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Article on Kit-bashing the Dapol / Kit Master Brake Van


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A few years ago one of the mainstream UK railway modelling magazines had an article on improving the Dapol Brake Van Kit. If I recall, it addressed modifications that could be made to represent a number of different vans.

 

Can anybody please recall the article and which magazine / edition it was in?

 

Thanks in advance,


Roy

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If it's the article I recall it was this.

 

Model Rail issue 40 Feb 2002  Brake Vans - Bringing up the rear

 

Modelling The BR Standard 20 Ton Brake Van, lots of prototype photographs

 

BR Standard 20ton brake van diagrams 1/504 and 1/506

 

Or possibly this one.

 

Model Rail issue 86 December 2005 A Brake with tradition 

 

Usual masterclass treatment applied to brake vans with 'OO' models of the standard 20 ton brake van and building some variants.

 

Conversion to BR 1/500 and LNER Toad E

 

Info nicked from the UK Modelshops website.

 

 

Jason

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The Airfix / Dapol kit needs a lot of work to make a vehicle capable of being used regularly on a layout.  The side frames tend to spread apart  and let axles with pin point  bearings drop out.   My last one ended up with the Airfix superstructure on a Hornby chassis.

It has thick crystal clear plastic glazing  which twinkles in the light and looks quite good  trundling up the garden on the occasional engineers train. 

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One thing about the kit that needs a bit of work is the moulding marks on the inside of the veranda ends and the inside partions. Certainly the more recent Dapol version, not sure about the original Airfix pressings.

 

1720367979_RMwebP4wagons01.jpg.5badd86557c0338f945d7fd69e32b365.jpg

 

 

 

Although it's nothing special mine worked out okay and seemed worth the effort. As it was for P4 I popped some top hat bearings in with the remachined Dapol wheels and it runs well enough.

 

509035313_RMwebP4wagons02.jpg.217688dab5004f0e3ac6432649816c39.jpg

 

 

Oh - one aspect is that the roof detail is 'wrong-handed'. It has to be re-made to be a mirror image.

 

 

 

 

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If you are going to do the interior....

 

The brake wheel is offset from the centre line on the opposite side to the stove; the guard can sit in the ducket seat that side and reach it without getting up.  Taking that position as a datum point, to his left at 9 o'clock from him is a continuation of the wooden locker on which his seat is placed, which IIRC had two coat hooks in the wall above it, then the end, then the opposite corner at 10 o'clock from him, the coal bunker and the stove.  The coal bunker is basically a cast iron tray that the stove is set into and serves as a grate area as well.  Above the stove and set into the roof is a rail with hooks for drying his coat on.  The stove has a side door and a recess in the top that holds a 'standard' enamal tea can.  At 12 o'clock is the other ducket, separated from the stove by a wooden screen.  At one o 'clock is another locker into the corner, and at two o'clock is the corner.  Between this and the doorway are the holders for the brake stick and shunting pole, which are stowed vertically against the end.  On the side behind the locker bench at about the same level as the top of the ducket are two wooden blocks about 4"x2" that hold a par of track circuit clips.  Next to these are the vacuum gauge if one is provided and the red painted pipe and setter.

 

At 3 o'clock in the corner is a desk facing the end windows, sloping opening top, and another upholstered seat on the other end of that side's locker bench.  To it's left, mounted on the end below the windows are 3 lamp brackets for the tail and two side lamps.  Coming full circle, there is a holder for a milk bottle just to the right of the guard's feet; the bottle is used for lamp oil.  The doors open outwards, which helps a little with the draughts.  Checking that all the equipment is aboard and stowed properly and that there is a supply of lamp oil, and that the lamps are filled and properly trimmed and that the side lamps have their red shades is part of a guard's train preparation duty. 

 

Behind the stove pipe (post early 60s) is a large warning notice advising guards not to raise the stove pipe due to the presence of 25kv OHLE; I never worked a van that the stove pipe could be raised on during my railway career in the 70s...  Presumably this was to increase the draw of the stove, but they drew like blast furnaces as soon as the van was moving or in the least wind anyway; you could get them glowing orange and even yellow hot on the outside.  Most had a bulge where the iron had softened with the heat and 'settled'.  The door had a two postion latch so that as well as securing it shut you could have it slightly opened; it was hinged at the bottom.

 

You might want to include kindling firewood with the coal and yesterday's newspaper, the latter for sealing the many gaps that the draughts came from.  The ducket seats have side cushions to protect the guard's shoulders in the event of a bump or snatch.  Interior livery was green to waist height then cream, or all over light grey later.

 

 

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