Inside Longsight Diesel Traction Maintenance Depot, December 1983
The British Railways Class 105 is a type of diesel multiple unit (DMU) which were built by Cravens Ltd. at Darnall (Sheffield) Locomotive Works in Birmingham, England from 1956 to 1959. They were built with a side profile identical to the Mark 1 carriages, using the same doors and windows.
History[]
Orders[]
The class 105/6 were built by Cravens which also built the classes 112/3, 129 and 311. The 105s were the most numerous by far with 302 examples, the two types differed by their engines and were later both classified as 105s.
The vehicles were ordered in five batches over the years.
| Lot No. |
Car type | Qty |
Fleet numbers |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 30280 | Driving Motor Brake Second (DMBS) | 14 | 50359–50372 | Power-trailer 2-car sets |
| 30281 | Driving Trailer Composite with lavatory (DTCL) | 14 | 56114–56127 | Power-trailer 2-car sets |
| 30282 | Driving Motor Brake Second (DMBS) | 17 | 50373–50389 | Power-trailer 2-car sets |
| 30283 | Driving Trailer Composite with lavatory (DTCL) | 17 | 56128–56144 | Power-trailer 2-car sets |
| 30284 | Driving Motor Brake Second (DMBS) | 5 | 50390–50394 | Power-trailer 2-car sets |
| 30285 | Driving Trailer Composite with lavatory (DTCL) | 5 | 56145–56149 | Power-trailer 2-car sets |
| 30352 | Driving Motor Brake Second (DMBS) | 33 | 50752–50784 | 2- or 3-car sets |
| 30353 | Driving Motor Composite with lavatory (DMCL) | 33 | 50785–50817 | 2- or 3-car sets |
| 30354 | Trailer Composite with lavatory (TCL) | 19 | 59307–59325 | 3-car sets |
| 30469 | Driving Motor Brake Second (DMBS) | 48 | 51254–51301 | Power-trailer 2-car sets |
| 30470 | Driving Trailer Composite with lavatory (DTCL) | 48 | 56412–56459 | Power-trailer 2-car sets |
| 30503 | Driving Motor Brake Second (DMBS) | 24 | 51471–51494 | Power-trailer 2-car sets |
| 30504 | Driving Trailer Composite with lavatory (DTCL) | 24 | 56460–56483 | Power-trailer 2-car sets |
| 30505 | Driving Motor Brake Second (DMBS) | 1 | 50249 |
Batch One[]
DMBSs 50359-94 DTCs 56114-49
The first order was for 36 power/trailer sets, 31 for the NER and 5 for the LMR. The first 14 for the NER were the Leyland engined examples, later becoming Class 106. I found no reference to when the order was placed, although the first vehicles were delivered in August 1956.
Batch Two[]
DMBSs 50752-84 DMCs 50785-817 TCs 59307-25
These 66 power cars and 19 centre cars formed 14 power twins and 19 3-car sets for the LMR and were ordered at the start of 1956. They were quoted as intended to be used on the Birmingham, Manchester and Derby - Nottingham - Leicester areas. A few months afterwards British United Traction issued a press release stating that it had received orders totalling £830,000. This included the equipment for those 66 Cravens power cars, the 3 Class 129 Cravens parcel cars, and 98 Class 120 power cars and 47 Class 120 trailers being built at Swindon. The first vehicles were delivered in September 1957.
Mention in the press at the time refers to the DMBSs as type A3, the DMCs as type B1, and the centre cars as type D. This was a very short-lived classification scheme.
The 3-car sets as ordered would have just 12 first class smoking seats (in the DMC), the centre cars being trailer seconds. The LMR decided that it's 3-car sets should have 24 first class seats including a non-smoking section, a decision made too late for Cravens to do alterations. So it was decided that Derby wo onverted the centre cars, removing 18 second class seats and replacing them with 12 non-smoking first class, at a cost of £375 each. See Lightweight Trains Committee Minutes 524 item 6d, 33 item 7c, 542 item 8c and 551 item 8c. Although these minutes indicate that all 19 vehicles were to be treated, and the three versions of thiei diagram (version 1 / version 2 / version 3) show all 19 as being TCs, the Ian Allan ABCs show only eight vehicles being converted. This is in each edition until their withdrawal, and also curious is that from the 1961 summer edition the TCs are show as having 54 2nd class seats rather than 51.
Batch Three[]
DMBSs 51254-301 DTCs 56412-59
These 48 power trailer sets were ordered around May 1957 for the ER, and deliveries commenced in May 1958.
Batch Four[]
DMBSs 51471-94 DTCs 6460-83
These power/trailer sets were for the ER (2) and the ScR (22) and were ordered around May 1958 being delivered from February 1959.
Batch Five[]
DMBS 50249
This vehicle was either ordered with or just after batch four for the NER, certainly by June 1958. It is often quoted that this vehicle was a replacement for Met-Camm 50173, which was written off after an ccident at Hexham in 1957. But I always wonder, why build a Cravens to operate in a Met-Camm set when Met-Camms were still in production? And Met-Camm 50173 was a DMS, whereas it's 'replacement' 50249 was a DMBS.
Cravens built the Class 105's continuously right up to the end of batch four in June 1959 (i.e. the first atch two cars were delivered the week after the last batch one vehicles), with the exception of 50249. It was delivered after a three month gap, during which the first single engined vehicles were delivered.
Operation[]
The Class 105 DMUs were used chiefly on Eastern Region services around Hull, Lincolnshire, East Anglia and local services to/from London King's Cross. Units initially designated to work on the former Midland and Great Northern Joint Railwaylines were moved to services from London King's Cross upon the closure of the M&GN joint lines in 1959. Units were also used on the London Midland Region and in Scotland, particularly in Aberdeenshire. The closure of many of these lines in the 1960s resulted in their dispersal throughout Great Britain, notably to Tysley depot near Birmingham. The electrification of the lines from London King's Cross and the introduction of the Class 313 EMUs in 1976 led to the withdrawal of many Cravens units.
Norwich was the last depot to operate the Cravens units, with set 30 being returned to green livery, and gaining some celebrity status towards the end of its service life. The unit was, however, contaminated with asbestos and consequently scrapped.
Withdrawal[]
The AEC-engined cars either suffered early withdrawal or were re-engined with Leyland units. A reasonable amount passed into parcels and/or departmental use.
None of the class were selected for refurbishment and withdrawals commenced in the early 1980s, with Norwich becoming the last bastion of operations. By 1988 all vehicles were withdrawn from passenger use with the exception of 53812 which gained a bit of fame. It was paired with the last Class 100 unit, 53355 and they were both withdrawn in June 1988.
Preservation[]
Despite being a very large class with 302 examples, not many of the class have survived into preservation because of asbestos contamination and only three cars survive. The National Railway Museum were interested in preserving 53812 (which had been stripped from asbestos) and the Class 100 paired with it 53355. But the lack of space delayed them from being claimed upon withdrawal, so the two units were stored for a long period at Crewe Carriage shed. Unfortunately during this time they were vandalised beyond repair and the substantial amount of repairs needed prevented them from going to the NRM. They were moved to Derby Etches Park at the end of 1990 before moving to Vic Berry's in Liecester in early 1991 where they were scrapped.
51485 and 56121 were preserved by the West Somerset Railway in 1992, but moved to the East Lancashire Railway in 1997 where they are being restored after asbestos stripping. 56456 is based on the Llangollen Railway, being paired with a Class 127.
| Number | Vehicle type | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 51485 | DMBS | East Lancashire Railway |
| 56121 | DTCL | East Lancashire Railway |
| 56456 | DTCL | Llangollen Railway |