Exley

[Golden Fleece 30]

Along with the sleeping car above I also picked up another Kitchen car which is different to my first one on page 4.  Both corridor sides are identical but the Kitchen sides are reversed as if the sides were punched out with the sheet away from the operator in one instance and towards the operator in the second instance.  Also for the second one it has the window bars painted on the glass whereas the first one does not have any at all.  The bogies for this new one may need to be replaced although I will wait until I see how they run and repaint if suitable. There were some more Restaurants and a Buffet car but all these seem to match up to my previous ones.

[Il Grifone]

At long last I have managed to obtain a maroon (LMS) Sleeping car.  It is not in mint condition but very good. I will need to do a couple of little touch ups as can be seen but unsure if this needs a strip down for cleaning. The main reason being the window bars are on the glass and usually these will wash off with water, the windows as can be seen are a little dusty. Does anyone know if Exley made the longer 69', 6 wheel bogie version of this vehicle?  I am asking as I have a couple of 6 wheel bogies sets spare and thought about using one set on this coach even though it would be not prototypical it would be different.  I know the one posted by Tony has these bogies on but the coach looks like the same length as this one.

 

I believe (ready to be shot down on this) that all LMS Sleeping Cars ran on 6 wheel bogies, so it would be prototypical, even if the length was wrong.

[Golden Fleece 30]

Thanks Grifone, that is an interesting scenario that I have not heard of and gives me a good reason to do a swap.

Edited August 22, 2015 by Golden Fleece 30

[Golden Fleece 30]

When would you like to be shot Grifone?    I have looked on the internet and a few sleepers show 4 wheeled bogies underneath.  One site said "this batch of 15 sleeping cars at 65' were the longest to be fitted with 8 wheels".  I might still fit a set of 6 wheel bogies and keep what is fitted just in case a longer version comes along.

[amdaley]

At long last I have managed to obtain a maroon (LMS) Sleeping car.  It is not in mint condition but very good. I will need to do a couple of little touch ups as can be seen but unsure if this needs a strip down for cleaning. The main reason being the window bars are on the glass and usually these will wash off with water, the windows as can be seen are a little dusty. Does anyone know if Exley made the longer 69', 6 wheel bogie version of this vehicle?  I am asking as I have a couple of 6 wheel bogies sets spare and thought about using one set on this coach even though it would be not prototypical it would be different.  I know the one posted by Tony has these bogies on but the coach looks like the same length as this one.

 

I did a search & have found reference in the Spring 1960 Exley catalog & I quote

 

Zephyr Coaches 4mm Scale.

 

" Sleeping Car 69' available for LMS, BR.

Fitted 6 wheel bogies."

 

Up to that I only found reference to 57' coaches.

[Golden Fleece 30]

Cheers Tony, that is something to look out for but I guess they will be as rare as hens teeth, this was hard enough to find.

[Golden Fleece 30]

Here is a clip of the recent 8 maroon Exley's I purchased a couple of weeks ago.  6 have been stripped and cleaned with new bogies fitted.  The parcels does not need touching but the kitchen car maybe does but will do at the moment. They are being pulled by a "Dublo" County of Denbigh which is a modified Bristol Castle having its first run, more info on that on the You Tube clip.

 

[amdaley]

They came up very well indeed.

[Golden Fleece 30]

Hi Tony, there was only really one Restaurant car that was grubby, all the others just needed their glass cleaned as I do not like dusty glass.  Removing it just gave me the chance to clean the sides before replacing it.  I guess this is the first time it has been done so I am not too worried about how long it takes for the next time, I doubt I will be around by then.

 

Garry

Edited August 30, 2015 by Golden Fleece 30

[Adair Faux]

The Exley GWR vans were real; A guy bought one after being inspired by the models, they were a few feet longer than their LMS equivalents, but were used as racing stores vans in the Midlands, The Exley models are the only ones depicting them, as only one remains in to modern preservation, and they didn't see the same, normal traffic as most model companies wanted to model. I understand it was questioned in the first pictures. The only exley flaw really was that the LMS vans had connectors, but GWR ones should have had them removed, which these models show they didn't. I spent a summer re-painting the last one based off the exley model and a Collett coach.

[Golden Fleece 30]

Hi Adair, which WR vans are we talking about?  How long ago was it when someone bought a real one after seeing the Exleys as they are not as common these days compared to a long time ago, especially parcels vans etc?

