6 Wheel Insulated Fish Van - Paint Scheme

[M.I.B]

Good afternoon everyone.  Some questions anbout the 6 wheel metal insulated fish vans:

 

1.  What GWR colour scheme:  Brown, White or Grey?   I think Grey but want to be sure.

2.  What was the telegraphic code for them?   I did read INSIXFISH somewhere 

3.   Are there any accessible photos of how they were marked in terms of lettering location, weight etc?

 

Thank you

[M.I.B]

I have just been pointed (very quickly) in the correct direction...................

 

Like Hawksworth full brakes and 15XX heavy shunters, these were GWR fish vans that never made it out of the works in time for GW liveries.

 

They were called INSIXFISH and had a weight of 10 tons (bottom plank far left hand side.

 

First BR livery was cream with a grey roof - no idea on lettering colour..   

 

I will leave this up on the bopard for completeness sake incase someone else needs to research for a BR(W) layout.

[cctransuk]

1 hour ago, M.I.B said:

I have just been pointed (very quickly) in the correct direction...................

 

Like Hawksworth full brakes and 15XX heavy shunters, these were GWR fish vans that never made it out of the works in time for GW liveries.

 

They were called INSIXFISH and had a weight of 10 tons (bottom plank far left hand side.

 

First BR livery was cream with a grey roof - no idea on lettering colour..   

 

I will leave this up on the bopard for completeness sake incase someone else needs to research for a BR(W) layout.

 

As released from works, the livery would have been white with black lettering - but this would rapidly have degraded, via cream, to opaque muck!

 

CJI.

[KeithMacdonald]

Here's one we prepared earlier...

 

@macgeordie says:-

 

Quote

These vans never carried a GWR livery, they were painted white from new although some sources say they were first painted cream and later repainted in white. They retained this livery but were probably never cleaned so were pretty grubby most of their lives. They were used initionally on the Western Region working from the fishing ports and were later familiar on the Eastern region and many were later transferred to the Scottish Region working from Aberdeen or Fishguard where they were in service until about 1969.

 

 

[M.I.B]

Thanks Keith - I have never been able to use the search function properly on RM Web so I didn't bother this time......

[The Stationmaster]

I can definitely remember them being grubby but never very filthy.  There is a very nice George Heiron photo of one immediately behind a D10XX passing through Badminton on an Up Pembroke -Paddington Class 1 train in 1963 and it looks quite clean.

 

(Included in 'Trains to the West' page 49)

[KeithMacdonald]

Here's one (E87905)

 

 

Which magically changes colour!

 

 

As usual, one of the classic "Rivet Counters" delights, with colour perception and images changing depending on lighting conditions, time of day, weather, etc etc

[KeithMacdonald]

White, green, blue ...

 

 

BR Rail Blue ...

 

 

Or just "grey" ...

 

 

[cctransuk]

13 minutes ago, KeithMacdonald said:

White, green, blue ...

 

 

BR Rail Blue ...

 

 

Or just "grey" ...

 

 

 

Unless I' m missing something, I see Ice Blue, Rail Blue and white.

 

CJI.

[The Stationmaster]

27 minutes ago, KeithMacdonald said:

Here's one (E87905)

 

 

 

Which magically changes colour!

 

 

 

As usual, one of the classic "Rivet Counters" delights, with colour perception and images changing depending on lighting conditions, time of day, weather, etc etc

Although it is not an Insixfish - but one of those appeared in your subsequent post of course, in white livery.  When they were in WR ownership the Insixfish were painted white.  What the lesser Regions did when they got hold of them I don't l know but I wonder if any survived long enough to be painted in any other colour?

[hmrspaul]

On 20/09/2022 at 17:21, cctransuk said:

 

As released from works, the livery would have been white with black lettering - but this would rapidly have degraded, via cream, to opaque muck!

 

CJI.

Probably not. These came out right on Nationalisation and the Wagon committee gave permission for stone to be used until white became available - just another of the post war shortages. Now what Stone meant I have no idea - the HMRS style books on the GWR have a dark and light stone and they were very different. (Same problem as to the finish to apply to Class A tank wagons at that time). 

 

Whether any survived to be painted in Ice blue I have no idea. 

 

Paul

[cctransuk]

12 minutes ago, hmrspaul said:

Probably not. These came out right on Nationalisation and the Wagon committee gave permission for stone to be used until white became available - just another of the post war shortages. Now what Stone meant I have no idea - the HMRS style books on the GWR have a dark and light stone and they were very different. (Same problem as to the finish to apply to Class A tank wagons at that time). 

 

Whether any survived to be painted in Ice blue I have no idea. 

 

Paul

 

Accepted - but in the absence of (colour) photographic evidence, it would be a brave modeller who would try to convincingly reproduce 'Stone'!

 

CJI.

[M.I.B]

I have found another reference to "Cream" as first livery.  (not got the book to hand: its the huge grey GWR Wagon bible with three authours that remind me of "Atchison Topeka and Kansas".....) 

 

So two references to cream and a couple for "stone"    lean me towards first livery being an off white/cream colour.

 

Still a year or two too late for me tho.

 

Thanks for your help and research.