Yet Another fbb Bludner?
fbb was idly watching a YouTube about Newton Chambers car-carrying van when up popped the above picture, inserted into the video as an aside.
The commentary went something like this:-
The Newiton Chambers car carriers ...
... were based on the Tierwag carriers introduced by British Railways in 1957 and modelled by Triang, later Triang Hornby.
So not a highly modified Mark 1 coach then? The commentary continued.
The Tierwag wagons were probably not used very much.
So fbb searched on-line and found a picture of a Triang car carrier like the inset part picture from the video ...
IT'S ALL ON LINE
So next, up popped a snap of a wagon, plus six cars ...
Of course Triang was initially a toy train manufacturer, so it came as no surprise to see a picture illustrating a working car carrier.
Lo and behold, you could drive two cars into the central 'cage' and lower them into the well between the bogies. The resultant working model was too tall to be realistic, but the idea was exactly the same as the visually boring Newton Chambers van.
Also, the YouTuber mentioned "plywood body sides"! but, surely, Mark 1 coaches had sheet steel panels!
Finally, after some diligent searching, this picture popped into view.
It is definitely British Railways (see the GUV as part of the train). It does not look like a precursor of Mototail as all the cars look the same. So fbb guesses that it was a demo for car manufacturers aiming to use the skeletal wagons for bulk car delivery.
Another picture is similar ...
... again with similar-looking motors on board. Petrol heads may be screaming at fbb's ignorance of 1957 car marques, but the concept does match the Newton Chambers wagons.
So not really related to Mark 1 coaches ... BUT ... did BR pinch the idea (or maybe Newton Chambers did) from the Tierwag design. Tierwag sounds very much like a German 'brand'.
And finally ...
... two "cheap'n'nasty" Triang plastic cars in the 'cage' that was slid up and down by a huge over scale human hand. But the kiddies loved it - until the cage broke or dad trod on one of the cars, crushing them into tearful oblivion.
Toy trains were such fun!
Two Versions!
Strange things happen in the model world.
Only 14 vans were ever made by Newton Chambers. They started life in BR maroon (below in model form) ...
... but are mostly pictured in BR blue and light grey.
Heiljan, a Danish company, offered OO models in both maroon and the later blue/grey as did EFE, a Bachmann marque. It is the latter that provides pictures for thus blog.
Some modellers claim that Heljan has more added detail, but fbb thinks that is due to different states of the vans' electrical and braking systems over the years.
But the detail is impressive if you concentrate on anything other than the 'tin box', the very plain body. 
The bogie are well detailed ...
... and painted. The van ends accurately model all the gubbins ...
... and match reality very well.
Although nothing opens --- Boo!
The 'windows' represent translucent plastic on the real thing so are just painted.
The model comes with the obligatory bag of bits ...
... which enables the owner to replicate the two different versions of on-board equipment during the vans' long life spam.
Would anyone watching the train trundle by ever notice?
"Do you realise that this particular van was uniquely fitted with a Gunter-Wurmbrand experimental generator and your model shows the standard BR pipe and cable combination?"
Modeller hangs his head in shame, weeps copiously and throws his car carriers in the bin to take up cross stitch instead of OO trains!
Now there's an idea!
But the paint and transfer job is exquisite.
fbb cannot read the small print, but it is there! (picture is not very high quality due to fbb's incompetence!)
For the record, you can buy Newton Chambers car carriers in N scale, but you have to buy three.
But whatever the scale and, despite the odd bits of detail, these tin box models are a bit boring; even on a layout big enough to run them!
Next Variety blog : Saturday 11th April
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