British Rail Class 109
# British Rail Class 109

The British Rail Class 109 is a class of 2-car diesel multiple units built in 1957 by D Wickham & Co. Five two-car units were built featuring an unusual body design. The design, first used in 1936 for South American railways, aimed to minimise weight. It had no underframe, but the whole body was formed into a welded stress-bearing box girder made of 1⁄8 inch (3.2 mm) solid drawn steel tube. Aluminium was used for panels, luggage racks, window frames, vacuum pipes and fuel and vacuum tanks. The corrugated steel floor was filled with sprayed asbestos and covered with asbestos-filled flame-proofed hardboard and rubber sheet.

The units soon became non-standard and two were sold back to the manufacturer who exported them to Trinidad and Tobago. Another unit was converted into departmental service, and survived in BR ownership until the early 1980s.

## Vehicle numbers

Orders and numbers of Class 109 cars :

| Lot No. | Diagram | Car Type | Qty | Fleet No. | Seating | Weight | Notes |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 30288 | 606 | Driving Motor Brake Second (DMBS) | 5 | 50415–50419 | 59 second | 27 long tons 0 cwt (60,500 lb or 27.4 t) | |
| 30289 | 607 | Driving Trailer Composite with lavatory (DTCL) | 5 | 56170–56174 | 16 first (2+2), 50 second (2+3) | 22 long tons 10 cwt (50,400 lb or 22.9 t) | |

## Further use

One two-car set (50416+56171) was extensively overhauled in 1967 at Doncaster, revamping the interiors and adding kitchen facilities to 50416. After repainting, the set was used as the ER General Managers special train, numbered 975005 / 975006.

## Preservation

One two-car unit, (see above) the former departmental unit, formed of vehicles 50416 and 56171, has been preserved and restored to working condition at the Llangollen Railway. It was restored using lottery money.

| Set number | Vehicle numbers | Vehicle numbers | Livery | Location | Notes |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Set number | DMBS | DTCL | Livery | Location | Notes |
| - | 50416 | 56171 | BR Green | Llangollen Railway | Operational |
