Procor PVA curtain-sided vans in service

[GraemeR BR (WR)]

I am expanding my 1980s/early 90s freight rolling stock, and have bought some Hornby PVA vans in blue Procor livery. I understand there were 20 vans created and made available for spot-hire between 1982-84: thank you to Paul Bartlett for his great website and photos of the vans themselves (superb for appropriate weathering.) Does anyone have any info/photos of the PVA's in operation, perhaps in a rake with other wagons or being loaded/unloaded? How many PVA's were typically in a rake together? Am I correct in thinking that they were used by Campbell's soup?

Thanks for any help you can give me with this.

[Rivercider]

I expect I can find more photos, but a quick look in

Freight Only Vol.2 Southern & Central England, (Rhodes & Shannon, Silverlink Publishing)

there is a shot of 08539 berthing 4 of them in Campbells Factory at South Lynn 7/9/1987,

 

cheers

[Guest jim s-w]

I guess you have noticed that the Hornby PVA is nothing like the real thing? Im sure there was an article on lengthening them and scratchbuilding new underframes somewhere. Might have been DEMU update.

 

Hth

 

Jim

[Guest]

Rail freight today Scotland has a few shots of the at mossend yard if that's any good

Cheers

Roomey

[Guest]

I guess you have noticed that the Hornby PVA is nothing like the real thing? Im sure there was an article on lengthening them and scratchbuilding new underframes somewhere. Might have been DEMU update.

 

Hth

 

Jim

 

It was in a railway modeller in the 90's

Cheers

Roomey

[Fat Controller]

It was in a railway modeller in the 90's

Cheers

Roomey

The one wot I wrote was in Update about ten years ago; I wasn't aware of one in Modeller.

These wagons were used for other traffic apart from soup; possibly fertilizer? Some time ago, the MoD purchased the remains of both fleets, upgrading them with new sheets, and repainting in dark green and yellow- for a while they could be seen in main-line service, but I believe they're now confined to places like Kineton, Bicester and Marchwood.

[hmrspaul]

I am expanding my 1980s/early 90s freight rolling stock, and have bought some Hornby PVA vans in blue Procor livery. I understand there were 20 vans created and made available for spot-hire between 1982-84: thank you to Paul Bartlett for his great website and photos of the vans themselves (superb for appropriate weathering.) Does anyone have any info/photos of the PVA's in operation, perhaps in a rake with other wagons or being loaded/unloaded? How many PVA's were typically in a rake together? Am I correct in thinking that they were used by Campbell's soup?

Thanks for any help you can give me with this.

 

As here

Usually seen in short rakes - the photos and dates show several at some locations.

One use noted on a couple of photos is Lieth to Heathfield.

 

Paul Bartlett

[GraemeR BR (WR)]

Many thanks to you all for those very prompt and helpful responses. From the info/photos I've seen/heard about, a short rake of 3 or 4 seems typical, or with 1 or 2 mixed in with more widely seen Railfreight VDAs or OAAs. Who said mixed freight died at the end of the 1960s?! I'll study my set of Railfreight Today DVDs for any other shots of them, and any other relatively short rakes of freight traffic. I have a long-ish rake of MGR hoppers and TTA/TEA tankers, but in oo gauge in the 1980s I keep looking for alternative workings and wagons/vans.

[cobbler]

I remember seeing them carrying bagged fertiliser at Bletchley, working from Ince Elton to Ackerman Street on the Saturday morning tripper

 

Richard

[eastwestdivide]

They used to do the rounds on open days (along with that LPG training tanker), so I'd assume they only got intermittent use, being touted round with other experimental things. Here at Wolverton in 1985, in the background of an unusual container flat:

 

but here's a couple, separated by a VDA, in a service down through Strood in 1985. No idea of the traffic, sorry.

[Fat Controller]

Bagged cement from one of the Medway works, perhaps? Otherwise, the only traffic I can think of might be from Metal Box at Cuxton.

The odd container wagon is an early attempt on the Lowliner theme, which saw some service between central Scotland and Aberdeen prior to gauge-enhancement allowing 8'6" boxes to be carried on normal Freightliner flats. There was another set built with two-axle bogies.

[eastwestdivide]

Bagged cement from one of the Medway works, perhaps? Otherwise, the only traffic I can think of might be from Metal Box at Cuxton.

The odd container wagon is an early attempt on the Lowliner theme, which saw some service between central Scotland and Aberdeen prior to gauge-enhancement allowing 8'6" boxes to be carried on normal Freightliner flats. There was another set built with two-axle bogies.

Not Metal Box as the rail traffic from Cuxton had long ceased by 1985. Also, the train is going round the corner towards Rochester, so maybe not cement either, especially as they're fairly clean. I think by then the only bagged cement was from Swanscombe, and that may have even have finished by then. Maybe paper products at Sittingbourne? Maybe going to Rochester yard with something? Maybe just one of those trial flows that never came to anything?