Mystery coach or interesting relic?

[steve howe]

We all love a mystery at Christmas... well its a bit early but hey.

This particular mystery arrived via a box of bits and pieces given to our Club some time ago. Clearly a GWR Brake 3rd, but so far searching through Russell and other published works, I haven't found to which Diagram it was built. The coach had been wheeled for P4 and despite its rather battered appearance, looked like a fine model. The beading and lining was commendably fine, even to the fine gold line inside the panelling.

coach1.JPG

Recently I took it home to 'tidy it up' and put some decent bogies under it (the original 10' Dean bogies were pretty basic and distorted) The coach was clearly metal construction and at first glance we assumed it to be an old etched brass kit, possibly by Mallard. Getting it on the bench under closer scrutiny revealed that the 'moulding' was in places, parting company with the body revealing bare brass beneath. Close examination of the lifted mouldings showed them to have been produced on what looks like clear acetate with the black moulding and the gold lining applied and attached to the brass bodyshell.

coach2.JPG

The more I examined the body, (forensic!) the more convinced I am that the model is scratchbuilt with the panelling detail created on some kind of film and applied over the base shell. I have never heard or seen this technique described anywhere, (other than Jim Whittaker's shellacked card frets applied to a wooden shell) and my first thought was perhaps this is an old PC lithograph kit where the builder has cut out the panels and windows and applied the fret to a scratchbuilt body. I remember the PC coach kits from the 70's and they were considered 'high end' although the printed acetate sides lacked any raised detail, and I don't know if they ever produced panelled coaches other than the Toplights.

coach3.JPG

If anyone can shed any light on this I would be most interested to know. My plan is to do as little as possible to the model other than carefully conserve what's there, replace any missing mouldings with thin tape, and add decent Dean bogies. The model has clearly had a hard life, but I rather like the somewhat work-weary appearance which I like to think many of these old vehicles must have had towards the end of their long lives.

Steve

[Porcy Mane]

Probably not but on seeing your pics, the name C Hamilton Ellis sprung to mind.

P

[martin goodall]

I believe this is a non-gangwayed van third belonging to Diagram D24, built on Lots 852, 853, 925, 926, 939, 959, 972A, 989 and 1029, between 1898 and 1903.

It looks as though it is built of shellacked card, and could possibly be the work of Ken Budd, who built some coaches for Pendon that looked rather similar in style, although the Pendon models were gangwayed stock, I think. I wonder if this model might have been in the hands of Pat English, or whether he might have been the builder, using similar methods to Ken Budd.

[steve howe]

Thanks Martin,

That is an interesting theory and would certainly explain how the coach came into the Club's collection. Ken Budd became a club member when he retired to live in Newquay in the late '70's early'80's. Pat was of course also a long term member and I had joined the club a few years previously. Ken was still building coaches for Pendon at that time, although by then he was using plastic sheet and microstrip for the bodies. I well remember his difficulties in finding accurate research for the Tea Car he was building for the Cheltenham Flyer set. It could well be that this coach is one of his earlier ones, in which case we do have a genuine museum piece!

Thanks for the info.

Steve