Rail Riders – Class 47 406
Way back when, my late brother was a member of the Rail Riders Club. Despite the logo being a stylised APT-P, the loco named after the club was a Class 47. At first, it was number 406 but later the name was transferred to number 488. I’ve always like the looks of Class 47 locos, and this tenuous justification was enough for me to buy one, even if I can only run it on Erik’s Railway!
After letting quite a few go as over-priced on eBay, I was able to secure one at a price that I was comfortable with. Between the two locos, they wore an array of liveries but I wanted mine to be in Intercity Swallow livery, introduced in 1987 while my brother was a member of the club.
When the model arrived, suitably packed but also still in it’s original box, I was delighted to see that it had been modified to have two motor bogies. Anyone fmiliar with Hornby locos will know that they are generally fitted with one motor bogie and a dummy, wired to pick up from the track but not provide any additional tractive effort.
With the two motor bogies wired together already, the loco was tested and proven to work perfectly well, albeit with a clean of wheels, pick-ups and brushes necessary.
Some modifications are necessary, and others are desirable:
- fit a suitable DCC decoder and programme it to 7406 or 4706
- fit lights, initially directional but later controlled by DCC
- replace the wheels with Ultrascale to remove the traction tyres
It’s quite possible to take detailing to a much higher level. However, very little of that was available in 1987. I’m therefore inclined to keep the model as original as possible in that regard, limiting changes to improving the running rather than the look.