The kit is a reborn Gem product, marketed under the John Day Models label alongside other re-introduced whitemetal ranges. It’s all run by Daryle Toney who is very helpful (no connection).
The main parts are a fair fit. As usual I used Loctite Gel to stick it together. Unlike most superglues it does not require a perfect join to bond well.
Some parts did require fettling. This is the front of the van. I filed the sides a bit and shortened the supporting bracket.
Coming together. It’s quite a beast. If Wikipedia is to be trusted, Pantechnicons ranged from 12-18 ft in length. That’s 49-72 mms in 1:76 scale. The kit is 67 mms long. It’s also quite tall, more so than the common types seen in photos.
For some reason the parts for the end section get in the way of each other, so required a bit of work. First the brackets on the end panels were shortened, using the “Salami method”.
The lower floor casting doesn’t line up with the end panels. The instructions suggest shortening the panels, but after consulting prototype photos I chose instead to saw off bits of the floor casting itself.
This allowed everything to line up nicely, with a section of styrene employed as gap filler.
I then entombed the ghost of Mrs X in the van. Mother of a childhood classmate, she once tore into me for spilling cocoa on her sofa. It wasn’t my fault, her son pushed me, but she wouldn’t listen. I hereby condemn her to travel forever in this empty furniture van, with not even a pillow to sit on.
Two padlocks seal her fate. Goodbye Mrs X, nobody messes with a railway modeller.
I couldn’t find room to fit the rear springs properly, so cut a notch in them for the axle.
You can’t see the dodge once the wheels are on. I would have preferred slimmer wheels but couldn’t find appropriate replacements. Filing the spokes rarely leads to good results, so I’ll live with it.
A simple piece of plastikard prevents the fore-carriage from dropping off, while still being free to rotate.
The driver’s seat was filed to a more discrete size. Judging by preserved Pantechnicons, it was actually more common for the driver to sit on the roof, but I did find one or two photos with a lower seat.
Bits of 0.45mm wire were added for arm rests and supports. The foot-rest was raised a bit to match the driver. Forgot to scribe it but managed it later.
The shafts are fitted with bits of wire, which plug into holes in the fore-carriage.
The horse is included in the kit. The driver is a seated passenger from Andrew Stadden’s range.
At this point I was confronted by a delegation from United British Draught-horses for Liberty and Equine Defence (UNBRIDLED). They informed me in no uncertain neighs that a large Pantechnicon requires at least two horses.
So I hastily fashioned a two-horse drawbar...
...and ordered a couple of Shire horses from Dart Castings.
Fearing further industrial action, I added some steps and grab handles for the driver. Then primed the whole thing.
Next, the livery. The prototypes were often extensively lettered.
And colourful. I normally go for subdued colours, but it’s been a dreary winter and I felt like a bit of Rock & Roll, so took inspiration from this striking example.
I spent some time drawing up various designs in Microsoft Word, which has more options for sizing and spacing text than is at first apparent.
The curves were made to fit by importing a photo of the model into Inkscape, drawing the appropriate curves and then copying the shapes back into Word.
I printed selected designs on paper, sprayed them with matt primer to protect the colours, and cut them with a fresh blade. Paper is of course a bit crude compared to DIY transfers, but it’s straightforward and you can test designs directly on the model.
The van was painted yellow and black, and the paper then mounted with a thin layer of lightly diluted PVA.
Final details included a driver’s handwheel for the brakes, plus tarps, rope and other rooftop clutter.
I added some chains from Cambrian Models and finished off with MIG weathering powders. The odd-looking loading flap is prototypical, if rather chunky.
I also fitted chains to the Shire horses, mounted with a wire loop drilled into the harness. Looks like the Oryx wants in on their gig, probably an agent from DISRUPT (Dissident Ruminants for Progressive Transport).
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As usual, there are no reins. My layouts are set up and dismantled all the time, so the normal solutions – e.g. fuse wire - are just not practical. What I need is something thin yet robust enough to fit quickly with a pair of tweezers. Ideas welcome.
As you can see, Bailey & Sons’ strategy was to locate their offices at railheads along the Berks & Hants line. This worked well and the company grew to become one of the major removal firms in the area.
Yet for Mr Bailey, Senior - lover of all things yellow – it was a source of constant irritation that his horses didn’t match his vans.
Eventually Mr Bailey proposed to dye the horses yellow.
But his sons - brought up in a sickening sea of yellow - finally rebelled and said no, father, enough now.