The carriage of explosives needed a stringent set of safety standards and the RCH defined the specification for gunpowder vans which was built by all the major railway companies, with variations often confined only to the use of company standard fittings like axleboxes. This kit is based on the British Railways standard design which was adopted from the LMS design built from the 1930s onwards. The LNER and GWR design vans from the same period were also almost identical, excepting the use of company fittings and this kit could be modified to model many of the post 1923 built gunpowder vans from any of these companies.