Friends of the 502 Group

The Friends of the 502 Group is celebrating a successful weekend at the Southport Model Railway Show. Our stand attracted a great deal of interest from show visitors keen to find out more about this unique electric multiple unit.

For the first time we had Class 502 souvenirs — mugs, polo shirts and mouse mats — available to buy at the show. If you weren’t able to make it to the show, don’t worry – you will soon be able to purchase the merchandise through our web site shop, with all profits going straight into group funds to aid the unit’s restoration. We will also be announcing further items for sale shortly. In the meantime, our collection of railway books, offered through Amazon.co.uk, is available to buy now.

The Friends of the 502 Group will be present at the Southport Model Railway Show for a third year. This year’s event takes place over the weekend of 25/26 September 2010 at Birkdale High School.

On our stand there will be group members available to discuss the progress of the preservation project and answer any questions you may have. If you haven’t yet signed up for membership we will gladly take your subs fees on the day!

We will also have a range of Class 502 merchandise and souvenirs for sale on our stand, including mouse mats, mugs and key rings. More details of these will be posted on the web site shortly.

The Friends of the 502 Group’s Annual General Meeting will take place on Saturday 25th September at the exhibition. Please note that the AGM is open to current group members only.

More details about the exhibition, including directions to the venue and details of admission charges, are available at the Southport MRS web site.

The Friends of the 502 Group will now NOT be attending the Woodvale Rally this weekend as previously announced. Unfortunately we have a shortage of volunteers who are able to attend the event. We are sorry for any inconvenience caused.

UPDATE: Due to a shortage of volunteers we regret the Friends of the 502 Group will now not be able to attending this year’s Woodvale Rally.

Following our successful attendance at the Woodvale Rally last year, we are pleased to announce that the Friends of the 502 Group will be at the event again this year.

This popular event takes place at RAF Woodvale (halfway between Liverpool and Southport) on the weekend of 7/8 August. The attractions include vintage cars and motorcycles, model displays, military vehicles, a family funfair and much more.

Our stand will have the latest photos and updates on the restoration project and group members on hand to answer any questions you may have. If you haven’t yet joined the group, membership forms will be available on the day.

For more information on the rally (including directions and admission charges), please visit the Woodvale Rally web site.

On 26th June the monthly work party took place. The stripping out of the interior of the trailer car, 29896, continues. Many of the seats, luggage racks, light fittings and wall and ceiling panels have been removed, allowing direct access to the structure of the coach for examination.

Work parties take place approximately once a month at Tebay and all members are welcome. If you are not yet a member, why not join now for just £15 a year?

The next visit to Tebay to work on the 502 will take place on Saturday 29th May.

Details of arrangements for the day will be provided to group members. If you are a member and have not received any notification, please contact us.

If you are not a member and wish to take part, now is the ideal time to join the group and get involved in the ongoing restoration work. It costs just £15 a year for an annual membership, or you can donate monthly by standing order. Details are available on our membership page.

With the modern 507 and 508 stock now past their 30th anniversary, it’s easy to forget that the 502s spent the final years of their working lives in the late 1970s in BR blue livery working the Merseyrail network. Photographer Martyn Hilbert has captured some shots of the units (and their sister Wirral 503 sets) as they neared the end of their careers, and they can be found in his Merseyrail electrics Fotopic collection.

Thanks to Martyn for letting us know about his excellent pictures. If anyone else has photos of the 502s from any point in their history that they wish to share with us, please let us know.

The latest work party took place at Tebay earlier today. Despite only a few people being in attendance, a lot of useful progress was made.

Work focused on the interior of the driving trailer coach (29896), the interior of which is being steadily stripped. Today was spent removing seat cushions and other internal fittings. Also removed was the great variety of spare parts acquired over the course of the unit’s preservation career, and which had been piled up inside since leaving Steamport. The trailer car is now largely clear of such items.

Weather permitting, it is expected that a work party will take place at least once a month throughout the year. Any member of the group is welcome to attend. If you don’t have any previous preservation experience, don’t worry: the only requirement is enthusiasm (and an ability for some physical labour from time to time). If you attend we will definitely find something for you to do!

For more information on becoming a member, please see our membership page for details of the payment options available, including cheque, standing order or PayPal.

Just released from Ian Allan Publishing is the excellent new book, Merseyside Electrics, by Jonathan Cadwallader and Martin Jenkins, now available to buy from our shop page.

This 80-page photographic album documents the rich heritage of the routes of the Mersey Railway, the Lancashire & Yorkshire and London & North Western Railway which make up the current electrified railway network around Liverpool and Merseyside. Every angle is covered, with scenes of rolling stock, depots, yards, tunnels, stations, signal boxes as well as passengers. Each picture is accompanied by a detailed caption and the accompanying text has been painstakingly researched.

Two photographs of “our” 502 are included — one showing it in service on the Crossens branch, and the second of a run in preservation in 1986.

This book is highly recommended for anyone interested in any part of Merseyside’s railway history. You can buy it online from Amazon via our shop page, where a percentage of the purchase price will go towards group funds.

Many Merseysiders will have woken to the sad news, reported in today’s Liverpool Echo, of the former Mersey Ferry, Royal Iris, which has ended her days half-sunken and derelict in the River Thames after falling into disrepair. The Iris, like the 502, is an important part of Merseyside’s transport history and deserved to be saved.

The 502, however, is fortunate to have a dedicated group of volunteers working to restore the unit. Unfortunately due to a lack of manpower and funding, progress is very slow at the moment.

Therefore we would ask you to refer to our previous message, originally posted last March, about equipment required. If you have not already done so, please also consider becoming a member of the Friends of the 502 Group and donating your time and/or money to the project.

We are still searching for a site on Merseyside where the 502 can be housed securely. If you think you can help us with this or in any other way, please contact us.