Bachmann MXA ‘Lobster’

◆ GAUGE ‘OO’ ◆ MODEL Bachmann Branchline 37-830A DB Cargo MXA ‘Lobster’ wagon ◆ PRICE £57.95 ◆ AVAILABILITY Bachmann stockists Web www.bachmann.co.uk

The first MXA ‘Lobster’ wagon appeared in January 2016, as the pioneer of a sizeable fleet of ballast and spoil carrying vehicles. Rebuilt from redundant BDA/BEA ‘Bogie Bolster D’ wagons, the MXAS featured open box bodies bolted to open-framed chassis.

Conversions took place at Axiom Rail’s works near Stoke-ontrent, on behalf of DB Schenker (now DB Cargo) and the prototypes can be seen at work across the country on DB’S various Network Rail infrastructure contracts.

Bachmann announced its ‘OO’ version of the MXA earlier this year and two versions are now available, both in the bright red DB livery and sporting individual numbers. With the BDA bogie wagons added to the Bachmann range in 2008, I wondered if this new model would make use of part of the original tooling, just like the real thing.

To Bachmann’s credit, close inspection reveals that only the bogies, air brake gear and buffers have been reused, with the rest of the MXA being completely new. Moreover, the chassis is far superior to that found on the

BDA, with greater definition in the trussing and brake gear, while the outer faces of the solebars are equipped with an accurate array of rivet and bolt heads, brackets and plates.

Another welcome feature is the open nature of the frames, which is visible below the box body and is a vital characteristic of the real vehicles. The box itself looks the part, with a convincing representation of the outer strengthening ribs and securing brackets, and all key dimensions appear to have been scaled down correctly.

As mentioned, Bachmann’s existing bogies are employed, with NEM coupler pockets fixed to the frames. Perhaps some modellers might have expected pivoting close-coupler units mounted to the chassis, as is becoming the norm on longer vehicles. If this was the case, the equipment would ruin the open nature of the frames, so the bogie-mounted couplers are something of a blessing.

The level of finish is superb, with all printed legends on the solebars and the DB logos being printed to a very high standard. A pair of plastic brake hoses is supplied as optional fittings to each headstock.

The MXA ‘Lobster’ is a welcome addition to the canon of contemporary infrastructure wagons, making for an ideal companion to a Class 66 in DB or EX-EWS livery, while I’ve seen them hauled by the odd Freightliner ‘Shed’ too. (GD)