Prototype
This is an accurate model of a standard British Railways van design for carrying general merchandise on pallets. Built in 1952-61 to diagram 1/211, these vans were designed with wide doors to accommodate the pallets. The doors were offset to each end and the floors were strengthened to accommodate loading by fork lift trucks. Problems with the suspension at higher speeds led to their withdrawal from traffic in the mid-1960s, although some survived in internal use. A few also lasted into the early 1970s under private ownership by The Distillers Coy., carrying Johnie Walker whisky a short distance between two plants at Kilmarnock.
Model Details
Scale: 4mm:1ft (1:76)
Finish: Unweathered
Source: Built from Parkside Dundas kit, with added weight (Coopercraft), turned steel buffer heads (Gibson) and functional instanter couplings. The kit represents vans constructed in the 1952-7 period, and is finished in early bauxite livery and using Fox Transfers. The model is shown with S4 wheels.