BR 4 wheeled van used as a shed in a field

[TravisM]

As it's a nice day, I decided to do some modelling outside and built a BR 4 wheeled van that came with a magazine.  It came as just the body which I plan to deposit on my layout near a pig farm but I'm struggling to find any pictures of what it might look like now after 40+ years dumped in field.  When I was a kid, they dumped one in local playing field which us kids climbed all over and probably destroyed.  I seem to remember it was Bauxite brown but given time, would it have faded into a shabby grey with traces of the brown showing through?  I'm pretty sure the metal parts would have turned a rusty colour but what about the roof?  A faded but darker grey to the body?

 

I tried looking of Flickr but I couldn't find anything suitable as a reference, so I'd be most grateful if someone could assist.

Edited September 13, 2020 by jools1959
Typo

[Enterprisingwestern]

 

There's a thread on abandoned vans hereabouts, plenty of inspiration there.

 

Mike.

[TravisM]

4 minutes ago, Enterprisingwestern said:

 

There's a thread on abandoned vans hereabouts, plenty of inspiration there.

 

Mike.

 

Link?

[Enterprisingwestern]

1 minute ago, jools1959 said:

 

Link?

 

Takes a cleverer bloke than me!

Search?

 

Mike.

[The Johnster]

BR standard vanfit with corrugated ends and ventilators in the ends?  Came in two types of body, plywood and planked, with ply doors sometimes ending up on planked vans and the other way around.  These would have been sold off in the 70s and 80s, in the bauxite livery and the painted 'panels' enclosing the number and other information at the left hand end of the sides.  The right hand end has 'XP' branding and a panel with a black background showing tare, repair due dates, etc.  Check on Paul Bartlett's website for colour pictures, and transfers are available from HMRS and other sources.

 

If it were me, I'd finish off the body in newly repainted condition with all the lettering and numbering, and then weather and distress it.  First, build up coats of weathering wash until the bauxite is barely visible and the numbers cannot be properly read.  The corrugated ends and the ventilators are metal and dark matt brow to represent old rust will do here.  How far you go beyond that is up to you; tarpaulin over a leaking roof, planks missing, peeled paint, rust staining below any metal part such as door hinges and hasps.  You are looking for an air of damp and dereliction, so taking out some chunks of wood at the bottom of the van where it's rotted and a bit of green algae in that area looks the part as well.

 

A common error on layouts is to use grounded van bodies that are far too modern, so you will see layouts set in the 60s or 70s with grounded BR vans or late Big 4 ones that were still in service at the time; early grouping or pregrouping vans in faded BR livery, often unfitted grey, are more appropriate.  A Big 4 period layout should have even older vans sitting in it's fields, 19th century types.  Field vans are dying out a bit now, as it is several decades since the last ones were available, and by and large farmers are not noted for the meticulous way they look after them.  But a farm in West Wales is using some BR standards as tourist chalets, so these must be at least reasonably weather proof.

 

 

Edited September 13, 2020 by The Johnster

[petethemole]

This is the main thread https://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/1486-grounded-vans/&tab=comments#comment-9620

[plarailfan]

This one is local to me and it is right next to a quiet country lane, so is easily accessible for a close-up pic.

The owner has cut the corrugated rear end panel in half to make it into doors, as a tree, rather inconsiderately, decide to grow next to the, original, sliding door 

 

[corneliuslundie]

There are at least three near Newtown still. I suspect that there are plenty of others around. There are apparently even old carriage bodies in use as garden rooms or sheds still. I was told of one recently that was sold for preservation.

The photo above has one important clue to appearance - lots of green.

Jonathan

[kernowtim]

I can remember a BR bauxite timber conflat? Container at a local cement works, did think at the time it would make a good shed, however someone set fire to it instead!

There was a timber van body in a field near bodmin, I think I posted pics on the thread mentioned above, haven't been past for years so don't know if its still there.

Edited September 13, 2020 by kernowtim

[Steamport Southport]

Also have a look here.

 

Loads of them.

 

http://www.rhrp.org.uk/surveystatus.htm

 

 

Jason

[TravisM]

1 hour ago, plarailfan said:

This one is local to me and it is right next to a quiet country lane, so is easily accessible for a close-up pic.

The owner has cut the corrugated rear end panel in half to make it into doors, as a tree, rather inconsiderately, decide to grow next to the, original, sliding door 

 

That’s a cracking picture and that’s the type weathering I’m looking for.  I forgot about the green “moss” and like the new hinges, plus the “alterations”.

