kevinlms

It is a respectable index, but it does not appear to have been updated since 2001! Yes, I know its hard work creating an index, just pointing out that a lot of information has been published since then!

It's telling that 'Lion' was No. 57 on the L&M Railway. Shows how much groth there must have been.

Except that because a war was on, the job simply needed to be done. They could hardly wait for the RAF to guarentee that the Luftwaffe had been eliminated, before remedial work could start.

Working for me now so must've been a glitch.

Except it doesn't appear to work!

An emergency worker, must have activated them, because a 'normal' BMW driver wouldn't have known such a device existed!

Look, you can see her waving! She looks just as young, as what's currently on stamps, coins etc.

So someone at a call centre told the lady what she wanted to hear! As if call centre staff, would do such a thing!

Like the railway crossing is new. It must have been there for 150 years at least.

Railway Modeller 1996 March/ April/May

The sizes were standardised, but not the style as you state.

I'm not surprised of that, since you were obviously 'brought up' in BR days and so you were taught what was then current practice. Now I'm too late for that period, but there is a lot to learn, from all sorts of sources, some 3rd party, some historic documents and many, many learned people that have at various times worked on the railways. The latter doesn't stop some from being pompous (no way am I suggesting you are, The Johnster, but I've had my share of run ins from a small number of people on RMweb that most certainly are). Like many questions that get asked on this forum, about what colour and similar questions, BEFORE giving a colour/method of operation etc, it needs to be found out where/when etc. Because as you would know, railways are not static and many things gradually evolve and what was once normal practice, is now against all basic rules. This isn't of course applicable just to railways, but all aspects of life.

The LMS changed to bauxite livery in May 1936, the size of the lettering changed to, to 4" high lettering, as was the numbering. Other lettering was 3". Some late built grey wagons also had this later lettering style. The smaller lettering/numbering, was by agreement with the Big Four.

In LMS Wagons Volume 2, page 152, Essery states 'The official change to bauxite in May 1936". So bauxite it is, for the LMS IMO. Other companies and BR may have called the same colour Freight Stock Brown, but not apparently the LMS. I'd be interested in an official LMS reference to FSB, that differs from what Bob Essery has stated.

Bob Essery has consistently called it 'Bauxite' and his books give a detailed breakdown on how it was applied and the paint specification. That I'm afraid, is good enough for me! Whether it was the same colour as that of BR Bauxite in the 1950s, I don't know, as it's out of period for me. However for the particular wagons, as built by the Southern Railway, I can't see them being grey, weathered or not, as it was LMS practice from 1936, to have them bauxite, unless someone has evidence to the contrary. BR modified wagons with vacuum brake gear, don't count!