Well if you are building another Southern/BR Southern layout, your SR coaching stock formations need a little organisation. SEE SOME EXAMPLES LISTED BELOW. 90% of Southern coaches ran in fixed formation sets of anything from 2 to 10 coaches. Where an express might be made up of two, three or more sets ! In addition to the "sets" there were also "Loose" vehicles. These were virtually all the catering vehicles, and many Open 3rds. As you appear to have Maunsell, Bulleid & BR Mk1's I've listed some suitable sets below: MAUNSELL 3-car set No: 239. From 6/1951 until 5/1961 when scrapped. Brake Third Corridor (BTK): S2802S Composite Corridor (CK) 1st/3rd : S5689S BTK: S2803S MAUNSELL 5-car set No: 270. From 6/1945 until 5/1957 when lengthened to 6 coaches. Brake Composite Corridor (BCK): S6687S TK: S1838S CK: S5646S TK: S1837S BCK: S6693S BULLEID 4-car set No: 81. From 6/1949 until 9/1965 when disbanded. Semi-Open Brake 3rd (SOBT) S4013S Third Corridor (TK) S27S Composite Corridor (CK) 1st/3rd S5824S SOBT S4014S BULLEID 3-car set No: 772. From new 1/1947 until 5/1966 when scrapped. SOBT: S4305S CK: S5753S SOBT: S4306 BULLEID 5-car set No: 841. From new 5/1950 until 5/1964 when disbanded. SOBT: S3993S TK: S63S CK: S5859S TK: S64S SOBT: S3994S BR Mk1 3-car set No: 522. From new 6/55 until 5/1966 when disbanded. BTK: S34635 CK: S15564 BTK: S34636 BR Mk1 4-car set No: 870. From new 1/1952 until 9/1966 when disbanded. BTK: S34241 TK: S24306 CK: S15028 BTK: S34242 Note: 3rd class was upgraded to 2nd class from July 1956. So coach codes changed. So a BTK became a BSK etc. Note also many Southern sets had consequetively numbered vehicles of the same type in the one set. Note also there were NO Maunsell 4-car sets after 1953 of types made in model form. The only remaining Maunsell 4-car sets after 1954, where all narrow bodied types for use on the London - Tonbridge - Hastings service and North Kent lines with width restrictions.
I'm hoping to do something similar from 1923 to 1968, SR/ BR type layout. So your formations guide of coaches for and around that period will be invaluable. So I'm trying to find out as much as possible from Pullmans to freight, private owners, milk tankers, oil tankers, banana vans. Also any other type of freight wagons from the other big three etc, that may have strayed on to Southern metals. So are there any good books you could recommend that would guide me in the right direction. Regards Paul
