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Photo - LER Gate Stock Ends

A pair of steel-bodied London Electric Railway tube gate stock cars, coupled, showing the centre buffer and the air hoses coupled at waist level.  The control and lighting cables (called jumpers) are slung across the gap at roof level.  These cars are on the Hampstead Line at Golders Green depot.

The gates opened inwards using crank handles on the end screens.  The gateman operated the handles on both cars at the same time by standing on the buffer and leaning between the cars.  During this process, the gateman could hit his head on the jumpers at roof level and they were often strapped up tightly in an effort to remove this annoyance.  The result was that sometimes the plugs would pull out of the sockets on sharp curves and the train could become partially or even totally disabled.

Originally, leather covered chains were provided between the cars to prevent passengers falling into the gap but these are missing in this picture.

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