The Inter-Valley 125

I wrote the other day that I'm developing a backlog of carriage projects and here's one of them, the FR's latest 'Service Car' 125.

Pic: Bruce Brayne

It made a public debut last weekend along with its running mate Observation Car 150.

(The pair have to go around together because 125 has the brake setter.)

This Super Barn Service Car is going to be a very interesting build because it includes a lot of new features.

Firstly, unlike the other Super Barns, it is single-ended by which mean that it only has the inset vestibule doorway at the Down end.

Not only is the up end full width it is also more traditional in not having windows on either side of the corridor connection.

The big windows are worthy of note. Some have sliding openings which meet in the middle while others do not.

Some are full height will others have a horizontal bar about a quarter of the way up (on the other side which you cannot see here.)

Some are clear and some have a mirrored finish. Some are blanked out in black or opaque.

In common with the other Service Cars the 'engine side' is quite literally that, because in the centre of the carriage is a compartment with a generator unit which is accessed through vented doors.

On this carriage, however, the upper louvres have been painted black rather than ivory. I'm guessing this is an attempt to camouflage them in the middle of a body side full of large windows?

The really interesting feature - and that's interesting as in the sense of a total pain in the posterior to model - is the central doorway on the 'clock side' as seen above.

Because this is recessed I would normally have to build the main body side as two pieces which are then spliced together with a doorway that is then attached behind.

One of the challenges in doing this is to ensure that it ends up precisely the same length as the other side which can be made as one piece.

There is, however, another complication which is the cant rail which runs all the way along the top.

In the light of this I am considering another solution where I would make a full body side as normal, but then chop out the lower solid section where the doorway is to go, leaving the two halves held together only by this thin strip of styrene along the top until I can glue the new doorway behind.

That way I wouldn't have to worry about whether the body side is the correct length although I would have to take care that it remains square and level and doesn't bend like a banana when the new section is bonded in place.

The boys at Boston Lodge never make it easy, do they!