Nearly 1,000 Passenger Luggage Vans (PLV) broadly to the same Southern Railway design were built for use in passenger trains and at express speeds to convey parcels, newspapers and various other forms or general merchandise. The design was adopted from the South Eastern & Chatham Railway (SECR) and construction continued after Nationalisation until 1951 – by which time BR had redesignated the vans as Parcels and Miscellaneous Vans (PMV). These were large vehicles with a 21ft wheelbase and construction was from a metal frame with even planking on the sides and ends. The vans remained in traffic until the mid-1980s, with some surviving later still, in departmental use with BR and into Privatisation.

The Bachmann Branchline model is highly detailed and carries all the hallmarks of the prototype, from the distinctive roof profile found on many SR vans to the planked sides and angled metal framework. Ventilators were fitted to each end and along the lower part of the bodysides whilst two pairs of double doors were provided on each side of the van to aid loading and unloading – all are featured on the model including representations of the door locking mechanism. Steps are mounted separately to the solebar, below which the underframe is modelled in all its glory including brake apparatus and separate pipe runs, along with the finely detailed axleboxes into which metal wheelsets are fitted. At each end metal buffers are employed in addition to separate lamp iron brackets, vacuum brake pipes and metal handrails. The livery application is crisp and faithful, extending beyond the basic paintwork to numbering and lettering, all reproduced using accurate typefaces and colours.

MODEL FEATURES:

• Bachmann Branchline OO Scale
• Era 5
• Pristine BR (SR) Green livery
• Running No. S1062S
• Accessory Pack
• NEM Coupling Pockets
• Close Coupling Mechanism
• Length 145mm