ID/Name: 53RM
Type: Railmotor
Description: Leyland Double Ended Rail Motor
Built: 1926
Status: Under Restoration

SERVICE HISTORY
53RM entered service on the 16th of February 1926. It one of a class of 4 Double Ended Rail Motors powered by 100hp Leyland petrol motors, so they are commonly referred to a Leylands or Double Enders.

Numbered from 51 to 54RM, up until 1929 they spent much of their time running the Toolamba- Echuca- Deniliquin and Bairnsdale - Orbost service along with those to Geelong. It was on one of these runs in January 1929 that 54RM was involved in a major accident and they were all withdrawn for major modification.

When they returned service in 1930, they were sent to various locations in Victoria. For a brief period between October 1934 and February 1935 they ran the passenger service between Woodend and Daylesford.

For the next 20 years they spent most of the time providing services to Cohuna, Tallangatta and Whittlesea along with the school train between Echuca and Kyabram. During peak holiday periods they replaced lessor capacity railmotors to places like Dookie and Forrest and in 1946 introduced railmotors services to Mansfield.

From the late 1940s they were replaced by the new Walker railcars with 53RM being one of the last 2 in-service, finally being withdrawn in July of 1954 after running the last ever regular passenger train between Numurkah and Picola in the Goulburn Valley.

PRESERVATION JOURNEY
It was then sold and the body moved to a sawmill at Barongarook near Colac to be used as a bunkhouse and all the mechanical components scrapped. Having been advised that it was no longer in use at the sawmill, Daylesford Railway purchased the body in 1982 and transported it to Daylesford the following year.

After being stored at Daylesford for many years work really commenced on restoration when the railmotor was placed on temporary bogies and a subframe built to stop the body from sagging. Heritage Victoria awarded the railway a $20,000 grant to replace the roof and strengthen the frame in 2007

Our volunteers have continued to rebuild the car body frame which despite being 99 years old is in generally good condition. However, areas that had been replaced due to collision damage in the 1940s were extremely poor and required complete replacement. All windows have been repaired and await reglazing along with the doors.

Over the last two years an engine has been purchased, braking system, gearbox and air compressor have been sourced and the two engine cooling radiators constructed to the original railway plans.

The unprecedented challenge with 53RM is that all the long scrapped components such as wheels, bogies, axles, control etc. need to be rebuilt to the original plans, which is many hundreds of thousands of dollars.

CURRENT STATUS
As it approaches its centenary, Daylesford Railway is continuing to seek funding to return this most historic vehicle to service.

FUN FACT
53RM was noted as ‘running down an emu’ at dusk while running between Orbost and Bairnsdale in 1927.

The images in the photo gallery were kindly supplied by the Newport Railway Museum.