[birkettm]

Does anyone have a picture of a typical 30's freight train in the north east? Im looking to add a suitable freight train to my flying scotsman layout but i dont have any reference as what to what rolling stock i would be looking for.....

Seems to me theres lots of ready to run early BR stuff but not much from before then.

ta!

 

[billericaybill]

As generalisation not too many vans, plenty of 3,5 planked wagons for general freight, some of these with tarpaulins. Plenty of LMS and LNER wagons, not too many SR ! I believe most coal and mineral would be carried in dedicated trains except for local coal deliveries on branches. Some private owner wagons depending on the industries that your line serves. But it all depends on the line modelled. It helps to have story about the line real or invented to decide the appropriate freight train composition. Have fun.
Andrew

 

[John Webb]

The North-East was noted particularly for coal, iron ore, steel and other metal products, shipbuilding, large guns and other heavy engineering works (including railway engines and rolling stock and parts thereof). Plus brick, timber and tiles or slates for new buildings, and of course food, including milk, coming into the large cities and towns. Also newspaper, parcel and mail trains on the major routes.

So there's a fair lot there that can be modelled in open wagons, large bogie 'well wagons' for the odd propeller or gun etc, and in van traffic.

Hope that gives you some ideas.

Regards,
John Webb

 

[34C]

The North East is a special case. Elsewhere in the UK in the 1930's PO wagons would dominate coal traffic. However the North Eastern Railway, uniquely among pre-grouping companies, performed the majority of coal movement on its' territory in hopper wagons of its' own design, ultimately of double the capacity of the then typical 10T standard side door wagon. These wooden hoppers were very distinctive; tall, with slightly sloping sides. It made a large investment in coal drops at its' stations (station masters were also coal merchants) and in staithes at harbours to facilitate the large export trade. This was perpetuated on the LNER in the 1930's, the NER 20T wooden hopper being succeeded by a 20T all-steel hopper design (uprated to 21T inWWII and subsequently the vehicle on which BR developed the coal concentration traffic and MGR concept).

 

[34C]

I completely forgot to mention 'the book'. Peter Tatlow has followed his excellent 'LNER Wagons' (OPC) of some thirty odd years ago, with more detailed volumes, of which volume 2, NER area, has recently appeared. Not cheap, but then things that are extremely good rarely are.

 

[birkettm]

Sorry for the lateness of this reply....

Thanks for the prompt and informative replies. I dont know if you can get ready to run NER 20T Hoppers but i fancy having a go at building them myself. Anyone know who does a "good" kit off the top of their head? Dapol?

Guess im going to need some 7 and 5 plank wagon kits, some 14 and 35 ton wagon kits and some open wagon kits. Where to get? Ive looked around on web and im pretty stumped and i new to the whole building your own thing....

Also i plan on getting transfers from http://www.robbiesrollingstock.co.uk/ anyone used them? Are the good?

Whats a "well wagon"?

sorry for the newbie questions!

Ta!

 

[7113]

QUOTE (birkettm @ 26 Nov 2008, 12:55) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>Whats a "well wagon"?

Very simply it's a wagon with a dropped deck (well) between the headstocks, the majority were bogie vehicles although some were four wheelers.

Hope this helps

Regards

 

[John Webb]

Hornby used to do a 'Well wagon' but not currently. The nearest is a BR 'Lomac' which is a shorter four-wheeled wagon - Hornby part number R6399.

However, Bachmann are currently selling two versions - 33-900D in GWR grey and 33-901D in BR grey - obviously some of the small lettering differs which is almost the only way of distinguishing between the two. I know the GWR was rather far away from from the area you propose modelling but most railways in the 1930s ran very similar wagons. So you could 'weather' it to disguise the labels......

Try www.hornby.com and www.bachmann.co.uk to look at the manufacturers' sites.

Older Hornby and Triang well-wagons can often be bought second-hand at exhibitions, toy fairs and the like - all the model railway magazines publish details of these; some more events than others!

Regards,
John Webb

 

[glyn00]

Great site for all freight operations includes drawings of specific wagons etc.
Hope you find it as informative and useful as I have
http://myweb.tiscali.co.uk/gansg/index.htm

 

[Bullhead]

Slaters do a very good plastic 4mm NER wooden-sided hopper wagon kit which, if I remember correctly, comes with transfers to suit the NER, LNER or BR (NER) periods. These are now marketed by C&L Finescale, and look like this:

The Hornby and Dapol 21T steel-sided hopper wagons are OK if you don't look too closely, and if you're in the mood to jazz them up a bit Dave Bradwell (see Bradwell Scalefour) produces excellent etched brass detailing etches, each one of which will do four wagons. Thirty or so, heavily weathered, behind a J27 or a Q6 (or even a class 37) will say "North East England" just as effectively as a bottle of Dog and another humiliating afternoon at St.James' Park.

 

[birkettm]

Good link! Thanks for that.

Think i will definately be getting some of those kits. Is it just me or can you not get any NER / Ex NER stuff ready to run? I wasnt planning on building locos yet!

 

[34C]

The NER is a sadly neglected railway in RTR form. In OO RTR there is just one loco, the J72 0-6-0T. There is also a RTR model of the LNER J39 which is representative of Darlington (NER) practise, a development of the heavy NER 0-6-0's (classed as J26 and J27) to the LNER group standard. But that's all, and this despite examples of the J27 class surviving until 1967 to be the last working standard gauge pre-grouping locos operating on BR; and still on the short haul colliery work for which they were designed.

 

[birkettm]

So is it worth whinging to hornby about this situation then?

 

[34C]

Participating in the next round of 'most wanted' models is the best bet. There's a fairly consistent lobby for the NER J27 and Q6 0-8-0. The form book suggests Bachmann are a better bet, their range majors on medium sized workaday engines, found North of London.

 

[birkettm]

OK. I have ordered some of the Slaters kits for the NER 20T hopper. It can be my introduction into modelling it rather than running a trainset.

Think ill wait over the J27 or Q6 though.

Its been useful. Thanks!