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British Rail Classes 105 and 106
Inside Longsight Diesel Traction Maintenance Depot, December 1983
In service	1959–1988
Manufacturer	Cravens
Family name	First generation
Replaced	Steam locomotives and carriages
Constructed	1956–1959
Number built	DMBS: 142, DTCL: 108, DMCL: 33, TCL 19. Total: 302 cars
Number preserved	3 cars
Successor	Class 313
Formation	2-cars sets: DMBS-DTCL or DMBS-DMCL, 3 cars sets:DMBS-TCL-DMCL
Operators	British Railways
Depots	BG Hull BY Bletchley GF South Gosforth HT Heaton NH Newton Heath NR Norwich SF Stratford TS Tyseley
Specifications
Car body construction	Steel
Car length	57 ft 6 in (17.53 m)
Width	9 ft 3 in (2.82 m)
Height	12 ft 7 in (3.84 m)
Doors	Slam
Maximum speed	70 mph (113 km/h)
Weight	Power cars: 29.5 or 30.5 tonnes (29.0 or 30.0 long tons) Trailer cars: 23.5 or 24.5 tonnes (23.1 or 24.1 long tons)
Prime mover(s)	Two BUT
Power output	150 bhp (112 kW) each engine
Transmission	Mechanical: 4 speed epicyclic gearbox
UIC classification	Power cars: 1A′A1′ Trailer cars: 2′2′
Coupling system	Screw-link couplings, British Standard gangways
Multiple working	■ Blue Square
Track gauge	4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)

The British Rail Classes 105 and 106 diesel multiple units were built by Cravens Ltd. of Sheffield from 1956 to 1959. The class were built with a side profile identical to British Railways Mark 1 carriage stock, using the same doors and windows. None were selected for refurbishment. The last passenger car was withdrawn from service in 1988.

Originally AEC engined vehicles were class 105 and Leyland engined vehicles were class 106, but in the late 1970s they all became class 105s.

Usage

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 Railway lines 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 Tyseley 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.

Orders

Technical details

• Builder: Cravens
• Introduced: 1956
• Coupling Code: Blue Square
• Body: 57 ft 6 in x 9 ft 2 in
• Engines: Two BUT, 150 bhp
• Transmission: Standard mechanical

For coupling codes see British United Traction

Preservation

Due to the use of asbestos in their construction, and extended usage by BR, the class has fared very badly in preservation. 51485 and 56121 were preserved by the West Somerset Railway but moved to the East Lancashire Railway in 1997 where they have been restored after asbestos stripping. 56456 is based on the Llangollen Railway, working initially with a Class 127. The National Railway Museum had intended to preserve 53812 - which had been stripped of asbestos but a lack of space prevented this car and the Class 100 coupled to it from being moved to York and they were vandalised beyond repair at Crewe.

Models

Since 2010, Bachmann has produced 00 scale models of the class 105 in both BR green and BR blue liveries.

References

1. ^ Hemming 1978, pp. 4–6.
2. British Rail Locoshed book. Ian Allan. 1979. p. 38. ISBN 0-7110-0931-7.
3. British Rail Locoshed book. Ian Allan. 1981. p. 42. ISBN 0-7110-1112-5.
4. "Class 105 DMU Numbering". www.railcar.co.uk. Retrieved 2 November 2022.
5. Green-Hughes, Evan (September 2010). "The Cravens DMUs". Hornby Magazine. No. 39. Hersham: Ian Allan Publishing. pp. 76–79. ISSN 1753-2469. OCLC 226087101.
6. Wild, Mike (September 2010). "Bachmann wows with Cravens DMU". Hornby Magazine. No. 39. Hersham: Ian Allan Publishing. pp. 74–75. ISSN 1753-2469. OCLC 226087101.

Sources

• Hemming, R (August 1978). British Rail DMU/EMU Allocation book. National Railway Enthusiasts Association. ISBN 9780906439012. OCLC 16429876.

Further reading

• Marsden, Colin J. (1986). Motive Power Recognition. Vol. 3 DMUs. London: Ian Allan. ISBN 9780711015708. OCLC 16471467.
• Robertson, Kevin (2004). British Railway Pictorial: First Generation DMUs. Hersham: Ian Allan. ISBN 9780711029705. OCLC 56454643.
• Haresnape, Brian (1985). British Rail Fleet Survey. Vol. 8: Diesel Multiple Units - The First Generation. Shepperton: Ian Allan. ISBN 9780711014954. OCLC 810581284.
• Golding, Brian (1995). A Pictorial Record of British Railways Diesel Multiple Units. Stadhampton: Cheona. ISBN 9781900298001. OCLC 59628291.

External links

• History of the Class 105s

• British Rail diesel multiple units
• Cravens multiple units
• Train-related introductions in 1959