Lovely inspiring work as usual Mikkel. I wonder if the pantechnicon was ever transported by rail as it would make a great wagon load.

Unwaxed dental floss springed to mind in respect of the reins, as it can be further split and coloured. I've yet to try it, but will be experimenting after a raid on the bathroom, as my delivery box cart also requires steering equipment.

Thank you for another great blog entry Mikkel.

Best,

Bill

Mikkel,

Wonderful.  Step by step build and background information.  No one believes us modellers when we explain the trials of having to please the little people, (and animals).  I have never seen a yellow horse but I did see a program where they dug up a blond mammoth.  

I had seen the John Day figures before and umm'd and ahh'd about them.  The GEM figures look interesting, but look a little thin.  I probably should not get any more figures as I have a 'lot' to paint.

Excellent work @Mikkel thanks as ever for sharing. A Pantechnican sounds like a good idea for Henley-on-Thames, but I fear I have enough projects on the go at the moment 😎

Thanks as ever. 

Excellent modelmaking as ever Mikkel. I am impressed with the way the printed paper overlays look and the horses are gorgeous. 

I use 5A fuse wire to make reins. Probably just described as 35 swg tinned copper wire these days.

11 hours ago, gwrrob said:

Lovely inspiring work as usual Mikkel. I wonder if the pantechnicon was ever transported by rail as it would make a great wagon load.

Thanks Rob. That was the original plan, but this particular model is pretty big so I decided that it would be a bit overpowering. It will be used on the streets of Farthing instead.

Mike has modelled an early example of a Pantechnicon on a GWR wagon here:

Here's an example from the competition that was discussed somewhere on here earlier:

Caption: 9th October 1918: A lorry trailer belonging to James Schoolbred and Co of Tottenham Court Road, London is carried on a goods wagon at Nine Elms goods yard and rail depot. Source: Getty Images

12 hours ago, longchap said:

Unwaxed dental floss springed to mind in respect of the reins, as it can be further split and coloured. I've yet to try it, but will be experimenting after a raid on the bathroom, as my delivery box cart also requires steering equipment.

 

Thank you for another great blog entry Mikkel.

 

Best,

 

Bill

Thanks for the tip Bill. I hadn't heard of the dental floss solution before. What I've found is that most thin materials are soft and bendy and therefore require careful arrangement.

The results can be excellent as seen e.g. on Shaun's layout:

https://www.rmweb.co.uk/forums/topic/11359-grim-up-north-goathland-queensbury-bradford/?do=findComment&comment=5425473

- and Kevin's:

https://www.rmweb.co.uk/forums/topic/120848-little-muddle/?do=findComment&comment=5449522

But my table-top layouts are set up and taken down on a daily basis, so fiddling with their otherwise brilliant solutions every time I get a layout out would give me a nervous breakdown 🙂

23 hours ago, ChrisN said:

Mikkel,

Wonderful.  Step by step build and background information.  No one believes us modellers when we explain the trials of having to please the little people, (and animals).  I have never seen a yellow horse but I did see a program where they dug up a blond mammoth.  

 

I had seen the John Day figures before and umm'd and ahh'd about them.  The GEM figures look interesting, but look a little thin.  I probably should not get any more figures as I have a 'lot' to paint.

A blond mammoth. Of course! Mr Bailey will be very pleased 😄. 

Thanks Chris. I admire Daryle for keeping these whitemetal ranges on the market, and even upgrading them a bit if I understand correctly. They are of course of a certain age, and the GEM kits weren't always to exacting standards in my experience. But I find them pleasant to build.

I have some of the cows, which are very good I think.

23 hours ago, Middlepeak said:

This gives much weight to the theory that it's not so much the story, but the way that you tell it that counts. I've never really been that interested in horse drawn pantechnecons, but I was captivated by the whole thing. Talk of equine trade unions and of course the sad fate of Mrs X - clearly very personal feelings expressed there.

 

And of course some excellent modelling, which we come to expect from you Mikkel. Congratulations!

 

Geraint

Many thanks, Geraint. These little projects are just trifles of course, but we might as well have fun making them.

Mrs X is not the first ghost from my childhood to have been locked away in a model. There was also The Weasel. I can recommend this as a highly efficient form of therapy. Just don't do it in real life! 

23 hours ago, Dana Ashdown said:

A remarkably attractive van! And amazingly, I'm one of the first to see it.

 

I do like the idea of the printed sides. I used paper sides to backdate two old Wrenn(?) R1 tank engines to SE&CR livery (one engine being returned to an R Class), and they look quite good. I can't take any credit for the artwork, though, as that was produced by one of the other talented RM members.

Thanks Dana. I think the printed sides work particularly well if there is a natural "frame" around them to conceal the edges, as here where the van is paneled. 

And I like how you can experiement easily. E.g. I had planned red lettering but I felt it looked like a circus van (my choice of "Bailey" didn't help!), so I went for black letters.

11 hours ago, Neal Ball said:

Excellent work @Mikkel thanks as ever for sharing. A Pantechnican sounds like a good idea for Henley-on-Thames, but I fear I have enough projects on the go at the moment 😎

 

Thanks as ever. 

Hi Neal, thanks - and yes it looks like you have more than enough on your plate at the moment, seems like your fleet is doubling in a very short time. Reminds me that I must get back to my coaches.  These little "quickie" projects can be real time-stealers!