[BernardTPM]

4 hours ago, The Johnster said:

A common error on layouts is to use grounded van bodies that are far too modern, so you will see layouts set in the 60s or 70s with grounded BR vans or late Big 4 ones that were still in service at the time; early grouping or pregrouping vans in faded BR livery, often unfitted grey, are more appropriate.  A Big 4 period layout should have even older vans sitting in it's fields, 19th century types.  Field vans are dying out a bit now, as it is several decades since the last ones were available, and by and large farmers are not noted for the meticulous way they look after them. 

Quite right about that.

 

I remember on a cycle tour of Yorkshire back in 1977 there were lots of examples of the last generation of 'Big 4' vans (including SR & GWR) in fields. The last of these would have been withdrawn from revenue service no later than 1972. There were some older ones with traces of unfitted grey (1920s/'30s built) that would have been withdrawn in the late'50s/early '60s but at that time would have been in fields for 15-20 years and some were in pretty poor condition. Given how long ago the last vacuum braked vans were withdrawn now it's not surprising they aren't as common anymore. The modern equivalent these days is old shipping containers.

[big jim]

48 minutes ago, God's Wonderful Railway 1835 said:

You did say pigs so what about this lot  https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@50.9224081,-3.1256132,3a,15y,278.42h,87.45t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sVrYzAmwqAhqawtUIs6N2LA!2e0!7i13312!8i6656  https://www.google.co.uk/maps/place/Taunton/@50.9223183,-3.1270897,83m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0x486d8a921fb7907f:0x75eb0e344edee9fb!8m2!3d51.015344!4d-3.106849

 

you get a good view on street view too

 

 

 

 

[TravisM]

2 hours ago, BernardTPM said:

Quite right about that.

 

I remember on a cycle tour of Yorkshire back in 1977 there were lots of examples of the last generation of 'Big 4' vans (including SR & GWR) in fields. The last of these would have been withdrawn from revenue service no later than 1972. There were some older ones with traces of unfitted grey (1920s/'30s built) that would have been withdrawn in the late'50s/early '60s but at that time would have been in fields for 15-20 years and some were in pretty poor condition. Given how long ago the last vacuum braked vans were withdrawn now it's not surprising they aren't as common anymore. The modern equivalent these days is old shipping containers.

I did consider a banged up old shipping container but as I had the kit, I thought “why not”.  It’s going to be hidden in the undergrowth and therefore in my little world, it lasted a lot longer than it’s contemporaries.

[RANGERS]

We’ve a std meat van with the vents on one end plated over in a field just up the road, it serves as a stable (I think) and still looks in reasonable nick.

 

A builder near to where we lived as kids in the early 70s had three or four wooden bodied containers, they may well still be there, and two wagons still on their underframes which were the right height for unloading from flat bed delivery wagons and into their own wagons as required.

[George Woodcock]

Hello

 

     The farm I worked on in the 60s had a number of these mostly in a field where they provided accommodation for sows who free ranged round the field. we also had a couple in the yard which were used storing animal feed. They all came from George Cohen's scrapyard at Kettering. Bodies only, the chassis went for scrap.

 

                                                                                                 Cheers

 

                                                                                                                     George

[TravisM]

I've just finished my free Peco body kit which came with Railway Modeller.  It's just got to be "planted" in the corner of a field on my layout, hidden, surrounded by tree's, weeds and grass, a few boulders and a muddy patch by the doors.  Constructive criticisms welcome.

[eastwestdivide]

25 minutes ago, jools1959 said:

Constructive criticisms welcome

A bit too clean and tidy for 40+ years dumped in a field with a tree growing round it? In particular the roof would have deteriorated and have some pigeon poo/moss/lichen on it probably.

[TravisM]

25 minutes ago, eastwestdivide said:

A bit too clean and tidy for 40+ years dumped in a field with a tree growing round it? In particular the roof would have deteriorated and have some pigeon poo/moss/lichen on it probably.

It’s still a “work in progress” and once it’s been planted, I’ll distress it even more but as it’s largely going to be hidden, I’m not going to go too mad.

[BernardTPM]

An added roof covering would help with the overall look. Undoubtedly the original would have needed replacement, assuming the van was still being looked after. I needn't be perfect as long as it was waterproof.

[David Bell]

That is looking good. I nearly bought a house that had one of these in the garden. You tend to think they are quite small, the size of your average garden shed, maybe because we know the wheelbase is ten feet. The bodies are over 20 feet long. Would make a good layout shed if wind and water tight

Cheers

David

[doilum]

The more the vegetation, the shorter the survival time?

[TravisM]

30 minutes ago, BernardTPM said:

An added roof covering would help with the overall look. Undoubtedly the original would have needed replacement, assuming the van was still being looked after. I needn't be perfect as long as it was waterproof.

I could put something over the roof that represents a tarp but I’ll decide that when it finally goes on the layout.  For now, it’s going into storage.