Jump to content
 

GWR Goods wagons

The Stationmaster

By The Stationmaster,
in Books

Recommended Posts

  • RMweb Gold
The Stationmaster

The Stationmaster

Posted
  • RMweb Gold
Posted

Yes, it's been reprinted (although possibly not revised from the 3rd Edition?) but nice big plates where feasible and a fully combined volume.  Only downside is the price but if you are into the GWR is £55 too much to spend on the ultimate wagon bible? (I didn't think so and bought a copy from Kevin Robertson at Swindon on Saturday.

Link to post
Share on other sites
  • RMweb Gold
Zero Gravitas

Zero Gravitas

Posted
  • RMweb Gold
Posted
The Stationmaster, on 16 Sept 2013 - 10:43, said:

Yes, it's been reprinted (although possibly not revised from the 3rd Edition?) but nice big plates where feasible and a fully combined volume.  Only downside is the price but if you are into the GWR is £55 too much to spend on the ultimate wagon bible? (I didn't think so and bought a copy from Kevin Robertson at Swindon on Saturday.

 

According to Amazon, it's "a reprint of the fully revised and combined third edition of GWR Goods Wagons published with additional material by Tourret Publishing in 1998".  Just waiting for my copy to be delivered...  yes, it's expensive, but it's one book that will definitely be in my library for ever.

 

In fact, from where I'm typing I can see on my bookshelves the copies of "Great Western Wagons Appendix" and "Great western Wagons Plan Book" that I bought as a teenager in the seventies. The Wagons Appendix was £3.90 in 1976 (5p less than a copy of MRJ now...) - that was all my birthday money on my 13th birthday, but it's still a work of regular reference. I suspect in another 37 years (if I'm still here!) then £55 is going to seem like a complete bargain.

 

That's how I've justified it to myself, anyway :no:

 

Best Regards,

 

ZG.

Link to post
Share on other sites
bike2steam

bike2steam

Posted
Posted

The second edition of 1998 was one of my best sellers that, and the following year, it went out of print far too quick, and could have sold many more, the decision to reprint has been long overdue. Considering the content, at todays prices £55 is the book bargain of the year.

Link to post
Share on other sites
Kenton

Kenton

Posted
Posted

The question is do I replace my old well thumbed, coffee and fluxed stained, burnt old edition in favour of new crisp clean pages with no additional information. Then when sold out in 6 months (as the publishers will not have understood the demand and print run size) sell it at £350* on ebay.

 

* Just a wild guess based on prices seen for old copies.

Link to post
Share on other sites
Kenton

Kenton

Posted
Posted

 

Plus postage!

and P&P in an envelope woven with gold fibre. I think I'll stick with my well thumbed, blood stained and duck Mr Robertson's gaze at the next show.

Link to post
Share on other sites
buffalo

buffalo

Posted
Posted

Amazon are shipping pre-orders now, got a message today saying mine is on the way. Glad I pre-ordered, was only £45 when I placed my order back in May.

Yes, mine arrived this morning. First impression? It's very heavy :swoon:

 

There's certainly much more in the way of photos, drawings and text than in the 1986 combined edition but, as I've never seen the 1998 edition, it's still not clear to me whether it is a reprint or has been revised in any way.

 

The blurb on the back is a bit odd, though. I can agree with "One of the most authoritative railway reference guides ever produced for modellers", but "Provides encyclopaedic coverage of every single wagon that ever ran on the GWR..." is just plain wrong, even if it does now show a few broad gauge types.

 

Nick

Link to post
Share on other sites
  • RMweb Gold
Mikkel

Mikkel

Posted
  • RMweb Gold
Posted

There's certainly much more in the way of photos, drawings and text than in the 1986 combined edition but, as I've never seen the 1998 edition, it's still not clear to me whether it is a reprint or has been revised in any way.

 

It would be good to know if this is just a reprint. Here is the list of contents from my 1998 edition, if anyone would like to compare.

 

post-738-0-78644300-1380399033_thumb.jpg

Link to post
Share on other sites
hmrspaul

hmrspaul

Posted
Posted

 

 

The blurb on the back is a bit odd, though. I can agree with "One of the most authoritative railway reference guides ever produced for modellers", but "Provides encyclopaedic coverage of every single wagon that ever ran on the GWR..." is just plain wrong, even if it does now show a few broad gauge types.

 

Nick

Agreed, I've spent quite a lot of my recent time going through the GWR Wagon Register for  just one batch of Taff Vale wagons which appear to have been overlooked by everyone. It is illustrated in this book, but described as "old" whereas they were built in 1921. I doubt any of the absorbed Railway company wagons are included, and there were many thousands. None seem to have entered the GWR diagram book - certainly not in the standard one - I wonder if there was a separate diagram book for the absorbed wagons.

 

Please don't ask for more details about what I am on about - I'll submit something for the HMRS journal soonish.

 

Paul

PS I should add, that anyone whom thinks they are ok just having the earlier two volume editions should see this 1998 edition. It is a total revision with the exception of the tables - which are still quite inadequate, But, having looked at just a few of the Register there are more books on GWR wagons that could be written - the wagons I have been looking at all take numbers from wagons built between 1889 and 1899 - but the details of them are all readable - and a few of the TVR wagons that were scrapped before 1948 have a third use of the number for a batch of BR(WR) wagons.

