GWR Louvered Van Ends

 This kit is designed to provide substitute ends for the listed kits to enable them to be constructed in the ventilated form and also to enable the longer wheelbase types, to be cross kited and scratch built.

This Kit contains 2 sprues to give 3 pairs of ends at different heights.
As originally envisaged on the GWR vans were not provided with any form of ventilation. Indeed on early railways vans were rare, the normal practice being to sheet over water damageable loads in open wagons. However with the growth in the carriage of manufactured product : plus problems of theft all railways began building vans in large numbers towards the close of the 19th century. Our three kits (1003W, 7W & 8W) depict vans built between 1902 and 1905. When first built they had no vents at all. The V5 van of 1902 & the two heights of the 1905 V4 vans were originally both built with cross braced ends. After 1906 to cater for perishable traffic being handled in the then new fitted express freight some vans of both types were fitted with sliding louvre shutters to give a good flow of air through the van. These ventilated vans were designed MINK A instead of just plain MINK. After 1912 the design of vans settled down to the double bonnet vent type ends available as our kit 1018. 

• United Kingdom: £3.95, free over £50, 3–5 working days
• UK Express: £6.95, 1–2 working days
• Europe: £8.95, free over £150, 5–10 working days
• USA: £12.95, free over £150, 7–14 working days
• Canada: £13.95, free over £150, 7–14 working days
• Australia: £14.95, free over £150, 10–18 working days

Orders placed before 12:00 noon on a working day are typically dispatched the same day. Free Click and Collect is available from our stores in Beer, Devon and Edinburgh.

For full details see our Shipping Policy.