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V Boyd Carpenter

Posted: Wed Sep 04, 2019 11:01 pm
by Marcus
I’ve been a DLOC member for many years and am lucky enough to have amassed a complete set of the DM which has kept me happy many a winters eve.
It’s interesting to read the words of some of our clubs elder statesmen, both living and deceased including V Boyd Carpenter.
I’m too young ( at 54!) to have met him in person but I have a number of bills in green ink from V Boyd Carpenter for one of my own cars. He must have been quite a character. Does any club member know what happened to his Conquest he frequently wrote about ? I wonder if it survives like his words and green ink bills?

Re: V Boyd Carpenter

Posted: Fri Sep 06, 2019 10:20 pm
by grahamemmett
His Conquest was stopped by the Police for a roadside spot check and immediately condemned, never to rise again!
He certainly was a character, a disagreeable one most of the time but he served the members well, OK - mainly well. There are some horror stories about his “call out” charges but he generally had what you needed when you needed it.

Re: V Boyd Carpenter

Posted: Fri Sep 06, 2019 10:59 pm
by Marcus
Crikey! So the old girl went west too!
Thanks for replying. For some silly reason I assumed his car to be well maintained and a credit to the marque.
You have though given me an idea about implementing a call out charge every time my other half asks me to pick her up. The only danger with that being her possible cooking tarrif!

Cheers
Marcus

Re: V Boyd Carpenter

Posted: Sat Sep 07, 2019 9:35 am
by Salmons
I knew of Boyd Carpenter and a DB18 I bought in 1994 had just been fitted with an Army Recon engine that he supplied. i bought a few parts from him and his letters were often written in different colours.

I asked Alan Doig if he knew what had happened to Lloyd Carpenter's car. He did not but sent me the interesting cutting about them man.

Most readers will be familiar with the names of V. Boyd- Carpenter and J.F. Bolton. The former features standing in the
doorway of Tryfan Junction station building in 1942 while visiting with Mr Bolton, who, on the same occasion, photographed various aspects of the WHR being dismantled. At this time both gentlemen happened to be in the Manchester area. Boyd-
Carpenter was assistant secretary at the Manchester District branch of the F.B.I. (Federation of British Industries) based in
Spring Gardens, whilst Bolton had his business as sewage purification engineers at Heywood (Lancashire) not far north of
the city. Until recently the writer had often wondered how the two had become acquainted in the first instance. Then
due to the kind offer of member David Rowlands I received a copy of a booklet entitled ‘Our Railway Histories’ which
featured two mythical model railways written by V. Boyd-Carpenter and T. Pearson. Subtitled ‘A Narrative of
Modern Enterprise’ it was published in 1945 with a foreword by Lord Brabazon of Tara.
Of the two railways featured the one of relevance is The Lyonesse Railway which ran from Penzance to St Just and
then over the land of Lyonesse to Tresco on the Isles of Scilly. This railway company had a chairman, a board of
directors and a comprehensive list of principal officers of which Boyd-Carpenter was Manager and Secretary; Edward Exley was Mechanical Engineer and Mr Bolton was one of eight directors. So it was most likely that model railways brought Boyd-Carpenter and Bolton together and it is therefore no surprise that the former would have contacted the latter to arrange visits to witness WHR dismantling in 1941/42. Boyd-Carpenter I met but once in the 1970s when he was trading as ‘Edward Exley’ from The Ridge, Baslow, Derbyshire. Impulsively I bought a coarse scale ‘O’ gauge, 3-rail, GWR Pannier Tank – which I still have
somewhere! To Boyd-Carpenter we must be grateful for his ensuring that both Russell and 590 plates were deposited at what is now the National Railway Museum.

Re: V Boyd Carpenter

Posted: Mon Sep 09, 2019 4:41 pm
by simonp
When I was treasurer, I had many dealings with VBC. As you say many coloured ink mostly green. Once went to visit with Tony Bagley. He was very old fashioned but OK once you got to know him. I think his brother provided legal council during the abdication.

His car, I believe, was stripped for spares by Adrian Lanchester- Hale.

SimonP

Re: V Boyd Carpenter

Posted: Thu Sep 12, 2019 12:31 am
by Marcus
thanks for the posts. The old boy must be listening in. I purchased another handbook recently which contained within it a folded sheet of paper. Printed upon it was a list of spares being sold by VBC!
I raise my hat to all of the past heroes of the DLOC.

Re: V Boyd Carpenter

Posted: Thu Sep 12, 2019 9:22 am
by Chris_R
If anyone wants one there are several copies of the book Our Railway Histories on ebay at the moment, one signed by the author.
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1945-THE-LYO ... 2306502038
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Lyonesse-Rai ... SwLMtbWfdw
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/signed-Our-R ... SwKoRZX~bn