This morning I have been working on a few wagon projects, using up the last of my Bill Bedford units (still have another 7 wagons in the to build box so best get on and order some more....)

First up the second Coopercraft V5 for which I built the body last month. The chassis has now been assembled (thinning the solebars before gluing in position.) At least on these vans the higher than prototype floor is hidden inside the van (so no need to spend ages correcting it).

It is now ready for fitting the break gear, must really get on and order some of the linkages from mainly trains to finish it off.

Next a much newer kit, a Parkside gunpowder van. While I haven't exactly got any photos to prove it, I am assuming that there will have been a fair bit of explosives traffic given the large amount of quarrying along the Strawberry Line (and the East Somerset). In particular given my Kite's Croft layout has a spur going off to a quarry.

This model uses the recently released Parkside kit, again the solebars had to be significantly thinned (loosing the location spaces for the breakgear). I also flipped the floor over so that I didn't have to remove the ribs. As ever for a Parkside kit the body fell together very nicely, having picked it up at Scaleforum it was nice to be able to buy with P4 wheels! Again this now needs the break gear, although the instructions are rather lacking with respect to the break gear. I am a little unsure as to the design of the linkages between the bar linked to the leavers and the actual breaks. (The photo in Akitins et al hasn't really helped)

The final wagon is a Kirk P17 ballast wagon, (a bargain from the bring & buy stall at Scaleforum). The body went together very nicely, solebar again needed a little thinning. One thing I only noticed after gluing in place is that the break shoes only have detail on one side, meaning that the other side of the wagon has no detail. At the moment I only finish wagons on one side anyway so its not a big issue. Again this now needs DC break gear adding, on which I am a little unclear as to the arrangement. Having checked my books I have yet to find a good photo of a P17 (or the later version with Morton breaks)

I have also fitted the wagon with the moulded plastic load which was included, intending to use it as a former to cover with ballast to get a nice profile. Will keep an eye out for a couple more of these, along with the Cambrian ballast wagon. I'm sure I remember reading that there was a railway owned ballast quarry on the line.....

Finally, the Lima siphon. Another Scaleforum purchase.

From conversations with Chris F I have been told that among the many siphons marked with "Return to Yatton" for the strawberry traffic, was one of the inside frame siphon G's which has door planking which matches the Lima model. It still needs a lot of work, in particular detailing the underframe, but for the time bring it has been fitted with some Mallard bogies.