Opening up a Roco SBB 'Sputnik' Goods Brake

[Chas Levin]

Hello, can anyone tell me please how to open up the Roco SBB 'Sputnik' Goods Brake Van?

 

There are tabs visible underneath, just inboard of the buffer beams, but these only seem to release the thin layer of exterior floor boarding at each end. I'm guessing it might be a case of easing the sides outwards to clear plastic tabs pointing upwards from the floor, but without knowing that's the case I don't want to start anything that might end in damage...

 

It already has pickups which feed an internal light (so I'm assuming it must be openable to change the bulb) but I want to add a guard figure on the verandah with an LED lamp...

 

Any help appreciated, Chas

[LNWR18901910]

Do you want to put figures inside it?

 

Also, I had no idea these HO European rolling stock were compatible with 00 Gauge British Stock (I think).

[Chas Levin]

I actually want to put a figure outside, on the verandah (I think that's the correct term for the roofed-over section of decking, seen on the left in the first picture). I have a couple of HO Swiss railway personnel with 1mm LED lamps in their hands and I want to have a guard standing on the decking shining a lamp which lights from the track current.

 

As to compatibility, it runs on the same gauge rails as OO - in fact, HO is more correctly proportioned for what we call OO rails and OO was originally the compromise.

 

My layout is really UK 1920s-30s LNER 90% of the time, but every so often I swap a few buildings, station name boards and road vehicles and run Swiss and other European stock. It's like taking a weekend break on the Continent... and before lockdown, it felt a bit unnecessary but now, I'm very pleased with the system indeed, as you may imagine .

[Chas Levin]

Finally plunged in - the body lifts off and although there are retaining clips at the sides the fall away easily. The metal contact strips for the internal light are fiddly though: lifting out the moulded interior and gently bending them back as you pull back the outer shell, they pop off their retaining pips. Getting them back on, with the new wiring for the guard, plus the interior replaced, took some fiddling about!

Here's a pic of the housing propped open, in case anyone else intends getting into one of these: