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Brake Vans (narrow gauge)

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This article is about narrow gauge brake vans. You may be looking for standard gauge ones.

Several narrow gauge brake vans have been seen on the Mid Sodor and Skarloey Railways in Thomas & Friends. They are commonly referred to as guard's vans.

These brake vans have ticket windows on both sides. They are mainly used to carry the guard or workmen, but on rare occasions when the coaches are full, the guard will allow the passengers to travel in the brake van.

Talyllyn Railway's No.6 guard's van

These brake vans are commonly seen on the back of passenger, goods and maintenance trains. They have been seen on the Mid Sodor and Skarloey Railways.

In the television series, they serve as Sodor's main type of narrow gauge brake van.

Biography

The Railway Series

Cora, a tool van, served as Stuart's guard van on the Mid Sodor Railway. Following the railway's closure, she was purchased by the Thin Controller. She was used as a guard's van whenever Beatrice was unavailable, though she eventually returned to her original use after Millicent's arrival in 1955[1].

Thomas & Friends

Skarloey used one of these brake vans to transport a group of rescuers intending to find Duke, who had been trapped in his shed for many years[2].

When Rheneas was travelling home with a full train in bad weather, the train was so full that the guard allowed passengers in his van[3].

Sir Topham and Lady Hatt once boarded Skarloey's brake van to the grand opening of Rumblin Bridge, after their hot air balloon ran out of fuel and crashed into a tree[4].

When Duncan was asked to take an elephant statue to a Elephant Park, he and his driver carelessly left behind the brake van. Duncan soon found himself running out of control and derailing at the park[5].

Personality

Cora is the only known sentient brake van of this design in the Railway Series.

Cora the Tool Van:

Technical Details

Basis

These brake vans are based on the Talyllyn Railway's No.6 tool van. In the television series, they are have added ticket windows similar to the No.5 guard's van, however these ticket windows are added on both sides.

Livery

In the Railway Series, Cora is painted blue with the letters "SR" painted on her sides in white. In the television series, the brake vans have been painted in various colours, such as sky blue, red, brown and grey. Since the sixteenth series, only brown brake vans have appeared.

Appearances

Trivia

  • In the Railway Series, Cora is the only van of this design.
  • Since the sixteenth series, the brake vans became slightly smaller.
  • All brake vans were run facing backwards, with the ticket windows facing away from the train/coaches until the eighteenth series, when they were running the correct way.
  • A blue small scale model, a red small scale model and a grey large scale model of the narrow gauge brake van is in the possession of Twitter user ThomasTankMerch.

Merchandise

Talyllyn Railway's No.5 guard's van

These brake vans are narrow gauge brake vans. They have been seen on the Mid Sodor, Skarloey and Talyllyn Railways.

Biography

The Railway Series

Beatrice is the original guard's van serving the Skarloey Railway. She is looked down by the coaches and is often described as smelling of "fish and cheese"[6]. Beatrice is, however, very useful. She has a ticket booth and an emergency buzzer and sometimes even carries passengers when the coaches are full[7].

Thomas & Friends

These brake vans have been seen at the Blue Mountain Quarry behind trucks carrying stone and slate[8].

Personality

Beatrice is the only known sentient brake van of this design in the Railway Series.

Beatrice the Guard's Van:

Technical Details

Basis

These brake vans are based on the Talyllyn Railway's No.5 guard's van. Due to legal restriction, the van only has a ticket window and a door on one side.

Livery

In the Railway Series, Beatrice is painted entirely blue. In the television series, these brake vans are painted red and brown in the same livery as their real Talyllyn Railway counterpart.

A Mid Sodor Railway brake van of this design was painted light blue.

Appearances

Trivia

  • In the Railway Series illustrations, Beatrice is the only van of this design.
  • An OO9 scale model of this brake van was featured on Wilbert Awdry's layout of the Mid Sodor Railway. The model was donated by Awdry and put on display at the Reverend Teddy Boston's Cadeby Light Railway in Cadeby, Leicestershire, before the railway finally closed in 2005[9].

Padarn Railway Brake Vans

These brake vans are seen at the Blue Mountain Quarry.

Biography

Thomas & Friends

One of these brake vans was seen on a standard gauge host truck, a special type of wagon used to carry narrow gauge rolling stock over standard gauge track. When the host truck is carrying a guard's van, it has often been used as the first or last wagon of a train[10].

Technical Details

Basis

These brake vans are based on the ones used on the Padarn Railway, a slate carrying line. A real life example can be found at the Narrow Gauge Railway Museum at the Talyllyn Railway.

Livery

The Padarn Railway brake van is painted dark red with light red frames.

Appearances


Mid Sodor Railway Brake Vans

At least one of these brake vans were used on the Mid Sodor Railway in the Railway Series.

The brake van was a part of the goods train nicknamed as "The Horse and Cart".

Technical Details

Basis

The specific basis is currently unknown. The OO9 scale model was kit-built by the Reverend Wilbert Awdry for his the Mid Sodor Railway layout[11].

Livery

These vans were painted light blue.

Trivia

  • The model was put on display at the Reverend Teddy Boston's Cadeby Light Railway in Cadeby, Leicestershire, before the railway finally closed in 2005[12].

References

  1. ↑ The Railway Series: The Little Old Engine "Home at Last"
  2. ↑ Series 4 "Granpuff"
  3. ↑ Series 4 "Gallant Old Engine"
  4. ↑ Series 7 "The Grand Opening"
  5. ↑ Series 7 "The Runaway Elephant"
  6. ↑ The Railway Series: Four Little Engines "Skarloey Remembers"
  7. ↑ The Railway Series: Gallant Old Engine "The Gallant Old Engine"
  8. ↑ "Blue Mountain Mystery"
  9. ↑ "Mid Sodor Railway on Pegsean.net"
  10. ↑ "Blue Mountain Mystery"
  11. ↑ "Mid Sodor Railway on Pegsean.net"
  12. ↑ "Mid Sodor Railway on Pegsean.net"


* RWS only | ** T&F only
Locomotives Steam Skarloey | Rheneas | Sir Handel | Peter Sam | Duncan | Duke | Ivo Hugh* | Bertram** | Mighty Mac** | Freddie** | Luke**
Diesel Rusty | Fred* | The Hunslet Diesels*
Other Mark V
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Rolling Stock Coaches Agnes, Ruth, Lucy and Jemima* | Gertrude and Millicent* | Ada, Jane and Mabel* | Saloon Coaches* | Coaches** | Refreshment Coach**
Trucks Trucks | Slate Trucks | Gunpowder Vans** | Quarry Trucks** | Flatbeds* | Conflats | Well Wagons** | Slab Wagons** | V-Tipper Wagons*
Other Beatrice* | Cora* | Brake Vans | SR Breakdown Train** | The "Weedkiller"* | Art Transporters* | The Sleigh Wagon*
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