Link to post
Share on other sites
buffalo

buffalo

Posted
Posted

It would be good to know if this is just a reprint. Here is the list of contents from my 1998 edition, if anyone would like to compare.

 

Yes, the contents page is identical, including page numbering. The only difference is that there is no "HMRS Membership" section on p530, just a page of adverts for other Tourret and Ian Allan books.

 

Nick

Link to post
Share on other sites
Kenton

Kenton

Posted
Posted

 

I doubt any of the absorbed Railway company wagons are included, and there were many thousands. None seem to have entered the GWR diagram book - certainly not in the standard one - I wonder if there was a separate diagram book for the absorbed wagons.

 

Isn't this a misunderstanding of the book? The whole design of the book is centred around the diagram book, working as it does through A, B, C through to FF. Each being a collection of assorted wagons (sometimes almost randomly) of a particular function type. I believe the book to be of "GWR" wagons as in designed and built by "GWR" and not necessarily those of the many absorbed companies, unless they were adopted and developed designs.

 

I've not seen anything that really puts this into the category of a revised addition (there seems to be the same number of pages) but nevertheless a straightforward reprint is very welcome to those who have been searching in vain for a s/h copy of this valuable source of information.

Link to post
Share on other sites
DavidR

DavidR

Posted
Posted

If they expand it any more, they'll need to fit wheels - I just weighed my 1998 one and it's almost two-and-a-half kilos!

 

John

I ordered mine from Amazon, hoping it would be delivered before I disappear off to Poland, again, this week. As it was late coming, I've arranged for it to be shipped to my Polish address. Thank goodness I didn't have it come here: it would have pushed my flight luggage allowance over the top!
Link to post
Share on other sites
  • RMweb Gold
57xx

57xx

Posted
  • RMweb Gold
Posted

Mine arrived today, and it is indeed a weighty tome! Much more comprehensive than my previous Combined Edition. I've only been looking at it for 10-15 mins and already found useful information that wasn't in the smaller version. Well worth the money.

Link to post
Share on other sites
Penrhos1920

Penrhos1920

Posted
Posted

Agreed, I've spent quite a lot of my recent time going through the GWR Wagon Register for  just one batch of Taff Vale wagons which appear to have been overlooked by everyone. It is illustrated in this book, but described as "old" whereas they were built in 1921. I doubt any of the absorbed Railway company wagons are included, and there were many thousands. None seem to have entered the GWR diagram book - certainly not in the standard one - I wonder if there was a separate diagram book for the absorbed wagons.

 

Please don't ask for more details about what I am on about - I'll submit something for the HMRS journal soonish.

 

Paul

 

 

Paul,

 

There was not a separate diagram book for the absorbed companies.  A few absorbed wagon designs did make it into the GWR diagram book eg 5 ex Rhymney roll wagons were given B4, B5 design were ex Cambrian, B6 & B7 were also ex Rhymney.  It appears that only 'special' wagons were given diagrams.

 

The Welsh Railway Research Circle is slowly correcting the omissions and have so far published a book that includes details of Rhymney wagons that were absorbed (Welsh Railway Records Volume 1 - Rhymney Railway Drawings) with future books including information about Barry, Taff Vale and Cambrian wagons.  The problem is who wants to buy a book about lots of the smaller absorbed companies such as the Alexandra (Newport & South Wales) Docks and Railway?

 

Richard

Link to post
Share on other sites
hmrspaul

hmrspaul

Posted
Posted

Paul,

 

There was not a separate diagram book for the absorbed companies.  A few absorbed wagon designs did make it into the GWR diagram book eg 5 ex Rhymney roll wagons were given B4, B5 design were ex Cambrian, B6 & B7 were also ex Rhymney.  It appears that only 'special' wagons were given diagrams.

 

The Welsh Railway Research Circle is slowly correcting the omissions and have so far published a book that includes details of Rhymney wagons that were absorbed (Welsh Railway Records Volume 1 - Rhymney Railway Drawings) with future books including information about Barry, Taff Vale and Cambrian wagons.  The problem is who wants to buy a book about lots of the smaller absorbed companies such as the Alexandra (Newport & South Wales) Docks and Railway?

 

Richard

Dear Richard

 

Thank you. The conflats from TVR wagons I am interested in were GWR Special wagons. A diagram didn't make it into the Special Wagon diagram book - although their GWR numbers did, making it clear they are non VB.

 

I have received a TVR diagram which shows about 7 versions of their dropsided wagons on one drawing - so not exactly detailed! I didn't get anywhere with a request to the Welsh Railway Research Circle.

 

Although a book about wagons of a small absorbed company may not sell well these days there is no need to worry about print runs as it is possible to put a book onto an electronic book production company such as Blurb and then individuals can have them printed and purchase for themselves one by one.

 

By the way I have had a letter about the TVR wagon published in Railway Bylines (2013) vol 18 (11) p 549-550. This is the one on sale at the moment.

 

 

Paul

Link to post
Share on other sites
  • 3 weeks later...
chrisf

chrisf

Posted
Posted

For a book that might purport to be comprehensive I would have expected rather more on wagon numbering.  The treatment of this aspect is at best uneven and at worst sparse.  Fortunately I think the necessary information is in another book in my collection.  Hope so ...

 

Chris

Link to post
Share on other sites
  • 1 month later...

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

Go to topic listing
×
×
  • Create New...