramway at Chirk (closed in 1935) by the Midland Railway Carriage and Wagon Co. Ltd. in 1892 and about 1901 respectively. No. 14 was a first-class vehicle and was obtained from Chirk vicarage in 1956; No. 15 was originally third class and was acquired from a farm near Glyn Ceiriog in 1958. Both were restored to first-class condition for which a supplementary fare is charged.

Corris Railway Carriage No. 17

Before entering TR service in 1961, this carriage had been used as a greenhouse and garden shed at Oswestry since the withdrawal of passenger services on the Corris Railway in 1930. The body is virtually a replica of the original (with two saloons with longitudinal seats flanking a central vestibule) and the carriage, with its all-around glazing, has proved very popular. On 25th November 1982 it carried HRH The Princess of Wales from Pendre to Rhydyronen, the Prince travelling on the footplate of “Dolgoch”.

Wagons

Talyllyn Railway stock

The wagons listed here are owned by the Talyllyn Railway Company.  In addition, there are a number of special-use wagons and trolleys
in use by the Engineering Department that do not bear numbers.

Narrow Gauge Railway Museum stock

The wagons listed here are owned by the Narrow Gauge Railway Museum Trust and are in occasional use on the Railway.

Notes