641 donates a Compressor

Inbetween intermittent showers and blustery wind the Engineering Workshop team from Rigby Road made the short drive up to the Pleasure Beach to attend to an urgent mission this morning. Centenary Car 641 is in the middle of a makeover by a social programme of Blackpool Council and now sombre in an all grey undercoat prior to receiving a new 'look' with local programme volunteers. Ahead of the pending 'refurb' BTS used the interlude to extract the compressor motor from 641 for future use on the Centenary cars in the Heritage fleet.

Given that FHLT, which owns 641, is unlikely to require its return to operating state any time soon - a request to retrieve this important component (for a good cause) was immediately accepted. The FHLT have further display plans for 641 in 2018/19 which continue its static exhibition at the Pleasure Beach. Thereafter it will rejoin the Trust's own core collection in Fleetwood as part of a scheme currently under discussion with a number of companies.

As luck would have it the Author chanced upon the ongoing operation of removing the compressor - no easy task in the outdoors with wind and rain, hence these brief images earlier today.

What a compressor motor looks like in the cold light of day - in this case just removed from Centenary 641 and about to be loaded into the proverbial 'white van'.

Loading manually is no easy job - but the task was accomplished without problems. Below : BTS White Van and tram. 641 now in temporary grey undercoat finish but retaining its fleet number on the side panel now awaiting the next coat of paint.....