RAPIDO TRAINS UK has released its first ‘OO’ gauge BR-era freight wagon, in the form of the large VIX ferry van, which were built in two lots in the early 1960s to meet the demand for cross-Channel freight traffic.
At 42-feet in length, the vans were high-capacity vehicles fitted with ferry hooks and loops for train ferries, making them a distinct departure from traditional short wheelbase 12t BR vans that were common at the time.
The VIX, as the TOPS code indicates, was a dual-braked wagon compatible with freight trains on both BR and European railways. It is this dual-braked feature that ensured their survival as newer vehicles for cross-Channel freight were introduced in the 1970s and 1980s. They were redeployed as departmental vehicles and some were subject to quite extensive conversions, including flat and open box wagons where the body was completely removed.
