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Arrival of Variotram spares. (Tram to follow)

After no less than 3 years of behind the scenes work by a number of people, ranging from TfNSW (vehicle owner), Transport Heritage NSW, and the Sydney Tramway Museum, Variotram 2107 has become a ‘preserved heritage rail vehicle’.

2107 was delivered to the new Sydney Light Rail on 17/08/1997 and left on the 01/07/2015.
It then spent the next 3 years sitting in a trucking yard at Penrith along with the 5 other remaining Variotrams.
The other Variotrams were scrapped during January 2018 after no buyer was found.

A number of spares were acquired for 2107, some removed from her sisters as they were broken up for scrapping. The yard operator helped us with lifting the heavy roof modules off the trams using his crane.

The traction converters weigh approx 800kg, the Airconditioning just short of 500kg and the auxiliary converters 480kg.

The spare parts were moved in a number of batches, the first was two auxiliary converters off scrapped trams (2101 and 2103) in January. These were moved on a car carrying trailer.

Yard crane lifting an auxiliary converter off 2103
2102 donating a traction converter

Matthew Geier

Three converters would have exceeded the load rating for the trailer

Matthew Geier

Then 2 traction converters and one airconditioning unit from 2102 were moved on a hired 4-tonne truck. A 3rd auxiliary converter came on the back of the yellow truck.

Matthew Geier

One the 27th of July, two containers of miscellaneous parts were transferred to Loftus and placed at the North Terminus.

‘Loose’ spares alongside 2107
The two containers are connected using special connectors and lifted together onto the truck

Matthew Geier

Friday September 27

On Friday the 27th of September another load of parts was moved from storage to Loftus. All large Variotram spare parts are now stored at Loftus.