11 hours ago, mullie said:

Great modelling Mikkel, truly inspiring. I've looked at the John Day ranges before but never been quite sure about them, perhaps time for another look.

 

Martyn

Many thanks Martyn. Perhaps some of the road vehicles will be right for your period. There's a nice selection of railway owned lorries and delivery vehicles. Good old whitemetal. 

11 hours ago, MikeOxon said:

I notice the sign-writing does say 'London Bath and Bristol by Rail', so I think a Road Van Truck is called for.

 

It looks a very striking model, Mikkel.  I expect Bailey & Sons were in competition with Knee Brothers of Bristol, who were already in the business, back in Broad Gauge days.

 

I suspect you have been economical with the truth about your negotiations with UNBRIDLED - I'm sure I heard comments about 4 horses for a fully loaded wagon.  A couple of chain horses should do the job:

 

 

Mike

Hi Mike, yes, some removal firms clearly used the railways to their advantage. My lettering on that point was inspired by the example seen on this website: 

https://www.avwoodworks.co.uk/imagery_content/horse_drawn_wagons.html

Historical photos show variants with a single horse, two horses and four. All depending on the van and load size I assume. This one being quite large should perhaps ideally have had four, as you suggest. But luckily UNBRIDLED didn't press that point futher 🙂

22 hours ago, BWsTrains said:

With a Pantechnicon from Dart Castings waiting in the "to be built" wings for UH, this is inspirational and most timely. On your OK I'll draw heavily on these ideas for my own; which are your preferred fonts for the wagon sides etc.?

 

Colin

Hi Colin, you are lucky in having one of the Dart Castings kits, they are sold out at the moment. I think they represent the more typical, lower style. @Worsdell forever has built a nice example, the photos are gone from his thread but there's a nice video showing it here:

Regarding the font, it is Bookman Old Style. I must emphasize that I do not know much about fonts, so beware. I tried to check and it seems that this font is OK for my Edwardian period, but am not 100% sure.

Let me know if you need some hints on spacing and resizing in Word, it is a bit clunky and the options are distributed over three different menus.

22 hours ago, Dave John said:

Excellent modelmaking as ever Mikkel. I am impressed with the way the printed paper overlays look and the horses are gorgeous. 

 

I use 5A fuse wire to make reins. Probably just described as 35 swg tinned copper wire these days.

Many thanks Dave. Maybe I should give the fuse wire another go. If I could somehow harden it so that it doesn't bend when constantly dismantled...

The horses from Dart Castings are very good, as you will know. I used my homespun size-chart for their figures (below, note that the 1:87 label has been moved to another horse in their range since I made this, but doesn't really matter). I considered Suffolk Punches, which can be seen pulling large Pantechnicons in photos. But, like trees, the figures are so big that they look out of scale, even if they aren't. The Shire horses have been modelled a little smaller, so I chose those.

21 hours ago, Bluemonkey presents.... said:

Outstanding Mikkel. This is a real monster but only in size as the livery and modelling are exceptional. Some ingenious use I'd software, I applaud you Sir. 

Unfortunately I don't have a solution for your dilemma as everything I can think of would be a little rigid and attached to either horse or carriage and still pose a potential storage problem.

Great modelling though.

Many thanks Matt. Yes, you have nailed the problem with the reins. I have lived happily without them for quite a while now, but you know how these things can suddenly become an issue when you start thinking about it again!

Wonderful work as always @Mikkel .  Yellow was seen as 'decadent' from the 1870's onwards, I think stemming from the 'yellow-back' books.

https://artuk.org/discover/stories/colour-in-the-victorian-era-a-new-chromatic-age

Very lovely work, as always, Mikkel, and a delightful continuation of your 'narrative' approach to modelling. I am looking forward to seeing what stories and characters we may encounter when Bailey's pantechnicon arrives in the good yard at Farthing.

For anyone considering loading a pantechnicon on a wagon, as in Penlan's example posted by @jwealleans, it is worth noting that the roof boards were either removable or in some cases hinged to fold down. This reduced to height, to keep within the loading gauge.

The HMRS website has their archive of images with quite a few examples of pantechnicons, which are useful for liveries. Also, pantechnicons feature in this discussion on the closely-related topic of 'lift vans' (early containers intended mainly for furniture):

Regarding the number of horses, in the pictures I have found, two seems standard. I haven't found any pictures showing four, and given the main use of pantechnicons was the transport of furniture and household effects, I suspect the load would never be that great. I write this in the hope that someone will prove me wrong, and so expand the body of available evidence!

Nick.

2 hours ago, Mikkel said:

 

The horses from Dart Castings are very good, as you will know. I used my homespun size-chart for their figures (below, note that the 1:87 label has been moved to another horse in their range since I made this, but doesn't really matter). I considered Suffolk Punches, which can be seen pulling large Pantechnicons in photos. But, like trees, the figures are so big that they look out of scale, even if they aren't. The Shire horses have been modelled a little smaller, so I chose those.

 

 

 

Mikkel,

It is a shame about the Suffolk Punch being so large.  The prototype grows no larger than 16 hands, I was quite disappointed when I got one as I have always wanted a Suffolk Punch as they are supposed to be smaller and chunkier than Shires.  I probably have all of those and they are lovely castings.  I have the donkey as well, and that seems a little large, but he had most likely just grown big and strong pulling the milk cart.

Excellent modelling Mikkel.

It took a slightly dark tone there for a minute, a properly Scandinavian melancholy with shades of Edgar Allen Poe…