Collection Roger PICHON

PR

A little history :

Following the Standard D type cereal trucks developed by the SNCF, it is the turn of the B.Richard company in Saint Denis de l'Hôtel (Loiret) to design and manufacture the first large series of cereal tank wagons (official name) more commonly called cereals by amateurs.

These first series built from 1954 included wagons without air brake and with air brake and a screw brake on platform.

These first units were built for the recent company CTC (Compagnie de Transport de Céréales, subsidiary of SCETA/SNCF) which, as its name indicates, specializes in the transport of cereals for third parties by making available individually or by trains this type of wagon.

Subsequently, other series of this wagon were built for numerous small and large mills and flour mills spreading throughout all regions of France and Navarre.

Depending on the size of these companies, they can own a wagon for an entire fleet allowing them to constitute complete trains with their own wagons or delivery by a few units.

Before the appearance of these wagons, cereals were transported in bags or in the rare specialized wagons or in one of the 100 OCEM 1929 type covered wagons which were modified and sealed to be able to transport these products without "sowing" them in short. of road.

In terms of operation, these wagons can circulate alone in a “patachon” with a few other wagons or in sections of a few units (3/4/5 wagons) or in a complete specialized trainset.

They circulate in RO traffic.

They circulate throughout France but also cross borders to deliver to our European neighbors.

These wagons have experienced all modes of traction from steam to electric through diesel and this on all the lines of the national network and our neighbors whether main or secondary.

Their career was long, beginning in 1954, some of them were still in circulation in the early 2000s.

The models and decorations chosen are essentials of the typically French railway landscape from the 1950s to the present day.

Their reproduction calls upon the manufacturers' plans and photos, quotation statements and photos in the field when the models still exist as well as all amateurs who want to participate in the adventure by offering us their documentation, plans and photos to which we add our knowledge. If you have documents on these wagons (or other models) do not hesitate to send them to us.

Depending on your favorite era or eras, you can mix decorations from different owners in the same train.

Some businesses have changed their decoration over time:

-The various CTC era III and era IV decorations can very well coexist in the same train from the end of the 60s to the beginning of the 70s.

-The Trancéales CTC decoration can sit alongside the older CTC decoration from the 1960s, these wagons having been re-registered from 1964 with UIC registrations.

The installation of the new decoration from the 70s was not done in 1 day but was spread over several years.

The CTC company made its wagons available and rented them according to the needs of the users. This ranges from the rental of 1 wagon more or less regularly for a small producer, a cooperative, a mill or a few wagons and up to block trains of ten wagons depending on the volume of product to be transported.

-The “Grands Moulins de Arenc” decoration has become “Storionne”, these 2 decorations can very well sit side by side, the latter dating from the mid-1960s and like at CTC, the repainting of the wagons was spread over several years. This company owned many wagons and could put together complete trains with its wagons.

The scale models

The manufacture of these models uses injected plastic and metal.

They are delivered, assembled, painted and decorated ready to roll at 1/43.5 scale.

The quality of reproduction and detail of these models are in the same vein as our 1st wagon, the refrigerants Stef and Marcel Millet Millet.

They are made up of more than 160 pieces!

The body is made of injected plastic, which is also the case for various accessories and parts are made of metal; Very detailed body with added railings and ladder, engraved decking;

The chassis is also made of injected plastic in order to have fine engravings, it is weighted by a metal plate to ensure good rolling;

The detailing of the chassis includes the various necessary components, such as the brake shoes in front of the wheels, brake cylinder, reservoir and drain hatches, control wheels, etc., etc.;

2 types of signal doors are installed on the models depending on the model era;

The axles are equipped with solid metal wheels isolated from the axle to NEM standards, the finest, in order to be able to travel on all types of model tracks existing on the market (except Tin Plate);

The rolling is ensured on brass bearings.

Suspension is provided by slightly sliding boxes (several models depending on the version and the period, OCEM type U1A box or SKF roller box);

The buffers are spring loaded with burnished metal plate plungers;

A short hitch system compatible with Lenz type hitch heads is provided as well as realistic and functional screw hitches as well as air brake half-couplings.

The enthusiast will thus have the choice of the hitch according to his preferences.

The models are painted and decorated by pad printing following the actual marking and graphics;

A painted version but without decoration is available so that you can create the decoration of your choice.

Unable to multiply the references infinitely, we offer you certain references (those indicated 5 possible numbers) without the original registration numbers.

A choice of 5 different numbers is provided with the models to install by yourself so that you can have several wagons with different registrations and create realistic trainsets.

Each decoration is produced by pad printing and is the subject of limited series which will not be renewed and distributed according to the references offered.

It is difficult to make a choice among all the decorations that can be worn by these wagons.

We selected the decorations that seemed the most emblematic to us and others less known but just as interesting. Impossible to avoid the CTC decorations in the various grays worn by these wagons, the Sanders decoration and its bright yellow or the Storione decoration and its dark black enhanced with its red paving stone with white lettering! We tried to avoid repeating what has already been done by others or, if it was unavoidable, we added small new variations such as the unbraked Sanders Ep III or the same wagon re-registered in UIC but still with the original decoration.

Other decorations are completely new at scale 0 such as the great Moulins d'Arenc, Coopérative de Pithiviers, Michel Blanc, etc., etc.

Faced with this difficult choice, we have selected no less than 8 decorations for era 3 and 6 for era IV as well as a model painted in gray but without any decoration so that you can decorate it as you wish!

Some references are supplied with 5 different registration numbers in order to be able to create realistic trains with wagons bearing different numbers.

Remember the first reproductions of these wagons at 1/87 with the models reproduced by the firm SMCF, then by Hornby. My father designed this wagon for SMCF in 1958, I have kept its original plan.

Then he brought out his drawing in the mid-60s so that Jouef could in turn reproduce this model which would be released in 1965 with unfortunately a fanciful decoration...