Airfix Brake Van

Airfix imagination ? Dont think LMS brake vans had any yellow on them. If they had any special features or functions then had extra text rather than markings.

Cheers, Simon

ISTR seeing yellow ends in recent times on brake vans used on engineering trains (welded rail etc), but can't find any pictures to support this. The only links I've come across point to fotopic :-(

Are there any markings on the model ?

Nick

How about this one?

Regards Jeff

Yes but thats not an LMS one nor in LMS livery.

CHeers, Simon

The OP said it was an "ex LMS" one. So it wouldn't be in LMS livery. It's entirely plausible that an ex-LMS brake van ended up with yellow ends in its later days under BR, like the non-(ex)-LMS one in the photo.

Mark

Nick - no special markings, just usual brake van lettering on the sides and 'Airfix Products 1978' underneath.

Roger.

Jeff - very similar but the yellow ends are 'all over' as are the side lookouts.

Roger.

Unfotunately you are going for the simple interpretation. He said ex-LMS in bauxite livery, ex-LMS being 1 second after midnight on nationalisation day. The new company didnt change liveries for a while but did do some overpainting especially of grouping letters, hence a bauxite van with extra markings is quite a reasonable possibility. Add to that Airfix did some imaginary variations on their stock (see Pat Hammonds book) - but couldnt remember if that included brake vans. Alternately the OP may have an owner repainted version - that being a strong possibility - or the wrong model in the box !

Cheers, Simon

I don't know really then. Even assuming it's an old moulding re-used, I'm not sure that many or any LMS brake vans survived into yellow end times anyway. Can you try the LMS Society, I'm sure they must be online ?

Nick

Interestingly if you do a google search on images there are some with yellow ends/markings from collieries. Makes me wonder about this being owner modified. Does it still have the original number ?

Cheers, Simon

There are indeed, though lacking the yellow duckets. The mystery deepens, but there are some good pics here with suitable liveries to mystify people with (NCB in blue with wasp striped ends anyone ?)

I'm assuming it's the one on this page:

Neil.

However, BR continued to use bauxite, so the mere fact that it is an ex-LMS van in bauxite give few clues at the when the yellow ends might have been applied.

Jeff