7mm A Brighton Van

[PaulR]

The van is now all-but finished. I've lettered it and given it a good wafting of satin varnish. I need to fix the roof and add the numbers onto the numberplates. The Southern Railway reversed the old pre-grouping plates and just added the new number in white. There's a queue for weathering so that won't be happening yet.





The Southern Railway only represented around 6% of the country's freight movements in the 1930s and it's said that Southern Railway stock could be rare beasts even in their own freight trains. Given all this, it's possible that I've over indulged a little with the illustration below, which shows my van flanked between a SR standard 12 ton van (an old SECR design and a Parkside Kit) and an LSWR 10 Ton van, a Dapol/Kernow RTR model which is gorgeous.



I will admit to being pleased with this scratch build and I really loved making it. It's somehow very satisfying to start with a few bits of white plastic and end up with a fully formed and functional model. I'm fired up for my next wagon project but I also have to get on with planning the new layout.

 

[AJC]

Nice! Now, for balance, you probably want something of the order of two dozen non-SR vehicles of which perhaps a third should be LMS dia. 1666… but that might overwhelm the layout. Did these have rain strips in SR says? The Brighton volume is the one part of the SR Wagons series I don’t have so I’m a little short of reference material.

Adam

 

[PaulR]

Nice! Now, for balance, you probably want something of the order of two dozen non-SR vehicles of which perhaps a third should be LMS dia. 1666… but that might overwhelm the layout. Did these have rain strips in SR says? The Brighton volume is the one part of the SR Wagons series I don’t have so I’m a little short of reference material.

Adam

Ha ha! With my 7ft space I'll just have to shunt one into the scene on Midsummers Day each year and leave the rest of the days to the LMS.

No, they didn't have rainstrips although there is a photo of one on the Isle of Wight with them added - that's the only one I've come across.

While not wishing to reveal any favouritism, I'd say the volume featuring the 'Brighton' is a very attractive book!

 

[AJC]

No, they didn't have rainstrips although there is a photo of one on the Isle of Wight with them added - that's the only one I've come across.

While not wishing to reveal any favouritism, I'd say the volume featuring the 'Brighton' is a very attractive book!

That’s worth knowing - I think there are a few illustrations in the Mike King ‘Pictorial’ volume, but I’m not at home. The only reason that I lack the Brighton one is because I haven’t needed it. Their wagons don’t seem to have (generally) lasted as well as the other SR constituents, except in the Wight. I suspect this is mostly because they had fewer to start with, but their persistence with wooden under frames must have been a factor. Never say never though.

Adam

 

[south steamer]

Hello PaulR
I was thinking of purchasing the C2X kit that is advertised on Ace Products website I was wondering if this kit is the ex Meteor kit that you built and if so how did it go together as I have heard mixed messages about Meteor?

Regards,

Paul.

 

[Lancastrian]

Hello PaulR
I was thinking of purchasing the C2X kit that is advertised on Ace Products website I was wondering if this kit is the ex Meteor kit that you built and if so how did it go together as I have heard mixed messages about Meteor?

Regards,

Paul.

Paul,

The C2X kit was from Meteor. A friend has built one and it turned out ok.

 

[PaulR]

Hi Paul,

sorry for my slow reply. Yes, I thought the kit went together well. There were no major headaches and all the parts fitted as expected. I have also built a Meteor 'H' 0-4-4T and that was a good kit too.

Interestingly, at the moment my C2X is stripped down for repainting as I originally painted it 20 years ago and I want a slightly more satin finish this time around.