[Golden Fleece 30]

I have now completed the Bulleid 3 car set, 2 brakes and a full corridor between (maybe not the correct types but a 3 car set as some sets were).  These are all repainted as you can tell, the centre coach is the one seen earlier on here.  One of the brakes was in the photo of the 3 scrap shells with the other brake coming from somewhere else.  This one was very badly pitted on the roof and some of the sides as seen but no attempt to fill it has been done.  At normal viewing distance it is not too bad.  The other brake seen earlier in the photo was strange in as much as it has the Bulleid elliptical roof ribs but Staniers pressed guards duckets.  This will be a coach to be added at random later.

 

The set here is pulled by a repainted Dublo R1.  This has my own 3-rail pick up fitted along with Kadee couplings but everything else including the body is as bought, there is no extra weight added.  For an experiment I did add 3 extra coaches but time ran out to try another couple. 

 

 

 

[Golden Fleece 30]

Apologies for some video content here with no Exleys in the all 3-rail multiple unit clip but you have seen the Exley one in action.  The other two have Exleys in different formations including ones mixed in with freight stock along with a few different repainted Dublo locos.  The Jinty one just has the Exley suburbans with a parcels coach.

 

At least there are more locations filmed now even though these area still need ballast, scenery etc.

 

Multiple units   

A few locos      

Jinty                 

[Golden Fleece 30]

Here is a clip of a 3-rail Tri-ang M7 pulling 4 of the Exley SR suburbans, it can go fast as the last clip shows, just like the L1.

 

There is also a 3-rail "Tri-ang" Brighton Belle running.

 

[Golden Fleece 30]

Here is a clip of a very mixed set of Exley coaches.  They were used to show and test my recent 3-rail modification on my old (not working well as 2-rail) K's Atlantic kit.

 

A better description is on You Tube.

 

I doubt the coach combination will be running as the norm on the layout though.

 

[Golden Fleece 30]

A few weeks a ago when I bought the 8 maroon coaches (sleeper/kitchen car/etc)  I also acquired 4 GWR ones which at the time I thought I would just sell on.  One of these was a Royal Mail coach and although I have a maroon rake I thought I did not really want a GWR one. Before deciding to advertise it I thought it might have a use on my WR sleeper train so I changed my mind and kept it.  I have fitted it with Bachmann Collett bogies and given the roof a clean but left the sides.  The net will be changed to a "proper" one later as per the LMS set.

 

There was also an Ocean Mails coach to which all the above was similar.  I did think I may have had one of these but cannot find it although I do have 4 of the same coaches but without Ocean Mails written on them.  At the moment these all now make up my Western Parcels/Sleeper/Mail train but the mail coach may be added to the restaurant car rake.

 

Coming soon,  the £1 Exley.

[Golden Fleece 30]

Here is my £1 Exley coach.  It was found last week at the York toyfair in the "All in this box for a £1" box under one of the tables.  A quick glance and as no major dents etc were found I jumped at the chance.  As I paid my £1 the chap said "It is an old Exley but not up to much being over painted with a window and a bogie missing so in there for a £1", he did not need to explain anything as I knew it was easy to be "resurrected" as such.  A missing bogie is of no consequence as Bachmann ones would be fitted.  A quick strip in the Caustic Soda bath brought the shell up like new.  The roof had shown signs of "corrosion" with all the spider lines through the black, why I do not know as these only usually appear with the steel spring holding the roof up.  There was one tiny "corrosion" spot in the centre of one side which I can live with, seen in photo 3 where the paint is missing and the same side immediately underneath it.  As you can see it is a lot better now than it was last Sunday.  I did swap the ends with a couple of spares as when bought it had brass buffers fitted but I wanted it more like an original.

 

The Restaurant car is one I have had for a few months bought for about £10 in a lot worse state than this so I thought another Blood and Custard coach will go nicely.  The roof for some reason was mounted off centre hence the taper on the cantrail blood section, and, I noticed I forgot to paint the screws holding it down.  I just need a few more cheap scrappers as it is unlikely I will get any genuine ones but I live in hope.

 

As both of these were that very late type with tinplate bases there were no interiors fitted.

Edited September 20, 2015 by Golden Fleece 30

[amdaley]

£1 ?

You wos robbed

Those Exleys sure took some punishment in their lives.

[Golden Fleece 30]

I know Tony, I should have tried to get him down to 50p

[Golden Fleece 30]

Here is a video of some brand new Exleys getting their first run although mounted on Bachmann bogies.  These are the first 3 coaches behind the King.  A couple of coaches behind Morning Star had their first run last year behind a Castle (earlier video).  These new WR coaches had a blue/grey coloured roof compared to all the other WR coaches which are black. 

