The LNER Encyclopedia

Is there an easily accessible list of models of NER coaches and wagons that have been produced in RTR OO gauge - in either NER or LNER liveries? If not, could forum members please let me know the ones that they are aware of? Thanks

I'm not aware of ANY true models of NER carriages from any of the mainstream RTR manufacturers. The old Tri-ang / Tri-ang Hornby / Hornby Railways short clerestory carriages have some similarity to the equivalent vehicles to Bain's design for the NER, but the Tri-ang product definitely wasn't meant to be an NER type and wasn't even right as a GWR vehicle which it supposedly represented.
Until his untimely demise a few years ago I believe John Fozard models had produced some NER carriage types, They were hand-built in small batches from etched brass parts and consequently were more expensive than the typical item mass produced in China. If you are very lucky you might find some second hand, but I imagine the prices will still be high.

Hornby produced, in the late seventies or early eighties I think, a new model of a ventilated refrigerator van which, as first issued on a new design of underframe, was extremely close to a true model of the NER F10 design, albeit with huge, hideous, moulded-on tension-lock couplings (which could of course be cut off). Even the livery was almost authentic. Unfortunately, the model was re-issued later on a standard Hornby wagon underframe completely wrong for the vehicle, in some cases in wholly imaginary liveries too.
An earlier Hornby model of a ventilated refrigerator van that also appeared in numerous fantasy liveries actually had a body very closely similar to a Hull & Barnsley van, but with the planking recessed in the areas between the visible framing, whereas it should have had flush planking. Again the underframe was unrelated to the NER or H & B!
The "Mainline" brand included a so-called LNER Toad E brake van (short underframe) that later went into the early Bachmann range and which was under-scale but that actually made it similar to the final V4 pattern NER brake van, so a conversion was quite feasible. More recent Bachmann models are not necessarily the same thing.
I have no idea whether the short hopper wagons with coke rails once sold by Hornby as "NER" coke hoppers had any relationship to the real thing.

Beyond that I cannot recall any RTR NER rolling stock or anything close. I think that you'll find it difficult or flatly impossible to model the NER faithfully using only, or mainly, RTR models.

Hornby do to the current standard, LNER Toad B and E Brake vans. No idea if either could be backdated to NER period.

Nothine else I know off, either.

Thanks Atlantic and Mick. If I was looking for kits for wagons, are there particular suppliers that you would recommend?

In Plastic Kit form:-

Characteristic P7 coal hopper wagons from Slaters - .....here....
And also V2 Brake Vans ...here...

As is said above the older Mainline/Bachmann attempts at a Toad Brake van can be used to make an NER V4, although I'm not sure where the duckets I used can be obtained from now.

Parkside/Peco produce a Bogie Bolster wagon purchased by the NER post WW1 ...here...

In White Metal kit form,
The former 51L range is available from Wizard Models ... here.... and on following pages.

I have built several of the above, and if I can make them into running models they can't be too difficult!

There may well be other kits available.

If you look on here (it is easier to use the Search facility at the bottom of the home page) you can see several excellent modellers NER and ex-NER vehicles.

(PS - should also recommend Peter Tatlow's LNER Wagons Volume 2. Well worth the money and excellent inspiration!)

White metal kits can in many cases be glued, but a stronger and neater model results if you learn the art of low-temperature soldering. If you can make a decent job of white metal kits, it would also be worth looking out for NER items in former ranges such as David Geen or D & S, although prices being sought (and paid on Ebay) for the latter have reached the faintly ridiculous. D & S also produced many etched brass kits, if you want to try your hand at some serious and at times very fiddly cutting, folding, soldering and cleaning up. I don't know whether Jidenco, later sold as Falcon Brass, ever produced anything for the NER, but those etched kits are definitely not for the naive builder.
There were lots of older manufacturers of white metal wagon kits too, some of them very small concerns, so if and when the chance arises it is well worth looking through boxes or baskets of second hand wagon kits at sales / fairs / exhibitions as rare stuff does turn up in unlikely prices, sometimes very cheaply.
If you become slick or at least competent at building etched brass wagons then plenty of (more ambitious) etched kits for a NER carriages also become worthy of consideration...

Thanks drmditch and Atlantic - lots of sources and encouragement. I have also found a small number of plastic kits at http://smallbrookstudio.co.uk/home/4569521208 and https://www.cambrianmodelrail.co.uk/ - although cannot judge how authentic they are.