magmouse

Mike, even by your high standards this is superb. Though the body is all plastic, somehow the planks looks like painted wood and the washer plates look like metal. Wonderful stuff. Nick.

My immediate thought - think 'cockpit', with the operator seated half way between the beams, head immediately below the roof apex, facing the window. The layout wraps around, with the main scenic space between the beams, below the window, making use of all that lovely light. Track layout with station/harbour/yard/industry centred, fed by either dumbbells either end or a loop of track round the outside of the space. Could have a fiddle yard behind the operator, who sits on a swivel chair. Could be quite spacious for 4mm scale, but who needs that? Tight radii for 7mm scale but would suit an industrial scene, which would suit you. Nick.

And happy birthday from me too! I assume it’s tomorrow for you by now, though. Nick

Look on it as re-enacting the broad to standard gauge conversions carried out by the GWR in the early 1890s…. Nick.

Wow - I’ve looked at that photo several times, and never noticed the plate on the brake van. My focus has always been on the wagons beyond, and their sheets. I suspect the plate is for the home depot name, though it is interesting that it is on the right hand of the two centre panels, unlike the example @Miss Prism posted above (but the same side as the painted Crewe label in the photo in my first post). The best bet is to have a long depot name that has to split across both panels, as in @Compound2632’s model! Nick.

According to Slinn, Great Western Way, 2nd edition 2009, p.123 on, the chronology goes like this: 1873 onwards - guards allocated their own vans, and the guard’s name is painted on the side. By the end of the 1880s, guard’s name omitted, and depot name painted on, in italics. From c.1894, with the introduction of cast plates on merchandise wagons, similar plates were sometimes used to show the home depot. By 1896 the body colour had been changed to grey, including handrails. By 1900 the depot is shown in block letters, with 5” initials and 4.5” remaining letters. From January 1903, vans allocated to guards had their name painted on, with other vans marked “spare” (though this is not confirmed photographically). Allocating vans to guards ceased around 1912. Nick.

Thanks, Stephen. Interesting and helpful to hear that you have come to the same conclusion regarding the arrangement of the various elements. Slinn dates the change from G.W.R on the left to it being on the right to around 1893, so yours would be rather a straggler to have this arrangement still in 1902. In any case, Slinn dates to start of grey livery for brake vans as "by 1896", so LH G.W.R lettering would be with red livery. Slinn references the (re)introduction of painting the guard's name on vans as January 1903, citing a GWR circular. So you are only out by months - sorry if that means the ingeniously named F Goodish is, like Bunbury, quite exploded. Nick.

Thanks, Russ - if nothing else comes to light, I think I will follow the logic you have suggested. Regarding the tare weight, perhaps this was on a cast plate, as with general merchandise wagons that had cast plates, so they didn't feel the need to paint it on as well? Nick.

I am currently building a GWR Toad (brake van) in 7mm scale, from the Peco kit. According to Great Western Way (2nd edition, 2009), by 1900 the home depot of the van was shown in block letters, with 5” initials and 4.5” for the remaining letters (previously it had been shown it italic letters). From January 1903, vans allocated to guards had their name painted on, with other vans marked “spare” (though this has not been confirmed photographically). Allocating vans to guards ceased around 1912. For my 1908 period, I therefore need both the home depot in block capitals, and the guard's name. I want to have the pre 1904 small "G.W.R", not the post 1904 large 25" GW. However, having looked in the usual sources, I can't find a photo showing how the various lettering elements were arranged on the van side. There are plenty of photos later, with 16" GW (1921 onwards), and a couple earlier, with just the guard's name in italics, but none in my time period. The closest I have is this: [ image from http://www.gwr.org.uk/nobrakes.html - the forum software won't allow embedded images from non-https sites, so I have had to add the image to my post. If there are objections, I will remove it. ] It's possible that the arrangement of guard's and depot name was the same pre-1904, but it would be good to confirm if this, and whether the guard's name changed to small block capitals (as shown here) or remained as italics for the period I want. Does anyone have any photos showing what I am looking for, or any other sources of information? Thanks - Nick.

Well, indeed - but you probably helped with a clear and detailed brief. Being a “good client” is more important than people sometimes realise. This looks really great - and an excellent example of minimum space 7mm scale, with lots of play potential. Resistance is futile… Nick.

My only thought is that it centres the horse compartment in the wheelbase, which should give the horses the smoothest ride. People and dogs are indeed lower classes, with the rougher ride at the extremities of the vehicle. Nick.

...but blows a hole in my justification for a MR wagon on the Dorset coast. Unless the Bristol store was connected to the MR there, not the GWR. Or the beer came from one of the smaller brewers in Burton, that didn't have regional stores and sent the casks direct to the destination. Nick.

Is that what the Americans call a duplex? Nick.

A superb photo indeed. I am struck by how the light varies in different parts of the station - the brighter areas at the far side, including the wall with all the advertisements, help to draw the eye into the scene. It will be worth paying attention to this as part of your very theatrical presentation. Nick.

Is there a reference for this? In an article in the Journal of the Institute of Brewing 1906, pp. 691-692, the author says different types of wood for the barrels are used for different types of beer, and can be distinguished by colour coding, red for porter and white for ale. This reads more as a proposed practice than a statement of what is actually happening, though. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/j.2050-0416.1906.tb06434.x Did railway companies offer preferential rates to encourage the use of wagons being returned? If our publican was placing a regular order, it would seem possible to offer a 'package' deal for delivery of full casks and return of empties, provided the same wagon was used. Nick

And who would dare model this prototype practice? And the fourth one, mostly concealed behind the ship. An interesting bit of additional evidence for the earlier discussions, as you note. Given that the lettering generally fitted into the vertical spacing defined by the planks, I think you are right about 7 planks - the layout of the lettering would fit 7 planks well. I also agree regarding end doors - the middle two lines of lettering look closer to the left hand end than to the right hand end, suggesting corner plates on the right, but not the left. Nick.

The false perspective works well in these photos, I think. The real test though is how it looks from the other end of the letter-box viewing aperture - so when looking at the left hand screen from the right hand end. From that view, you will be looking close to square on, so if the false perspective is going to look strange, it will be from there. Not sure what to say about the clock - again it’s fine in the photos you’ve posted. But might be a giveaway when seen from the other end. Nick.

These look really terrific - especially with the interiors. With the varied mix of coaching stock you are building up, you are going to be able to put on quite a show! Nick.

It's still morning here in London, but the cheering effect is still powerful! Thanks for posting - Nick.

I need to expand my library (again!) - at least, I will do when I get to doing road vehicles for Netherport. I wonder how far afield the GWR pantechnicons travelled by rail, if at all? Thanks for the additional info - Nick.

The added benefit of using brass tube for the tumbler shaft is that comes with the kit - originally intended for the buffer shanks, with drawing pins for the heads. Nick.

Don’t do that - you’ll scare the horses.

They bear a passing resemblance to the trumpet ventilators on early GWR horse boxes: (excerpt from plate 106 in Jim Russell's GW Miscellany, volume 1). Nick.

Thanks for the additional info, Mikkel - I'd forgotten about the drawings in Janet Russell's book. I wonder if the 1920 picture of 583 actually shows a replacement vehicle, given the same number (as with wagons). The shape and construction of the 'china box' (the lowest part of the body, between the wheels) is quite different. If they are the same, the rebuild would have been substantial, with few original parts in the new version (also seen with wagons and locos, of course). Nick.

Thanks, Mikkel, for the reminder about your technique - which was a key influence as I developed my own method. Nick.