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Black or maroon ends?


JZ
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Picked up some Slimrails kits, namely a couple of pigeon vans and an LMS 6-wheel fish van. The instructions state maroon for BR days, but should they have maroon or black ends?

 

Edit to add mid 1950s to mid 1960s.

Edited by JZ
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If only there was a single or simple answer to the subject of van end colours in BR days. Bogie vans seemed invariably to be treated like passenger coaches and got black ends. Meat vans and other short wheelbase vans seemed to get 'red' ends. Horseboxes defy logic and got both red ends and black ends. At the end of the day, it is best to work off one photo and number your model as such.

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The Fish van could be either.

 

http://www.alextrack.co.uk/model_railways/2mm_finescale/non_passenger_carrying_coaching_stock/fish_vans_lms_d2115_6_wheel_non_ventilated.html

 

 

The LNER Brake Van* seems to be body colour. But I'm sure I've seen them with black ends as well. Scroll down to end of page.

 

http://www.steve-banks.org/prototype-and-traffic/167-parcels-traffic-in-br-days

 

 

*There has been quite a bit of debate whether they were actually ever used for pigeon traffic.

 

 

 

Jason

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I believe any van with fold down shelves was liable to be used for pigeons, but of course these were always special workings and not circuit diagrams; the stock was presumably 'borrowed' from traffic at weekends, or spare out of carriage sidings.  

 

But I would like to know more about pigeon traffic.  Were only bogie vans used?  Were corridor connections required (can't see why, but they seemed to have attracted such vehicles)?  Was the same stock used to return the baskets, or did those go by ordinary parcels traffic?  What arrangements were there for cleaning them?

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The Fish van could be either.

 

http://www.alextrack.co.uk/model_railways/2mm_finescale/non_passenger_carrying_coaching_stock/fish_vans_lms_d2115_6_wheel_non_ventilated.html

 

 

The LNER Brake Van* seems to be body colour. But I'm sure I've seen them with black ends as well. Scroll down to end of page.

 

http://www.steve-banks.org/prototype-and-traffic/167-parcels-traffic-in-br-days

 

 

*There has been quite a bit of debate whether they were actually ever used for pigeon traffic.

 

 

 

Jason

:offtopic: Not sure on the identity of the vans in the background

http://www.nrm.org.uk/ourcollection/photo?group=British%20Transport%20Commission&objid=1996-7038_BTF_185_41

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BR started painting coach ends Crimson in 1963. Not all coaches got painted in this fashion by the time the Blue & grey came in in 65/66. Early Mk 2. coaches (FK's) came out Crimson with Grey ends.

 

maroon, not crimson

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Oh, yes.  The few still around when I was working on the railway in the '70s were called pigeon vans, and were used exclusively for parcels work at that time, pigeon traffic no longer being carried by rail.  

 

Strangely, a common Red Star item was day old chicks, going cheep, in wicker baskets.

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I believe any van with fold down shelves was liable to be used for pigeons, but of course these were always special workings and not circuit diagrams; the stock was presumably 'borrowed' from traffic at weekends, or spare out of carriage sidings.  

 

But I would like to know more about pigeon traffic.  Were only bogie vans used?  Were corridor connections required (can't see why, but they seemed to have attracted such vehicles)?  Was the same stock used to return the baskets, or did those go by ordinary parcels traffic?  What arrangements were there for cleaning them?

Pigeon traffic - UK Prototype Questions - RMweb
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The Conservative Club at the end of my street is involved in pigeon racing, and members can be seen passing baskets, either empty or full of birds, out of a bay window in the front of the building in order to be collected in a van and taken somewhere.  The baskets look identical to the ones I remember as a child.

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