NER Perishables Van, back dated from a Connoisseur kit for the LNER version

Despite building it at the same time I completely forgot to post this, following on from the Road van my second victim is a conversion of a Connoisseur LNER Perishables van from one of these – photo courtesy of Jim McGeown’s website

http://www.jimmcgeown.com/Wagon Kit Pages/Wagon images/LNER Perishable Van Photo.jpg

To a North Eastern Railway version with cupboard type doors instead of the sliding door on the LNER version. The cupboard doors and their locking mechanism will need to be scratch built. LNER Wagons Volume Two by Peter Tatlow has photos and a drawing which will prove very helpful during this conversion.

We start off by cutting out the parts etched in the door openings


Once they are removed and put to one side for later in the build, the openings need to be trimmed back to the door pillars. I did this with the trusty piercing saw with a no 6 blade.

Once I had my door opening dimensions, I cut a couple of replacement doors and scored the planking on them using an Olfa Cutter (skrawker).






These were soldered in with some strips of scrap etch soldered all the way around to prevent them being dislodged through handling of the finished van.



Once this was done, I started on the hinges. This job was made some much easier by riveting the edge of a piece of 10 thou brass sheet at the appropriate spacing (taken from the drawing) using my GP models rivet press and then cutting the strip from the sheet using my guillotine. I ended up filing a few down to width before I got my eye in despite scribing a cut line…

 

From there it was just a case of keep adding the details to the doors





The ‘barrel’ of the hinges was made by filing a slot in a piece of 2mm x1mm bar using an oval file to give the slope where it meets the strap and then rounding off the other end. The RSU came into its own when soldering them on. I think it’s the first time that I have ever managed to solder on some fine detail without at least one part pinging off and requiring a search to find it or to make a replacement.

 

Next up came the complex but visually attractive NER door locking mechanism.
Made from scrap etch and brass rod. Although I didn't take any photos the mechanism does work.







Then I made up the basic body and detailed the ends. I was a bit clumsy and managed to melt one of the end post castings so I nicked one out of one of my kits and I will either get a spare from Jim when life returns to normal or make one from brass bar when I get to building it.

 

Having had the discussion, the chap that I built it for elected to stick with the LNER axleboxes supplied by Jim. His view was that if they bug him enough he will change them later.

 

Once the doors were finished the rest of it went together pretty much as Jim intended. With the addition of LG vacuum, steam heat and couplings.













I added a floor from the mount board that the kit comes attached to and I made the roof removable so that the back of the louvres could be blanked off should it be required.

 

Finally, here it is with a coat of paint which is as far as I took it.

 

Last but not least here is a photo of the perishables van lettered in NER livery This photo is not mine but I have permission to share it.

 

Hi Mossy,

Ours is not to reason why as they say.
I have just poured the mould for the no2 axlebox/spring castings, so fingers crossed I will be sharing the results of casting in the next couple of days.

 

Hi Mate,
You may be giving me too much credit, this will only be the second mould that I have done and the first one and it's subsequent casts were done under the supervision of a friend and fellow P1 member from Oz (@Kerry Viney). With my house move intervening I never got around to doing any further casting on my own so this will be a first.

I didn't take photos of the mould creation process but I have just taken some and the mould silicone is translucent so you can see the masters through it and get the idea of how it was done. I will create a separate thread on it though. so that people can find it again should they need to.