A Buffer conundrum



Ex SECR Loco No 27 at Eastleigh in the 1950s (c) B.K.B. Green

 At the Model Railway exhibition in Burgess Hill at the weekend, your "culprit" purchased a number of pictures of P tanks and 27 in particular.  Whilst gazing through the pictures at the AGM during the evening a member pointed out that it appears that the loco carried the SECR "conical" buffers right up until the time it passed through Ashford Works prior to delivery to the Bluebell! At this point a refurbished set of SR Standard buffers were put on.


SECR Conical Buffers in the mid 1950s



SR Standard buffers as delivered

 That was the story of the buffers, a shame that the original ones lasted until just before the loco was delivered for preservation but not left on the loco when it was preserved!

HOWEVER, another picture has now come to light which shows that 27 did have a different set of buffers added in the 1950s whilst the loco was on the South Western Division of the Southern Region, based, I believe at Eastleigh (I will need to do a bit more digging here!).
For the time it spent on the former LSWR 27 wore a set of Adams LSWR buffers! this can be seen in the heading picture and  the detail below.



LSWR buffer in the early 1950s

So, the mystery deepens!  Why were the LSWR buffers fitted?  Why were they changed back to SECR Conical buffers when the loco was returned to the South Eastern Division? Why were the conical buffers changed for the SR Standard buffers before delivery to the Bluebell?
I am sure that there are answers to these questions, and all I need to do is dig the archives for them.
In the meanwhilst a cunning plan will be hatched to replace the SR Standard buffers for a more historic type.