Hornby LMS ‘Semi’ 4‑6‑2s
GAUGE ‘OO’ MODEL Hornby R3681 LMS ‘Princess Coronation’ No. 6241 City of Edinburgh, LMS 1946 black; R3682 No. 46225 Duchess of Gloucester, BR Express blue PRICE £204.99 each AVAILABILITY Hornby stockists or www.hornby.com
Two new LMS ‘Semis’ arrived in the Model Rail office – do they maintain the same high ‘Duchess’ standards?
Hornby’s re-tool of the famous LMS ‘Princess Coronation’ enabled it to portray variations previously impossible with the existing (2002) tooling. The final two ‘Duchesses’, built to H.G. Ivatt’s specifications, arguably became the most mouth-watering prospects, overshadowing another important stage in the life of Britain’s most powerful express passenger locomotive. The streamlined ‘Duchesses’ may have caught the eye and grabbed news headlines, but the ‘bathtub’ casing was a nightmare to work with. It made access to the motion and sandboxes difficult for shed staff and footplate crew and, worse still, it became a rust trap. The difficulties faced during wartime sealed the casing’s fate. No. 6235 City of Birmingham emerged from the works in the spring of 1946 without streamlining. All its streamlined classmates followed and No. 46243 City of Lancaster became the last in May 1949. You could instantly tell a de-streamlined ‘Duchess’ from a non-streamlined one: the front of the smokebox sloped downwards, a legacy of the old streamlined shape. Enthusiasts nicknamed the de-streamlined locomotives ‘Semis’. Two new Hornby ‘Semis’ arrived in the Model Rail
You could tell a de-streamlined ‘Duchess’ from a non-streamlined one instantly
office within days of each other: No. 6241 City of Edinburgh in 1946 LMS black and No. 46225 Duchess of Gloucester in BR blue. Both are very impressive models and match the high standards set by nonstreamlined No. 6231 Duchess of Atholl in our review in January 2018. There’s no point in going over the same ground so, instead, we’ll focus on the differences the ‘Semis’ bring. The most obvious starting place is the smokebox. Hornby’s design team have done an excellent job in capturing the distinctive shape and the model’s slightly squashed face is very convincing. There were other ‘tells’ to identify a de-streamlined ‘Duchess’. There was no drop frame between the front platform and the running plate. This was the ‘utility’ front end. The tenders were also distinctive, with wings that extended beyond the rear plate. There were two filler lids too, and a ladder, and Hornby has got this correct, along with the utility front end. However, the angled brackets to the tender wings should be beefier.
BRIGHT AND STYLISH
No. 46225 looks resplendent in BR’S blue livery, which it carried between August 1950 and January 1955. Colour images of this period are rare but the shade of blue on this model looks right, and the lining and other printing is beautifully applied. You might assume that the LMS black livery, introduced in 1946 as an austerity measure, could be rather drab. But when you see it in the flesh, you don’t realise how much maroon is in it and, when combined with the straw and maroon letters and numbers, how bright and stylish it is. Admirably, Hornby’s No. 6241 gives a taste of this. It carried this livery from February 1947, until repainted in an experimental dark blue scheme by BR in May 1948. Again, photographs of this period are comparatively rare and there are no images of No. 6241 in John Jennison’s A Detailed History of the Stanier Pacifics (RCTS). Footholds were fitted to the smoke deflectors between 1946 and 1948, and it’s likely that No. 6241 had them when in LMS black. What it wouldn’t have had, however, were the larger cab spectacles as modelled. The streamlined ‘Duchesses’ had smaller spectacles than their non-streamlined sisters and these were retained when the casings were removed. The larger-style spectacles, Jennison says, were fitted to the class between 1950 and 1952. The ‘Duchesses’ were some of the most imposing-looking steam locomotives built for Britain. Hornby’s model really captures that look, and this pair of ‘Semis’ adds an excellent new string to an already impressive bow.