GER W&U Train Packs

[Dungrange]

3 hours ago, Compound2632 said:

Keep up the good work, that man!

 

Any particular type? What lasted into the 1950s?

For the GER, it would have to be a Diagram 56 20 ton Goods Brake, which were produced between 1908 and 1924.  I understand that quite a few of these survived into the 1950s.

[Edwardian]

Just now, Dungrange said:

For the GER, it would have to be a Diagram 56 20 ton Goods Brake, which were produced between 1908 and 1924.  I understand that quite a few of these survived into the 1950s.

 

Far too modern, though, sadly, though for understandable reasons (lasting to BR days) most of the Rapido wagon releases of are of very late pre-Grouping prototypes.

 

On the plus side, this has allowed me to avoid bankruptcy 😄

[Dungrange]

12 hours ago, rapidoandy said:

I honestly don’t think they would be viable - not without a hefty price tag to offset the low production volume.

 

With the current tramcars 50% of the run were made up of Titfield sales…

 

Thanks for the insight.  What you're saying is that between the Titfield sales and the sales of those in a fictional BR livery, there is more of us modelling fiction than a prototype.  I can imagine the response on here if you were to announce a small four-wheel coach with a £100 + price tag.

[rapidoandy]

Just now, Dungrange said:

 

Thanks for the insight.  What you're saying is that between the Titfield sales and the sales of those in a fictional BR livery, there is more of us modelling fiction than a prototype.  I can imagine the response on here if you were to announce a small four-wheel coach with a £100 + price tag.

 

Pretty much - although the Titfield livery did happen of course.

[Dungrange]

Just now, Edwardian said:

Far too modern, though, sadly, though for understandable reasons (lasting to BR days) most of the Rapido wagon releases of are of very late pre-Grouping prototypes.

 

On the plus side, this has allowed me to avoid bankruptcy 😄

 

Well, I'd happy buy one of the earlier 10 ton Diagram 1 Goods Brakes and they may actually have been more common on the W&U than the newer 20 ton version.  But, there is a 3D print available for the Diagram 1, but I'm not aware of any model of a Diagram 56 being available, and as far as I'm aware, it was the only GER Goods Brake that was left in BR ownership by the 1950s.

[Al51]

On 14/12/2023 at 12:50, RapidoCorbs said:

"But I don't catch cows, Sir"

 

Sorry for the confusion about them being in the instructions and not in the package.

 

If you do want to swap the cow-catchers for the non-tension lock variety, we can send you a pair FOC.

 

All you need to do is go here, say you bought a W&U Pack and you would like a pair of cow-catchers without coupling holes:

https://rapidotrains.co.uk/warranty-form/

 

Please allow for the usual Christmas post delay.

 

I did as you instructed and the postman has just delivered two cow-catchers without the coupling holes. All in less than 24 hrs after I contacted them. Great service again from Rapido! All I need now is some cows...

 

Al

 

Edited December 15, 2023 by Al51

[Jammy2305]

Got my pre-1919 pack yesterday and I have to preface by saying I am happy with it. The coaches particularly are beautiful and look amazing in their GE colours.

 

I fear I'm putting my head above the parapet here by opening what I hope will be a polite discussion, but I'm less sure about the colours used on the loco.

 

Technically, everything is correct. The body matches the coach colour, as it should given the bodies were maintained by the Stratford Carriage Works.

 

The blue matches a photo I took myself of the Y14 tender (but specifically on an overcast day - That's perhaps key, as the shade changes dramatically depending on light conditions).

 

 

 

 

And yet, one or the other looks off. I can't decide if the blue is too dark (GE blue is notoriously difficult to pin point and experience tells me blue doesn't scale well) or if the body is too bright, or if it's both, or that the finish of the whole loco is a bit... flat? (Plasticy, even, despite having metal in the construction).

 

The bufferbeam numbering has discrepancies too. The GER shaded these with "chocolate" rather than black and the overall size of the font looks a touch on the small side.

 

I don't wish to come across as being completely negative about it (as I say, the coaches are stunning) but I did wish to articulate my feelings regarding the loco so as to open a discussion about how other people view it and (maybe) in the hope of getting an idea on what the basis for the shade choices was?

 

As a segway, I'm intrigued to see what the crimson loco looks like upon release as the grey in the photos looks too white for GE French Grey (at least when compared to the Pheonix shade and the shade used on the Oxford K85 and their GE vans, all of which represent the same colour and are all a close match to one another, but are distinctly different to the pre-release photos of the tram).

 

- James

[Dungrange]

3 minutes ago, Jammy2305 said:

I'm intrigued to see what the crimson loco looks like upon release as the grey in the photos looks too white for GE French Grey (at least when compared to the Pheonix shade and the shade used on the Oxford K85 and their GE vans, all of which represent the same colour and are all a close match to one another, but are distinctly different to the pre-release photos of the tram).

 

Having purchased one of each pack, I agree that the coaches are great.  I particularly like the crimson ones - the livery just seems to suit them.  However, with the crimson locomotive, I agree that the grey is much whiter than I was assuming it should be, as I was also expecting it to be French Grey (as per the colour used by Oxford Rail on their Diagram 72 covered goods wagon).  Do we know whether the skirts on the trams were actually French Grey?  The grey was introduced during the Great War as an economy measure so might these have received just a plain grey primer or photographic grey instead of French Grey?  Unfortunately, I find it impossible to tell from looking at photographs whether the bodies are brown or crimson let alone be able to identify the shade of grey.

