This article may be useful to those seeking to improve that slightly dated, 'out of box* commercial model which, as good a product as it is already, is crying out for a bit of a "facelift", so to speak. Those with even a minimal amount of modelling experience will find this an easy task to achieve without the fear of ruining their model. It may even break the ice for newcomers too, taking them towards the next step beyond just opening boxes. It is also well suited to those past experts out there who occasionally need some light relief from those long drawn out jobs. Whatever your situation, this simple project does not require you to devote weeks on end to it; this is an evening's quickie.
The model to be afforded an evening or two's pampering is none other than the Lima 20 ton, standard British Railways brake van which was produced over two decades ago to 1:87 scale. The model itself is dimensionally accurate and represents vans built to diagram 11507 and constructed at Darlington Works during 1959. Running numbers for these 'vacuum piped' vans are B954521 to B954997, no. 521 being Lima's choice of number for their model. London Transport acquired six new brake vans in 1962. These were built to the same diagram as BR's batch and are numbered B580 to B585. Other versions of this brake van could perhaps be 'kitbashed' to represent the prenationalisation period vans. For this article, however, we will look only at the British Railways' example during its revenue service.
The first thing to do in preparation for the model's 'change of life' is to partly dismantle it so that we can work on the appropriate sections more easily. This is described below.
* Place the model upside down and remove its wheels by gently spreading apart the 'W' frames, allowing the axles to be released. Then pull out the ring type couplers from the chassis if another type is to be fitted. Carefully press down the four body holding tabs inwards and away from the van's chassis. The van's body should then release. Stow away the metal weight for when it is needed later.
* The chassis has a moulding register line on the buffer beam. To remove this, just scrape it carefully from side to side with a sharp craft knife or scalpel until it is no longer visible. If your model has a moulding dimple on the beam then this can be filled with a little modelling putty.
* Laying the chassis flat on its back (top side down), cut away the coupler mount block. It is best to do this a little at a time, again using a sharp craft knife. Always cut in a direction away from yourself. Be particularly careful not to knock off the buffers.
You will have noticed that the Lima model lacks the top footboard on each side. For their BR van model Lima have re-used the same chassis as on their GWR 'Toad' brake van, which was also produced to this scale. This sharing arrangement between two van types was for economic reasons and therefore the chassis retains the small step placed specifically for the guard's entry to his 'Toad' brake van. Funny name to call their guards! I chose to carefully cut away as much of this small step from my model as was possible.
* To rectify the missing top footboards, cut two pieces of styrene strip measuring 83.5mm x 2.5mm. Fix the strip to the bottom and outer edge of the solebar using your favourite glue. I recommend using Microscale's 'Microweld' as it allows more working time to position things, and it is non-toxic so no headaches!
With some basic work on the chassis now done, and awaiting its wheels and new couplers (more of this later), it is now time to work on the body to give it some detail to finish it off just nicely.
* Gently remove the roof section. It is a separate moulding and needs some minor dressing up too.
* Remove the two roof mounted torpedo type vents by cutting off and finishing smooth with a small, flat file. These are not really pronounced enough in my opinion, so I have chosen to replace these on my vans using some plastic, HO scale torpedo vents. I obtained mine from L & C kits here in Australia. There are some nice fine ones cast from whitemetal too which are available from Lloyds Model Railways, again in Australia. With either, it's just a matter of marking out from where the previous ones were, drilling out, and fixing on the new vents.
* Whilst still on the roof, a small handhold just in front of the chimney stack should be fitted. This is located on the 'longer' roof side of the chimney. A piece of 10thou brass wire is bent to a right angled U shape and placed into two holes 3.75mm apart. The handhold is positioned at 90 degrees from the van's side and 2mm clear of the chimney stack. As clear as mud, right?
* The two end walls of the van's body are separate pieces. Remove these from their slots.
* To glaze the van's end windows, place the ends detail-side down. Then measure and cut two sheets of clear styrene to suit and fix in place. Leave a margin on the side edges of the end sections so they can still slot into the rebates, wherein the ends locate the body sides. Now is a good time to paint the interior a creamy colour. I did not see much point in furnishing the inside of the van but the inside wall colour will be seen if the light is just at the right angle. The duckets on my van have been left as is and not glazed, though it would have looked slightly better had I done so. Maybe next time!
* The bodyside handrails are not too hard to live with, though I would have preferred separate wire ones instead of the moulded ones which it sports. Removing and replacing the eight vertical handholds at either side of the doorways is a practical proposition. The two horizontal handholds on the van's sides are a different kettle of fish in that the latter's removal would result in a lot of work having to be done to restore the vertical planking afterwards. I therefore decided to leave these well alone.
Before gluing the roof onto the body it is now a good idea to consider how you wish your model to look in terms of its 'in service' condition. The inside of the verandah walls and floor should reflect the condition of the exterior of the van. For instance, if the van is to be portrayed in a grubby condition, then the verandah floor and its walls should reflect grime and dust too. Overall balance is the key to better looking models.
