Article of the Month

Compromising Coaches

This is the basic question asked by all Triang modellers - do I put up with coaches that are obviously far too short, or do I extend them to the correct length.

My answer would always be yes - but which question I am answering is up to you. To me there are two principles involved - the obvious knowledge that things are not right, or 'it looks alright so why mess with it'. The pros and cons to me come down to expense, and I find that old battered and bruised Triang coaches are in their millions, but the correct length Kitmasters are a little rarer and hence cost more to buy - if you can find any to buy, that is.

The results of the analysis are as follows - for correct length coaches, you need to butcher a lot of Triang models. You can built an SK or TSO (they look the same on the outside) from two Triang CK's (I've got one somewhere), and I'm sure that there are some DMMU classes that the left-over bits can be thrown into, but all of the other mk I's require major surgery (ie little bits about 2mm wide between EACH window !!) to achieve the result. A four coach set (I'm always thinking EMU, so lets say 4TC) will be about 33 inches long (84 centipedes to you metricated types).

Now lets mutilate some Triang but keep the size down. You start off with CK's, BSK's and the Restaurant vehicle (I can't find a correct classification for this type of Restaurant vehicle). I've managed to derive the SK/TSO variant, and two brake ends off of two BSK's come close to a BG, so I've only got to find a plans for an FK/FO type coaches to draw detail from and I have a very comprehensive fleet of stock of mk I variant, but it will not look out-of-scale as there is nothing that is in-scale to compare it to. Overall length comes down to 29 inches (74 centimetres) - and rough measurements suggest that a correctly scaled 8-coach set is the same length as our Compromised scale 8-coach set WITH a locomotive attached !!

So far this theory has been extended to only mk I stock and indications on the suitability of the suburban coaches suggests that you are really pushing your luck - as my 2EPB made from Triang suburbans looks 2EPBish but closer examination will reveal that one compartment per coach is missing ... reduce the scaling to Compromise rather than true-scaled and two compartments would be missing, and this would then be very obvious to the eye as incorrect.

I will produce some sort of surgical plan in the fullness of time that describes the Compromise theory in maximised detail spread across all of the mk I family, and moving on through the DMMU's and a number of the mainline SR EMU's and some 25kv EMU's.

I've measured up the concept on a kitchen worktop (do you really think they're designed for cooking !) and have worked out that the 1.5m platforms of Burrafield Junction are fine for a scale 6-car or 6-coach plus loco, but at a push they will take an 8-coach Compromise EMU ... I can run proper length EMU's and not have to extend the board sizes beyond my standard 97cm boards. (If you're wondering, this fits between the rear wheelarches of the smallest family hatchback and means that I can probably take Burrafield's 4m length in my little car at a push !)

A closing point to consider - if you are modelling track to 12mm gauge as you haven't made the corrective jump to 14.2mm, why would you be obsessed with correct length coaches anyway !

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October 1998