Revolution Class 92
◆ GAUGE ‘N’ ◆ MODEL Revolution Trains N-92023 Class 92 92023 Caledonian Sleeper livery, N-92036 Class 92 92036 Bertolt Brecht Railfreight/ews livery ◆ PRICE £175.00 each ◆ AVAILABILITY Revolution Trains stockists Web www.revolutiontrains.com
There was great excitement among
‘N’ gauge modern image enthusiasts when Revolution Trains launched its crowdfunding campaign for a Class 92 in 2016. Designed and manufactured by Rapido Trains, the models are now available and, while pre-orders have accounted for the majority of the production run, extra stocks have been made available via Revolution’s retail partners.
The Class 92 occupies an important place in the UK’S train building history, albeit one of slightly dubious honour. It was the final fleet of main line electric locomotives to be built for British Rail and it also provided the final locomotive hauled train on BR before privatisation in 1997. While the fleet’s career hasn’t really lived up to the original expectations, due mostly to external factors, it has remained a popular prototype. Indeed, these state-of-the-art machines have been a regular sight on freight flows around the South East of England, up the West Coast main line to Scotland and, in more recent years, as staple traction for Caledonian Sleeper services.
Revolution Trains has covered all bases in terms of livery options, with the long-lived two-tone grey Railfreight Distribution livery being offered in various guises. EWS red/gold, DB red, Gbrf/europorte blue/ orange and Caledonian Sleeper teal liveries have been produced, along with an exclusive rendition of 92017 Bart the Engine in Stobart livery, for Kernow Model Rail centre.
OPENING THE BOX
We received a pair of review samples from Revolution Trains, featuring 92023 in CS teal and, my personal favourite, Railfreight grey with EWS’ ‘Three Beasties’ stickers, in the form of 92036 Bertolt Brecht. These are impressive models, with plenty of detail to enjoy. For ‘N’ gauge locomotives, there’s quite a bit of heft to them, just like the prototype. Although the real bodyshells are fairly functional in some respects, the stylish curves of the front ends have been captured nicely. The flush glazing is superb, revealing the detailed cab interiors and the recessed handrails have been neatly rendered in fine wire. The horizontal front handrails, meanwhile, look to be formed from an etched metal component, adding an extra degree of finesse to the ends, complemented by the delicate horns, wipers and lamp brackets. Some of the clear plastic head/tail lamp covers have not been fitted perfectly on our samples,
although that’s only really noticeable when studying the enlarged photographs.
The liveries look very convincing in terms of colours, and feature an exquisite level of printed detail. The CS logos, with their stylised stags, look great. Similarly, the EWS logos, BR emblems and Channel Tunnel logos are also impressive, as are the minuscule warning symbols and instruction panels.
There are a few areas where the level of finish isn’t quite perfect, with the edges of the yellow panels appearing rather fuzzy, especially on the CS livery version. However, when viewed from a normal distance, there is little obvious issue other than a slight lack of register on the Crewe Electric depot plaques of No. 92036. Incidentally, a set of etched stainless steel ‘Chunnel’ logos, BR double arrows and depot plaques are provided as separate fittings for installation by the customer.
Atop the roof, there is a full array of insulators and conductors, while the twin pantographs are fully articulated, albeit without springs. If your layout does have catenary, the pantograph can be posed at the desired height to give the impression that it is in contact with the wires. Even the various aerials on the cab roofs are present.
Below floor level, the bogies feature an impressive amount of moulded relief. The third rail shoe brackets are picked out in grey paint and, at first glance, appear to be separate fittings, but are in fact part of the bogie frame mouldings. The central area features a fantastic rendition of the battery and equipment boxes, with fire extinguisher and other panels picked out in appropriate colours. The bufferbeams are adorned with a set of distinctive rectangular buffers and one end has the
The overall level of detail and finish is excellent and the Class 92 will look stunning at work on a modern layout