Pansy - cab floor

Looking at some pictures on line of 5786 on the South Devon Railway it looks like there is a floor some 9" (guess) above the running board / metal cab floor level. Is this right? was it metal or wood? any better pics?

Thanks, Phil

Hello Phil,

These are the best photos I can come up with, not a lot of room to get a good picture. Try and get a copy of Great western Journal issue 8, it has a general arrangement drawing of the 57xx which you'd find useful.

Regards,

Bob Youldon

Thanks Bob, very useful and it certainly answers the question as to why all the drivers appeared to be 6' 6" tall. I like to get the detail as good as I can as I am not really interested in driving around, for me it is looking at the model and saying 'I made that'. I would love to get to the SDR but can't see how at present

Thanks again, Phil

hi phil,

as you have probably gathered the 5"g version and fullsize has a raised portion of the frames in the cab. this is actually a throwback to much earlier GWR designs. the cab floor is level with the raised section of the frames either side, then dropped down in the middle. note also in Bob's excellent pics the coiled springs above the frames in the cab which i copied on my 5"g version. many a GWR fireman cursed the drop of cab floor in the middle, and the springs getting in the way of everything else!

cheers,

julian

Edited By julian atkins on 11/10/2014 20:23:12

The postman bought me Robin Jones' book 'Great Western Railway Pannier Tanks' from Amazon and it is very interesting with loads of photos so I should be asking fewer daft questions. I think the cab roof and the inside of the bunker are painted black, can you confirm?

cheers,Phil

Phil, I think you will have to decide what year your model is going to be. My stuff says the bunker is black inside in all guises.. However, it says the inside cab roof was loco green between 1929 and 1945, probably the most popular era modelled, and 1945 onwards it is all in the sexy black.

The roof on the pictures above seems to be cream though. These pictures of 5764 show the step and the cab roof in cream also. Beware - preserved locos are not always correct - they have as much trouble as the modellers in getting it right and often have to just "go for it." Their objectives are different though.

Over to you Julian

Edited By Anthony Kendall on 12/10/2014 09:30:21

Edited By Anthony Kendall on 12/10/2014 09:31:52

inside of bunker ie where the coal is painted gloss black, as is the outside of the roof. front of bunker inside cab black.

backhead of boiler painted black.

inside of cab including inside of roof same colour externally as cab so in the GWR era GWR green.

regulator lever vermillion/china red in GWR era. signal red in BR era.

reverser and stand black - but regional workshop variations so for example Caerphilly painted the reverser red!

anthony's query of a cream cab roof inside is a trick of the light in bob's excellent pics. (though if LT transport maroon inside of cabs were painted cream above waist height including inside of roof).

caution plate inside cab on fireman's side painted gloss black with lettering picked out in white.

cheers,

julian

Thanks for help guys - extremely useful. For the want of anything better I am doing my feeble best to do model 5786 as she left the shop in 1929. Why 5786? - it is on the South Devon railway. Obviously I can't be exact but life is full of choices and compromises, especially in 5" gauge

Phil