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Accurascale ACC3217

Genesis 6w - LMS Lined Crimson Lake/Royal Mail - Twin Pack G

Manufacturer catalogue image - please note that pre-release images may be CAD renders or CGI/AI images rather than photographs

Prototype Era
Era 3 (1923 to 1947) The Big Four (LNER, LMS, GWR and SR)

Manufacturer description

Our final offering for this run relates to the use of six-wheeled vans as mail bag, parcel tender, and stowage vans in LMS Travelling Post Office trains of the 1930s.

In much the same way that a steam locomotive employs a tender to carry coal and water, a mail and parcels train may require a tender to carry unsorted mail bags and parcels. These items were often picked up en route, particularly when TPO trains were marshalled at a central location from outlying areas, and as a result their use was more common on TPO services originating from the Scottish and North-Western regions. The Midland Railway constructed a number of different mail and parcel tender designs, as did the Highland Railway, and these were commonly fitted with the ubiquitous offset gangway.

Following Grouping, the LMS absorbed these vans into service and, as they became time-expired, replaced them with purpose-built LMS designs. This “one-for-one” replacement policy is evidenced by the sheer number of different Post Office designs recorded in the carriage diagram books: some 68 vehicles across 20 separate diagrams, of which just two diagrams account for over half of the total.

Fewer stowage vans were built to LMS designs than sorting vans, and most were constructed to standard LMS lengths appropriate to their intended use. Interiors were generally very spartan, with only occasional comfort items such as wardrobes or tool cupboards, lavatories, folding tables, or ovens being included. There were, however, two notable exceptions built under Stanier. One of these, the Diagram 1867 van—with its lack of interior fittings and gangway connection—forms the basis for the six-wheeled van represented in this run.

Catalogue listing

Model details

Prototype information

Accurascale Genesis 6w – LMS Lined Crimson Lake/Royal Mail – Twin Pack G is a model of a six‑wheeled van in the Crimson Lake livery. The coach type is Genesis and the manufacturer part number is ACC3217. It represents rolling stock from the era of the Big Four railway companies – LNER, LMS, GWR and SR.

The model depicts a mail‑bag, parcel tender and stowage van as used on LMS Travelling Post Office (TPO) trains in the 1930s. Such vans acted as tenders for unsorted mail and parcels, allowing items to be collected en route, particularly on services originating in the Scottish and north‑western regions. Designs of this type were originally built by the Midland Railway and the Highland Railway, often featuring an offset gangway.

After the Grouping, the LMS incorporated these vans and later replaced them with purpose‑built LMS designs. The carriage diagram books record 68 Post Office vehicles across 20 diagrams, with two diagrams accounting for more than half of the total. The specific van in this run is based on the Diagram 1867 design by Stanier, which has a spare interior and a gangway connection, making it a representative example of the six‑wheeled LMS mail van.