After all these years I've only just noticed the coffin being carried towards the church. Maybe I'm weird but I do like seeing a good funeral which is why I have 2 so far on my layout 

As for the trains, well, those kettles all look the same to me 

Quote from: Newportnobby on February 22, 2026, 10:29:34 PMA very old Kraftwerk track from the 1970s Vertigo sampler album 'Suck it and see'

This is very suitable for watching trains running around the layout at near prototypical speeds ... a video soundtrack ... with occasional sidetrack cameos on industrial scenic details ... I must get my record deck fixed ... I note that there are several examples of suck it and see double vinyls on eBay at the moment!

An evening of grimy steam locos last night with factory weathered B1, J39, Fairburn and J50:-

Scruffy B1 61231 on passenger duties on Heatherley by Mick Hollyoake, on Flickr

J39 64841 with box vans on Heatherley by Mick Hollyoake, on Flickr

Grimy Fairburn tank 42267 with 2 coach train on Heatherley by Mick Hollyoake, on Flickr

Dirty J50 with box vans on Heatherley by Mick Hollyoake, on Flickr

I'm no fan, sorry folks!

Quote from: martyn on February 24, 2026, 08:25:33 PMI havent any relevent photos to say whether the ex LMS Stanier type brake vans as modelled by Farish worked on the WR or not, but they were seen on the ex GE section lines in the 60s.

I'd be more surprised if the LMS design of van didn't appear in the south west - you'll find a photo of one at Plymouth Friary in 1981 on Paul Bartlett's site for example. The chances of them not getting there in the 1960s must be zero (don't forget Bristol was served by the LMS). Post nationalisation there'd be little incentive to swap brake vans on through freight at the regional boundaries.

As with the GWR Toad, the LMS vans were also popular for use as staff riding vans - often with the end verandahs filled in.

Note that very few brake vans had automatic train brakes fitted. Most were either unbraked (grey) or were through piped (bauxite). Air-piped ones often had yellow panels on the sides and ends.

Their role was to keep the loose three link couplings tight - something that the guard had to work as as the train travelled up and down hill. Wagons fitted with automatic train brakes (air or vacuum) would also have instanter or screw link couplings - meaning less snatch as the loco took up the weight of the train.


@port perran get yourself a nice mix of BR standard, LMS, LNER, SR and GWR vans. You can always claim a standard van has suffered from a hot axle box and needed replacing with a GWR toad!

Quote from: Bob G on February 25, 2026, 01:28:07 PM

QuoteThe 25 are part of the 340 wagons I have

Phew. I thought for a minute you had more than me

Not possible  

QuoteThe 25 are part of the 340 wagons I have

Phew. I thought for a minute you had more than me

Quote from: chrism on February 25, 2026, 11:56:17 AM

Quote from: Newportnobby on February 25, 2026, 11:50:22 AMJust checked and I have 25 brake vans including:-
7 x BR 20T standards
4 x Sharks
2 x Queen Marys
3 x SECR (1 of which is the Dance Hall version)
4 x Toads

Jeepers - do you have space for any non-brake freight stock, or do you just run brake van rides?

The 25 are part of the 340 wagons I have

Quote from: chrism on February 25, 2026, 11:56:17 AM

Quote from: Newportnobby on February 25, 2026, 11:50:22 AMJust checked and I have 25 brake vans including:-
7 x BR 20T standards
4 x Sharks
2 x Queen Marys
3 x SECR (1 of which is the Dance Hall version)
4 x Toads

Jeepers - do you have space for any non-brake freight stock, or do you just run brake van rides?

I had forgotten that I have two EFE Sharks as well as all the others!

Quote from: Newportnobby on February 25, 2026, 11:50:22 AMJust checked and I have 25 brake vans including:-
7 x BR 20T standards
4 x Sharks
2 x Queen Marys
3 x SECR (1 of which is the Dance Hall version)
4 x Toads

Jeepers - do you have space for any non-brake freight stock, or do you just run brake van rides?