Ja1271 entered service in April 1956 and was in service until November 1971. It was allocated to Invercargill depot and spent its entire working life there. Although taking its share of freight work, it was often to be found on the South Island Limited working as far north as Dunedin. It was only ever recorded twice as having travelled north of that town when in NZR service. The engine had a relatively short working life; being involved in a collision in October 1970 when it was withdrawn from service considered uneconomic to repair. It was officially written off in November 1971, having run only some 416,000 miles, and from then until December 1976 it served as the hot water washout boiler at Dunedin locomotive depot. It was sold to Steam Incorporated in March 1978 and subsequently towed to Paekakariki.

On arrival at Steam Incorporated it was a sorry sight, in poor condition and with many parts missing. Over time Steam Inc carried out a painstaking restoration and on 24th October it hauled its first excursion steam train the 593km from Christchurch to Invercargill, and is still in regular servic on steam train excursions.

(Loco photograph from Wikipedia)

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As the steamers were owned by NZ Railways, Glenorchy was officially a railway station and the rails that ran from the end of the wharf to the shed were technically railway. Thus, at the time, the track that ran from the shed to the end of the wharf was the shortest piece of railway in the country.

The Glenorchy Red Shed Model Kitset is a wooden flatpack that makes up a model of the Glenorchy Red Shed. It is produced by Design Craft NZ who are based in the Canterbury area.

The model clips together – no knives or glue required!

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The completed model dimensions are 13cm long, 7cm high and 4cm wide.

The model clips together – no knives or glue required!

The post Tram Model Kitset Christchurch Tramway Ltd Brill Box Car No. 11 appeared first on The National Railway Museum of New Zealand.

Box Car No.11 was part of the Dunedin tramway system’s original fleet that commenced operations in December 1903. The fleet comprised 43 Brill 4-wheel trams including 14 Box cars, 14 “Californian Combinations” and 15 open, cross bench “toast rack” cars. Many of the Brill trams ran throughout the 53-year life of the Dunedin tramway’s operation, after which tram operations across the whole of New Zealand were demobilised in favour of the bus and motor car which became the primary and more popular modes of city public transport. Most trams were subsequently auctioned off, and purchased for a variety of uses including accommodation, holiday homes, greenhouses, and storage facilities to name but a few. Box Car No. 11 was acquired by W Hastie, a horse breeder in Pine Hill, Dunedin, and used as a storage shed. After 11 years her remains were tracked down by Christchurch’s Tramways Historical Society (THS) and donated by Mrs Hastie.

Restoration commenced in ernest in 1981, using parts recovered from other Dunedin Box Cars, a 21E truck from Brussels, controllers from Glasgow and other equipment from Melbourne. An estimated 9,000 man-hours of dedicated work saw her restoration completed in December 1986.

Box Car No. 11 operated as a passenger service at Ferrymead Heritage Park until 1994 when she was withdrawn, further refurbished, and set up to operate on Christchurch’s central city tramway. The original Dunedin City Corporation insignia was replaced with Christchurch Tramway insignia in similar Edwardian style, as evidenced on the model. Christchurch locals and visitors alike are delighted to be able to experience travelling around Christchurch’s city streets inside Box Car No. 11, New Zealand’s oldest operating tram.

This Select Edition model of Box Car No. 11 is one of the first offerings of Trams4U Limited. The model is diecast in zinc and built to HO (1/87) scale measuring 101 mm (excluding tow bars) x 25mm x 45mm and weighing 74gms.

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