Victorian Glass Restoration on Channel 4’s Great Rail Restoration
We were contacted by the skilled craftsmen and engineers at the Isle of Wight Steam Railway, who were undertaking an ambitious project to restore a historic railway carriage. As part of this restoration, five Victorian royal blue etched glass panels needed to be faithfully recreated.
The carriage restoration would feature on Channel 4’s Great Rail Restorations with Peter Snow.
Before & After
Oldbury No.10: A Historic Carriage
The carriage being restored was originally designed to run on the Isle of Wight and built by The Railway Carriage Company Limited of Oldbury, near Birmingham. Built in 1864, it was given the name Oldbury No.10, making this project the oldest restoration undertaken for the programme.
Oldbury No.10 was one of six Oldbury carriages rescued from a state of severe decay and brought back to life by the Isle of Wight Steam Railway team.
This project would be appearing on channel 4's Great Rail Restorations with Peter Snow
The video contains clips of the glass we worked on appearing in the show, and even a sneak peak into our workshop.
The Orginal Victorian Royal Blue Panels.
Recreating the Original Victorian Glass
We were shipped the original glass panels that required restoration. Our first task was to accurately match the deep royal blue enamel used in the Victorian originals.
We carefully tested and refined our fired enamel until the colour precisely matched the original panels.
Once the colour was approved, we took rubbings of the original etched designs and digitally scanned them to ensure a perfect reproduction.
This allowed us to create accurate screens ready for etching the new glass panels.
Once we were sure the royal blues matched we made rubbings of the orginal glass and scanned them in,
ensuring that the design was a perfect match to the orginal ready to be digitally rendered and applied to screens.
Etching and Enamelling Glass Process
After preparing the glass sheets, we applied the royal blue fired enamel and kiln-fired each panel at melting point. This permanently fuses the enamel into the glass,
ensuring exceptional durability and UV stability, essential for long-term heritage restoration.
Once the colour was fused into the glass, each panel was carefully masked and passed through our sandblaster to create the etched design on the blue surface.
This process faithfully recreates the crisp detail and texture of the original Victorian etching.
The result is a perfect balance of rich colour and traditional etched decoration, matching the historic panels in both appearance and quality.
The Finished Victorian Blue Glass Panel
Once firing was complete, the glass was cut to size and toughened,
ready to be returned to the Isle of Wight Steam Railway for installation into the restored carriage.
We were proud to be involved in such a historically significant project and delighted with the finished result.
The Channel 4 programme also features clips of the restored glass in the carriage, along with a behind-the-scenes glimpse into our workshop.
