BACHMANN GWR CLASS 57
Train operator First Great Western celebrated a four year extension to its franchise in 2015 by rebranding itself Great Western Railway. The new name came with a new look and the dark green with huge polished metal lettering that overtly harks back to the style and glamour of the pre-war GWR and its ‘shirtbutton’ roundel. The shade that Great Western Railway has chosen may split GWR purists but few will disagree that green is the only colour suitable for this piece of the railway network; First Group purple didn’t seem to sit right under the great trainsheds at Paddington and Temple Meads! GWR is popular among enthusiasts as one of the few operators to still run locomotive-hauled passenger trains. It has a fleet of four Class 57/6s predominantly for working the ‘Night Riviera’ sleeper (not to mention Class 08s for shunting the Mk 3 sleeper stock). It’s perhaps fitting, therefore, that the first ready-to-run model to appear in GWR’S new colour scheme is Bachmann’s Class 57/6. The livery, as applied to 57602/603 and 605 (57604 carries a version of old GWR lined green), is simple: overall green with a black roof, minus various grilles and panels, and yellow warning panels rather than full yellow ends. It’s a shame that the green is so prominent because, unfortunately, Bachmann’s rendering doesn’t quite match the prototype. The real shade is a dark green but it is very glossy, which impacts how it catches the light. Our experience with the ‘USA’ 0-6-0Ts suggests that Bachmann will have used the correct paint ‘specs’ but that doesn’t always mean that the colour will transfer from the real thing to the model. 57603 has a very flat finish and the green almost looks grey in some light. A high-gloss finish would have probably replicated the real livery more accurately. The issue isn’t helped by the less
than crisp demarcation between the green and the yellow warning panels. Oh, and the Electric Train Heat equipment that should be orange has been left black. The model, however, comes with some beautiful etched name and numberplates, which will instantly give the livery a lift. Also supplied are some etched GWR letters, which come with a clever little alignment jig. Even though there are question marks over the green, the ‘57/6’ is still a cracking model and you forget that the tooling is getting on for seven years old. Packed with features - including a driver in one cab and snowploughs plugged into one NEM coupler pocket - and bursting with technology, it’s a shame that GWR 57603’s livery doesn’t quite meet the same standard.