[Fair Oak Junction]

Same as Al51 above, the postman has just dropped off my replacement cow-catchers only 24 hours after requesting them. Madness! 😄

That is top service from Rapido! 👌

[Jammy2305]

11 minutes ago, Dungrange said:

 

Having purchased one of each pack, I agree that the coaches are great.  I particularly like the crimson ones - the livery just seems to suit them.  However, with the crimson locomotive, I agree that the grey is much whiter than I was assuming it should be, as I was also expecting it to be French Grey (as per the colour used by Oxford Rail on their Diagram 72 covered goods wagon).  Do we know whether the skirts on the trams were actually French Grey?  The grey was introduced during the Great War as an economy measure so might these have received just a plain grey primer or photographic grey instead of French Grey?  Unfortunately, I find it impossible to tell from looking at photographs whether the bodies are brown or crimson let alone be able to identify the shade of grey.

 

As well as being the shade used on ventilated vans, French Grey was used as the undercoat for the blue livery, with the wartime grey livery effectively being a case of leaving the locos in undercoat. This is certainly the interpretation Oxford used on the K85 as the loco is in the same grey as their later Dia.72 vans and this is supported by articles on the GERS website.

 

- James

[Fair Oak Junction]

There we go, 100x better! 👌

[stewartingram]

1 hour ago, Dungrange said:

 

Well, I'd happy buy one of the earlier 10 ton Diagram 1 Goods Brakes and they may actually have been more common on the W&U than the newer 20 ton version.  But, there is a 3D print available for the Diagram 1, but I'm not aware of any model of a Diagram 56 being available, and as far as I'm aware, it was the only GER Goods Brake that was left in BR ownership by the 1950s.

Do you have a link for the 3D print?

[stewartingram]

I think that brown livery must represent an ex-works loco straight out of the paintshop, matching the coaches. But I'm sure that in service it would b much darker. The loco would never be spotlessly clean, with ingrained dirt on wooden planks. It is a steam loco, with soot and smoke after all.

[Dungrange]

2 hours ago, stewartingram said:

Do you have a link for the 3D print?

 

I think this one is a Diagram 1 Goods Brake, which is available in a range of scales - https://pregroupingrailways.com/product/pgr7-87-great-eastern-railway-lancashire-derbyshire-and-east-coast-railway-great-central-rrailway-lner-brake-van/

[Compound2632]

5 hours ago, Al51 said:

All I need now is some cows...

 

These aren't bad and being 3D prints, won't dent your cow-catcher nor, more remarkably, your wallet: https://www.scale3d.co.uk/products/cows.

 

(No connection &c.)

[Edwardian]

26 minutes ago, Compound2632 said:

 

These aren't bad and being 3D prints, won't dent your cow-catcher nor, more remarkably, your wallet: https://www.scale3d.co.uk/products/cows.

 

(No connection &c.)

 

Cow catchers arrived preternaturally fast. Three cheers for Rapido!

 

Now correct prototype operation can be replicated...

 

 

 

Edited December 15, 2023 by Edwardian

[Compound2632]

16 minutes ago, Edwardian said:

Now correct prototype operation can be replicated...

 

That does look very like the bull in the Scale 3D set, though that one is more compatible with Rice's law than the one in the prototype illustration.

[Edwardian]

12 minutes ago, Compound2632 said:

 

That does look very like the bull in the Scale 3D set, though that one is more compatible with Rice's law than the one in the prototype illustration.

 

Ah yes, Rice's First Law of (Frozen) Motion.

 

Actually, the Good Reverend was a proto-Ricean in that regard, as, on his OO Ffarquar 6' x 4', he positioned, IIRC, a flock of sheep blocking traffic to explain the necessarily stationary vehicles. 

 

[LondonCharivari]

Very happy with mine in post 1919 livery. I agree the grey feels a little on the light side (certainly compared to Oxford's products - though commenting on a livery that hasn't existed for almost a century is a fraught exercise), but it looks like a proper (Christmas) cracker and a bit of weathering and some etched plates I suspect will bring it all out rather well. The sound is also very good, with a good depth of tone - I've just driven my wife to despair by playing the bell repeatedly in the living room...

[PaulG]

Like others, very pleased with the set, totally out of my Colchester c1955 model era, but....

 

The two tram carriages need a brake, so borrowed a GER 6-wheel brake 3rd off the c1950s Colchester breakdown train seen in the background! (You can't read the BR lettering!)

 

 

Paul

[Fair Oak Junction]

Before I go and do something stupid, can anyone confirm that the little walkways between the coaches can indeed be folded up into running position on the models?

[Edwardian]

29 minutes ago, Fair Oak Junction said:

Before I go and do something stupid, can anyone confirm that the little walkways between the coaches can indeed be folded up into running position on the models?

 

IIRC this feature is mentioned in the desinstructions

[PaulG]

3 hours ago, Fair Oak Junction said:

Before I go and do something stupid, can anyone confirm that the little walkways between the coaches can indeed be folded up into running position on the models?

Does this help,  on left flap up, on right flap down?

 

 

Paul

[Pint of Adnams]

3 hours ago, Fair Oak Junction said:

Before I go and do something stupid, can anyone confirm that the little walkways between the coaches can indeed be folded up into running position on the models?

 

Outer flap folds back flat, inner flap lifts up by about 45-60 deg without forcing.

[Pint of Adnams]

Has anyone thought of going further and modifying theirs with seats on the roof, real open top bus/tramcar style, as per a GER proposal of 1907? See Peter Paye's book p222...