Milk Tank Wagon, United Dairies (Hornby Series)
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Milk Tank Wagon, United Dairies (Hornby Series).jpg) Hornby UD Milk Tank Wagon, 1930 illustration (i)
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Arch Four , Area 37 Hornby Wall (display) |
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A white 1930s United Dairies Milk Tank Wagon, with blue ladders, end-bases, base, buffers and "Type 3" trunions, and a white lettered tank.
Marketed as "A very realistic model", this was a distinctive and detailed addition to the Hornby range, with an especially nice touch being that on the early versions of the model, the two diagonal tensioning rods on each side of the wagon really worked - they had tiny threads at the ends of each rod, and were fixed in place with tiny threaded nuts. For an impression of just how accurate the wagon was, see the photograph of a real preserved milk wagon at the NRM (link provided below).
Markings
The wagon is lettered in red "UD-font" text with black outlines, "GLASS LINED / UNITED DAIRIES / MILK TANK", with a centrally-placed solid green map of England and Wales, with the linked UD letters superimposed.
The proclamation that the wagon was lined with glass (actually vitreous enamel) wasn't just bragging for the benefit of the public - it was also a reminder to railway personnel that the wagon should not be subjected to rough treatment when shunted.
Variations
Having put so much effort into producing such a lovely item, Meccano Ltd. recycled most of the design for their Colas Bitumen Tank Wagon.
The "United Dairies" version of the wagon was replaced by a "Nestlé" version some time around 1936/37.
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