After the roof has been refitted the body can now be fixed back onto its chassis; do remember to place that ballast weight back where it belongs as you will most likely have to glue down the body onto the chassis because you have broken off those lugs. You really did, didn't you! (Well I did!) When this has been done there are four horizontally placed handrails that need to be fitted onto the end platforms of the van. Please see the drawing for details.
The Lima wheels supplied with the brake van have been replaced with a much finer standard looking wheel. These will make the model look like it is sitting on top of the rails rather than looking like the rail is being sucked up into the wheel! I have chosen the Steam Era Models (SEM) 10.5mm Disc wheels on 25mm axles. The wheels are to RP25 profile, with a tyre tread width to code no.88 (RP25/88). The SEM wheels are stainless steel tyred and track beautifully. They will also negotiate Peco finescale points if this is your choice of turnout. Next is to fit the couplers.
As I needed an easy-to-fit, unobtrusive and reliable autocoupler for shunting my trains I decided that the Steam Era Models (SEM) 'Autocoupler' would certainly fit the bill. The SEMs work on the same system that Kadee (KD) is famous for; its mounting is the same as for KD #5. They provide delayed, magnetic uncoupling and automatic coupling. Unlike the KD, the SEM coupler does not include a jaw closing coil spring mounted on its side which can look a bit invasive on small models. The SEM "Autocoupler" is slightly smaller than KD's, therefore it is better suited to provide that aesthetic balance to the diminutive British outline stock in HO scale. There is no doubt about the Kadee product being as reliable as a Yeoman fiftyniner and it will go on performing for a lifetime. Both the SEM and KD product are compatible as well. When fitting the couplers I packed them down using 40thou styrene sheet to get the correct operational height from rail level.
With all the 'mod cons' now in place, the roof and end platforms are painted flat dark grey (Humbrol no. 67). All handrails are picked out in flat white whilst the chassis and new footboards are finished in a flat black/grey mix. Make the vacuum hoses from 30thou wire bent to shape and over wound with fine fuse wire, soldered and painted.
So there you have it; a much more pleasing-to-the-eye BR brake van in HO scale in which even a humble toad would happily ride! Happy modelling to you all.
Long-standing readers of Satellite 1:87 may have seen the article about improving the Lima BR brake van (reproduced above). Keith Trueman described how he had carried out much-needed improvements to this useful vehicle. I don't intend to duplicate what Keith wrote; however, I've a few extra suggestions to make about further improvements, along with some prototype information which may be useful to some of our number.
I'd been studying prototype photos for some time and had already noticed a few areas that Keith didn't cover. Then I purchased "British Railways Brakevans & Ballast Ploughs" by Eric Gent. The wealth of information contained therein answered many questions for me and supplied the impetus to write this article.
The BR Standard brakevan, on which the Lima model is based, was itself based on an earlier LNER design. Introduced in 1950, the BR van survived in use until the early 90s, the last ones finding work on Railfreight and various departmental duties.
Several lots of vans were built between 1950 and 1962 at Derby, Darlington and Ashford works and as one would expect there were detail differences between lots as the years passed. The individual vans were modified during their working lives. For example, some unfitted vans gained vacuum brakes, some fitted vans became unfitted, while others later gained air brakes.
Over the years some vans were completely re-bodied; others were subject to piecemeal panel replacements which did not always match the original design. Some readers may have been puzzled, as I was, by the differences in the panels over the guard's lookout duckets. Some appear as plain plywood, others are planked. I originally thought that these variations could be explained by differing construction practices carried out by the various works, but this is not so. When new, each lot would have been built the same and the variations are probably due to later repair work. I must thank Mr Eric Gent for answering my query on this point. Incidentally, the Lima model has the plain ply panels. It all goes to show that we need to work from photos of a particular vehicle if we want historical accuracy.
The BR Standard brakevans were numbered from 950000 to 955247, prefixed W. Vans which later went into departmental service gained extra prefixes such a KD, LD, AB, etc. There were also six vans ordered by London Transport in 1961 which were numbered B580 to B585. This is covered very comprehensively in Mr Gent's book. If you really want to know about the prototype you couldn't do better than to get this.
The original colour schemes for these vans was the same as for other goods stock: grey for unfitted and bauxite for fitted, with black running gear (ex-works only of course). The area inside the verandah was painted body colour also. The roofs may have been white or cream when new, but in use they appear to be the usual dirty grey/brown of a typical goods vehicle.
When unfitted vehicles (i.e. those with only a handbrake for the guard) were upgraded to vacuum braked status they were repainted in the bauxite livery. However, in later years when some reverted to unfitted status they were often left in bauxite and not repainted in grey. Towards the end of their lives some of these vans received quite colourful repaints, such as departmental grey & yellow, or olive, and various configurations of grey, red and yellow.
Internally, the vans were originally brown up to the end windows and cream above that, including the ceiling. Later repaints were overall stone.
The model isn't bad at all considering how long ago it was manufactured. There is no mistaking what it is meant to represent and from a distance it looks OK. Close inspection reveals some nice detail in the body, especially the planking and the shape of the guard's lookout duckets. However, there are a few major errors and several more minor details that can be corrected.
