Thompson/Gresley suburbans well weathered teak and blood and custard question

[w124bob]

Having purchased a totally frivilous J15 I turned to Thompson and Gresley for a suitable train, 5 vehicles later I have an urge to add a well weathered teak coach as I fancied the challenge. I have been told examples lasted well into the 50's anyone done one? My other choice would be for a blood and custard but I can't find examples of suburbans in this scheme, plenty of corridor coach pictures but so far no suburbans in either Thompson or Gresley form.

[great central]

Suburban coaches were only painted in a single colour, crimson in early BR days and maroon later. It was only mainline coaches given the blood and custard scheme.

[APOLLO]

Some Southern Region suburbans were painted green - not ex LNER teak stock though.

 

The ex LNER ones got a bit dirty & tatty towards the end (late 50's) according to most photos. Difficult to tell sometimes if they were Crimson, Maroon or Teak. I've seen very few colour photos of these coaches.  Perhaps Tony Wright's "Little Bytham" layout is worth a look at here on rmweb (Wright writes)..

 

Brit15

[34theletterbetweenB&D]

There are plenty of good colour photo references to how the teak stock looked when well weathered. (A book I endlessly recommend, 'The Big Four in Colour 1935 - 50' will supply all that is required.) The roof covering went a very dark matt grey brown. The same shade applied to the teak to the level desired does the weathering job on the body, underframe and running gear in the usual track grime. Sophisticated addition, a noticeably darker patch in the corner of a panel, or streaking down the (concealed) internal framing from a window corner, the sure sign that water is getting in and potentially causing rot.

[RANGERS]

Pre-group stock which had weathered badly was usually painted into saddle brown if the finish was deemed to be beyond restoring. GE and GC stock suffered this indignity and other constituent's stock also probably. Apart from NPCS, I've never seen a Gresley coach in this colour, although as noted above, such was the condition of some of them its hard to figure out what the base colour was.