C-rail Intermodal 40ft and 20ft containers

◆ GAUGE ‘OO’ ◆ MODELS 20ft dry box Manchester Liners red • 40ft ‘High Cube’ MSC brown • 40ft ‘High Cube’ ICL red ◆ PRICE £7.50 each (20ft), £8.00 each (40ft) ◆ AVAILABILITY C-rail Intermodal Web www.c-rail-intermodal.co.uk

Atrio of C-rail Intermodal’s latest ready-to-run shipping containers was received at the Warley show, featuring some interesting liveries which are being offered for the first time in 4mm scale. As well as a late 1970s-era 20ft box, there’s an interesting pair of 40ft ‘High Cube’ containers for the modern scene.

The 40ft Independent Container Line (ICL) dry box depicts the current bright red livery of this Trans-atlantic shipping firm. I’ve noticed these striking containers on various intermodal services, around the

West Midlands and on a recent trip to Southampton, so they would be ideal for layouts based on the West Coast Main Line or the route to the Hampshire port.

The deep brown Msc-branded 40ft dry box is another current livery, offering an interesting contrast to the Mediterranean Shipping Company’s usual sand-coloured containers. Interestingly, the BIC (Bureau International des Containers) identification code of this container correctly features a GLDU prefix, revealing that the prototype is owned by the French freight leasing firm Touax.

The 20ft by 8ft 6in container is of late 1970s vintage, with the telltale narrow flat panels on each side. The livery is that of Manchester Liners (ML), a venerable international shipping company that traded via the Manchester Ship Canal from the late 1890s, switching to container traffic in the 1960s.

Owing to the inevitable constraints of being an inland port, where larger vessels couldn’t be accommodated, the operation struggled to compete with other shipping lines. Despite transferring operations to Ellesmere Port in the early 1980s, Manchester Liners called it a day in 1985.

The ML livery features a striking yellow roof, contrasting with the red sides and ends, and is ideal for use on early 1980s liner trains, behind BR blue locomotives.

It also adds more variety to C-rail’s existing containers from the BR Freightliner era.

Like previous containers from this manufacturer, the quality of the moulded shells is impressive, with well defined corrugations and end doors, complete with separately fitted locking bars. The paint finish is superb, with all logos and infographics printed neatly and fully legible. The black rubber seals around the end doors are especially impressive. C-rail’s usual attention to detail extends to the correct ID codes and data panels applied to each box.

The locating eyes match the positions of lugs on various RTR container flats, from Hornby, Dapol, Bachmann and Hattons. That said, I did find it helpful to drill the moulded recesses in each corner a little deeper to create a more secure fit on some of the wagons.

These latest containers provide even more variety to intermodal trains from the BR era and the current freight scene. (GD)