Caledonian Railway Class 439 No.419 CR Dark Lined Blue - Sound Fitted Deluxe Deposit

We are pleased to announce in collaboration with Rails of Sheffield the latest OO Gauge entry into the Railway Icons Range - the Caledonian Railway Class 439 0-4-4T locomotive No.419. The Railway Icons No.419 model will be depicted in CR Lined Dark Blue as the real locomotive was seen during the Stockton and Darlington 150th anniversary celebrations in 1975.

Model Features:
- Coreless motor and electrical pickup from all wheels.
- Separate metal bearings fitted to each driving axle.
- Diecast metal chassis block and metal gearbox, with gearing arranged for prototypical running speeds and haulage capabilities.
- Pivoting and sprung rear pony truck.
- Detachable coupling pockets to NEM362 standards fitted at each end.
- Designed to operate on curves of second radius (438mm) or greater.
- Diecast metal running plate with integral side tank weights combined with precision moulded plastic boiler, side tanks and cab.
- Separately applied details including Westinghouse pump, cab interior details, whistle, vacuum pipes, oil pots and turned brass safety valves.
- Glazed cab spectacles.
- Sprung metal buffers.
- Each model supplied with an accessory pack including air tanks, additional bufferbeam pipework, cab steps and screwlink couplings.
- Next18 DCC decoder interface.
- Firebox Glow and Flicker.
- Bach-Up Stay Alive System providing uninterrupted power to prevent stalling, light flicker and sound cut-outs.
- Zimo MS591N18 DCC Sound Decoder pre-installed.
- Sound files produced specifically for Bachmann using recordings from real locomotives.
- Auto-Release Couplings fitted at both ends – DCC operated, hands-free uncoupling with the press of a function button

A class of 0-4-4T steam locomotive, the Caledonian Railway 439 Class is a development of earlier Caledonian Railway 0-4-4T locomotives, including the 19 Class and 92 Class, and predecessor of the 431 Class. Ninety-two engines of the class were built between 1900 and 1925, a few under LMS auspices.

Built at the Caledonian Railway’s St Rollox Works - Glasgow in 1907, No.419 was designed by J.F. Mcintosh for branch line work, fast suburban and banking duties. The loco’s earliest service is not chronicled but by World War One it was shedded at Polmadie to work suburban trains out of Glasgow Central.

Following the formation of the London Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS) in 1923, the locomotive became No.15189 and its Caledonian Railway blue livery gave way to LMS black. LMS fitted a new boiler, along with vacuum brakes to supplement the Westinghouse equipment favoured by the Caledonian. The 1948 nationalisation of the railways brought seventy-four Class 439s into British Railways ownership, including then No.15189 which became No.55189, remaining in black but with the side LMS lettering replaced with the BR Legend. During this time it acquired a rather utilitarian and very unoriginal stovepipe chimney, which the Scottish Railway Preservation Society (SRPS) later replaced with a Caledonian example from a sister engine destined for the scrapheap. No 419’s working life ended on humdrum pilot duties at Carstairs, where it was shedded until withdrawn from service in December 1962, along with 200 other steam engines in Scotland.

No.55189 held great appeal for preservation, with the (then recently-formed) SRPS raising funds to secure the asking price of £750. It changed hands in March 1964. The asking price although small by today’s standards, proved difficult to raise, and it was only the generosity of a local farmer (Mr Watkinson) that enabled the locomotive to be purchased and externally restored to its Caledonian blue livery. In April 1965 it became the first inhabitant of the society’s Falkirk shed. SRPS members returned 419 to full working order and its first public steaming was in the autumn of 1971. Since then, it has represented the SRPS at open days, celebrations, and railway events all over Britain. Including the Stockton and Darlington 150th anniversary cavalcade in 1975.

Under the ownership of the SRPS, No.419 has worn many liveries and undergone extensive work to remain in service. The locomotive has seen a full overhaul, re-tubing, had new side tanks fitted, and even some of the more unique features have been worked on, including the Westinghouse brake system. Caledonian Railway No.419 is now the flagship of the Scottish Railway Preservation Society and appears on the society’s letter heading. Fitting for a locomotive that has represented the SRPS at numerous events on both sides of the border.