Out on the line for the first time
in the 21st Century, this rake of GN coaches nicely
compliment the Bing / Bassett Lowke 'N1' tank engine.
This remarkable rake of four large Gauge 2 coaches came to me
through the hands of a respected vintage dealer. The origin of
the set is unknown, although identical coaches are described
in the May and June 1910 editions of Greenly's '
Models,
Railways and Locomotives' The Rake consists of:::
1st/2nd/3rd
Composite
1st/3rd Composite No. 601
1st/3rd Composite No. 601
Full
Brake
The coaches are of Greenly's 'rebated panel' system with glass
windows and interior detail. All the coaches are in good
working order with sprung Bassett Lowke cast bogies and need
only a modest amount of tidying up. Unfortunately
someone in the past has stuck paper labels on the roofs which
has led to bare patches that will have to be sympathetically
repaired. Some of the window dividers have been lost and will
have to be made and colour matched. Apart from that, and the
accumulated grime of a century, they are in remarkably good
shape.
What's clear are that they are a 'collection', not built for
one owner as a set, because the finish varies considerably. A
vital clue is what must be the owner's initials lettered on
two of them: 'HSR'.
There are two similar but not identical composites, both
numbered '601'. Does this suggest that they were produced
commercially? They have clearly been finished by different
hands.
This carriage carries the intials 'H.S.R.'. This may well be
the initials of the owner, so who was 'HSR'? The answer is out
there, somewhere!
The same lettering appears on the full brake. These last two
were obviously built as a pair.
The construction of these carriages was described in great
detail in the May and June 1910 editions of
'Models,
Railways and Locomotives'.
(link jumps to .pdf)
There's a certain amount of cleaning and tidying up still to
do but here they are
out
on the line with the 1912 Bing N1 tank engine.