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29. 'Sliding doors' ; or, putting a wagon under the knife.

C126

Entry posted by C126 in B.R. blue goods yard.

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Ignoring the urgent jobs that need doing on the layout - cleaning track, painting ballast, finishing brick-work, and painting the poor Yard Foreman! - on Wednesday I wondered how difficult it would be to cut open the doors on a Bachmann VBB van.  With only the Hornby VIX to pose as being loaded in East Yard, I wanted a change.  To my surprise, armed with a new blade in the Stanley knife and a metal edge, it was a doddle.  I spent this morning making some loads for the large pallets, and here is the result.

 

DSCN0142.JPG.3885e91c4869af95f0a290a8cdac8f0f.JPG

 

The lorry has gone back to the depot for more stock to send up North - perhaps the soap and perfume manufacturer at Lewes - and the Yard Foreman keeps an eye on the part-loaded VBB van.

 

I chose this rather than the Hornby VDA because the latter's doors are hinged, and are double the number each side.  I confess I am ridiculously pleased with the result, and will try doing a VVV Vanfit next for the 'wagon-load' era.  Now to making some better boxes, and continue cutting up drinks stirrers into 65mm. lengths for a timber load...

 

Edited by C126

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westernviscount

These little adventures and departures are usually far more absorbing than mundane track cleaning and ballasting. Nice work! 

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Fat Controller

You could try a VWV or VEA with doors open; at the centre, a single case, or perhaps a filing cabinet, braced with some serious sized bits of timber. I saw several like this at locations like Hexham and Morpeth; loaded, no matter how likely, with material for Otterburn Ranges.

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C126
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Thank you all for your kind words. It is hardly a work worthy of the Model Railway Journal, but I was so surprised I managed to complete the modification without gougeing lumps out of the paint-work - let alone expecting the wagon to explode into a thousand shards of plastic - I had to share my excitement.

 

I wondered briefly why more model wagons are not made with removable or opening doors like the Hornby VIX, but then realised it would increase costs, and most modellers want to see their wagons moving in a train.  Would be a nice option though on the more complicated wagons, to have doors that clip on before running them...

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Fat Controller
20 minutes ago, C126 said:

Thank you all for your kind words. It is hardly a work worthy of the Model Railway Journal, but I was so surprised I managed to complete the modification without gougeing lumps out of the paint-work - let alone expecting the wagon to explode into a thousand shards of plastic - I had to share my excitement.

 

I wondered briefly why more model wagons are not made with removable or opening doors like the Hornby VIX, but then realised it would increase costs, and most modellers want to see their wagons moving in a train.  Would be a nice option though on the more complicated wagons, to have doors that clip on before running them...

There is the issue that doors have to be unfeasibly thick, and have to have either large hinges or runners, depending whether they are hinged or sliding doors. That said, I did build a Roy Gould VGA kit with an open door and a load of palletised sacks.

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