As most readers will know, Lima used the chassis moulding from their GWR 'Toad' brake van - note the superfluous steps on the solebars. Although the chassis is incorrect for this model it is still useable with a little work. Lima appear to have slightly 'stretched' the body of the van so it will fit the chassis, but this is not very obvious and overall they got the right 'look'.
Since the model can be split into three main sections I'll look at how each unit can be improved separately. First they'll need to be disassembled; this can be done without breaking any of the locating clips if care is exercised. I've found a couple of small jeweller's screwdrivers useful for gently easing the clips open.
This was covered quite comprehensively in Keith Trueman's article, but here are a few extra comments. I have managed to remove the horizontal handrails without spoiling the planking on the body sides. A very sharp blade, a sharp scraper and patience will leave you with just the small section of planking where the rails were to re-scribe.
What Lima have represented as a handrail mounted inside the verandah is wrong: what should be there is a safety rail to stop the guard from falling out of his moving vehicle. This should be removed and a suitable length of wire attached, either in the 'open' position (hanging down) or 'closed' (across the gap). See any prototype photo.
The windows in the guard's lookouts appear OK when viewed from the side, but from the end you can see a great lump of plastic blocking the guard's fore and aft view. This can be removed quite easily if you have a motor tool fitted with a suitable burr. Slow and steady are the watchwords. I got a much better appearance on mine by this technique, but still had to do a little remedial work with MilIliput on one side where the tool slipped. The windows can be 'glazed' (after painting) with Kristal Kleer or Humbrol Clear Fix.
The verandah ends, where they curve below the roof, need some detail scribing on. This area was formed from two pieces of wood on the prototype and there should be quite a prominent groove dividing this area horizontally.
Since the floor, complete with its concrete weights, is moulded as part of the body we'll have a look at that here. In addition to the removal and replacement of the handrails with something a little more realistic, it is worth making sure that the 'cutouts' between the verandah front and the concrete weights are clear. All the 'out of the box' examples I've seen have had flash in this area, spoiling what should be a sharply defined feature.
Finally, even if your van has miraculously survived with all its lamp irons intact, it's worth replacing them with something a little finer such as brass strip, suitably bent to shape.
Although incorrect, this can be improved quite a lot by replacing the wheels with something nearer scale, and adding the missing full-length footboard as advocated by Keith Trueman.
The redundant GWR footstep can be removed quite neatly by using a homemade scraper as a miniature chisel to remove all of the plastic. An old electrical screwdriver ground to a chisel point serves well for this sort of job.
The end view of the chassis will be improved by adding (from plastic or brass rod) the cross members that linked the brake shoes across the width of the van.
The buffers aren't correct for all versions of this brake van, so you may want to see to this. Originally, the vans were built with the spindle type buffers as portrayed on the Lima model, but from 1957 new vans got Oleo type self-contained buffers, and many older vans were also re-buffered later. Another case for getting Mr Gent's book!
I'm looking into more extensive improvements that can be done to the chassis, because it is wrong in other areas too. The axleboxes and springs aren't really correct, but I reckon you can get away with this since they are pretty much obscured by the footboards. ....
The roof is nicely formed but suffers from having a strange semi-conical chimney, squat ventilators and unprototypical 'eyebrow' rainstrips. It is also moulded in a most unrealistic (for a vehicle in use) cream plastic.
The chimney can be sorted out fairly easily by cutting it off. Before smoothing the area, drill a small hole in the centre of the original chimney location. This will act as a location point for the new one. Having removed all traces of the old chimney, enlarge the hole to take a piece of brass or plastic tube of approximately 3mm diameter. Glue this in place, leaving approximately 3mm projecting from the hole.
The ventilators are of the correct type but should really stand away from the roof, rather than looking as if they've been squashed into it.
All the prototype photos I've seen show straight rainstrips over the verandah entrances, set at an angle. It's an easy matter to scrape away the originals and glue on some new ones from microstrip.
Purists (and those who display their stock at eye level) might consider scribing plank detail underneath the roof, where it covers the verandah area. In real life, of course, the roofs were planked and felted just as with ordinary vans. Just don't ask me how many planks to scribe.
Even if you decide to model the typical bauxite-liveried vehicle, it still needs painting. After all, the Lima model is moulded from brown plastic, and that's exactly what it looks like too! OK for the 'train set' use which the original model was probably designed for, but not very cool for the genuine modeller to be displaying....
Unless you are intending to portray a brand new vehicle, or one which has just been re-liveried perhaps, the van should look a little worse for wear, as evidenced by most photographs. Rust is often noticeable on the duckets (which were metal) and generally roofs, woodwork and especially the chassis were quite dirty.
The roof should be painted a dirty grey colour. Don't forget to paint underneath the verandahs too. I'm not sure what colour but I'd guess body colour. Even if you do nothing else to your Lima brake van, please paint the roof, unless you want to present a poor image of British 1:87 to the outside world.
Unpainted wood, when frequently walked on and exposed to the elements, tends to be a greyish colour, so this would be a suitable colour to paint the tops of the footboards and the floors inside the verandahs.
As supplied, but without couplings, the Lima van weighs in at just over 20 grams. It would be a good idea to add a little more weight to the interior before refitting the roof. It would benefit from being at around the 50-60 gram mark.