 

The express is made up of 4 parcels coaches, an Ocean Mails (same as the parcels but name printed on), 1st class sleeper, 3rd class sleeper and the Royal Mail coach.  The sleepers were second hand but their first run on my layout.

 

There are still a few more waiting to have their first run including a 5 or 6 coach rake of GWR suburbans which may be in a few days time when my Pannier is ready.

 

I did find my other Ocean Mails coach but it has no bogies fitted so could not be added to this train.

 

The locos are a Wills King and a Dublo Star, info for these is on You Tube

 

Edited September 22, 2015 by Golden Fleece 30

[Golden Fleece 30]

As I had a couple more "scrap" Exley shells to re-paint I thought I would do series of stills as a video showing how these are done.  There is more description on the You Tube clip.

 

The coach in question here is one of the shorter 6 window versions that came to me without a roof and poor ends.  I have a couple of scrap SR suburbans that for some reason had LMS roofs so I replaced the ends and used the LMS roof from one of these.

 

 

After fitting new perspex the colour for the toilet windows is my own mixture as it seems an unusual colour to get being a green/blue/grey shade.

 

The corridor connectors are made from either thin card or thick paper whichever way you want to call it with a plastic end and are 6 sections long to be the same length as an Exley one.  As mine are not as flexible I should really have made them 5 sections long to narrow the gap between coaches.

 

There will be a couple of Westdales in the rake in this colour scheme until I can get hold of more scrap Exley's.

[amdaley]

As I had a couple more "scrap" Exley shells to re-paint I thought I would do series of stills as a video showing how these are done.  There is more description on the You Tube clip.

 

The coach in question here is one of the shorter 6 window versions that came to me without a roof and poor ends.  I have a couple of scrap SR suburbans that for some reason had LMS roofs so I replaced the ends and used the LMS roof from one of these.

 

 

After fitting new perspex the colour for the toilet windows is my own mixture as it seems an unusual colour to get being a green/blue/grey shade.

 

The corridor connectors are made from either thin card or thick paper whichever way you want to call it with a plastic end and are 6 sections long to be the same length as an Exley one.  As mine are not as flexible I should really have made them 5 sections long to narrow the gap between coaches.

 

There will be a couple of Westdales in the rake in this colour scheme until I can get hold of more scrap Exley's.

 

Hi Garry.

 

That's extremely interesting.

How do you handle the caustic & what do you use to hold the mixture ?

Can it be used indefinitely or do you need a new batch every time ?

I remember someone using it in work many years ago but I've forgotten how they did it.

 

Can I ask what paint you use for LMS colours ?

[Il Grifone]

Caustic soda :

handle with extreme care. It is extremely corrosive especially for skin and flesh. (Soap is made from sheep fat (very similar to ours - why it's used in skin creams etc.) and caustic soda), Store in plastic containers preferably with a child (or is that adult?) proof cap. (It probably comes in one of these anyway.) Keep it away from Aluminium too.

 

It will probably one do one or at the most two items. but it's cheap enough. It can be obtained ready mixed as oven cleaner - My last lot came from a pound shop.

[Il Grifone]

I've just cleaned two Dublo wagon bodies of stubborn paint (my usual brake fluid had struggled and they've been left  with patches of old paint for ages*). The residue came off without problems with caustic soda. It has however taken the sheen off one (a red breakdown crane packing van**) and left a sort of whitish effect. The grey grain wagon is fine. It must be something to do with the red pigment, as I had the same thing happen with a bauxite (brown really) Tri-ang low sided wagon several years ago. Not really a problem if the item is to be repainted, but not good for restoring collectibles. Varnishing might help.

 

* Read years.....

** Replaced originally with a Wrenn one (identical and possibly old Dublo stock?)

Edited November 12, 2015 by Il Grifone

[Golden Fleece 30]

Hi Tony, as David has said handle with care. I buy the crystals from Wilkinsons at £1.00 which does quite a lot. I normally use a kettle of boiling water in an old developing dish then pour some crystals in, guess work only here. The amount in the dish will do about 4 or 5 bodies depending on how stubborn they are. DONT put plastic bodies in when very hot as they will obviously warp. For some reason this will only take off any original paint, it does not like taking off any repainted items but has done so the odd time with a lot of scrubbing etc. My coaches are aluminium but only in for usually less than a minute as it can be eaten away by the soda. Once finished with it is poured down the outside drain which is one of its intended purposes. Always use this outside so if any spills over you can hose it down with plenty of water.

 

The only LMS colour I have done are the two Duchess's but will have to look up what I used. All coach repaints are BR period, any LMS coaches seen on here are original Exley ones.

 

Garry

Edited September 30, 2015 by Golden Fleece 30