The Great Western Railway (GWR) stood as the sole company with outstanding orders for ventilated vans as of January 1st, 1948, comprising lot 1525 totalling 236 vehicles. Employing GWR Dia. V37, these vans were initially unfitted and seemingly delivered in GWR dark grey livery, closely succeeded by virtually identical B-prefixed vehicles. Characterised by plywood bodies and doors, they can be distinguished from GWR V37 and BR Dia. 1/205 vans by their tall vacuum pipes. Following suit, Lot 2079, consisting of 100 vehicles with planned numbers W146019 to W146118, was constructed to diagram 1/203, presenting a vacuum-braked iteration of the V37 design.
| Numbers | Quantity | Built | Lot | Builder |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| B753100 to B753199 | 100 | Nov 1949 to Dec 1949 | 2079 | BR Swindon |
Plans
I haven’t come across any published plans detailing BR Dia. 1/203 12T Ventilated Vans in books or magazines. If you happen to know of any such resources, please don’t hesitate to contact me. I’d greatly appreciate it.
Photographs
I have managed to find the following photographs:
- B753114 – Unknown location in the 1960s by Eric Gent in Wagons Of The Early British Railways Era – A Pictorial Study Of The 1948-1954 Period.
If you know of any more, please don’t hesitate to contact me.
More Information
For further reading, you might find the following resources helpful:
Gamble, G., compiler. British Railway Vans (Railways In Profile Series No.3). Cheona Publications, Cheona Publications, 1997.Gamble, G., compiler. British Railway Vans Volume 2 (Railways in Profile Series No. 11), Cheona Publications, 2000.- Larkin, David.Wagons Of The Early British Railways Era – A Pictorial Study Of The 1948-1954 Period. Kestrel Railway Books, 2006, pp. 48-49.