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Bachmann 31-678A

Class 85 85040 BR Blue (Weathered)

Manufacturer catalogue image - please note that pre-release images may be CAD renders or CGI images rather than photographs

Prototype Eras
Era 7 (1972 to 1982) British Rail Blue (TOPS)
Era 8 (1983 to 1994) British Rail Sectorisation

Manufacturer description

Class 85 85040 BR Blue (Weathered)

Highlights:

• Accessory-pack
• Directional and cab interior lights
• Headcode box treatment appropriate to era
• Poseable pantograph

History

The British Rail Class 85 is a 25kV overhead AC electric locomotive built during the early 1960s, as part of BR's policy to develop a standard electric locomotive during the electrification of the West Coast Main Line and its associated urban networks. Five prototype classes (81-85) were built and evaluated, the most successful being the 40-strong Class 85 which led naturally on to the development of the 100 Class 86 'standard' locomotives.

Forty of these locomotives were built from 1961-64 by BR at Doncaster Works. The class hauled trains on the newly electrified West Coast Main Line, from Birmingham, to Crewe, Manchester Piccadilly, Liverpool, and later Preston. By 1965, electrification had spread south to London Euston.

Under the earlier BR classification, the type was given the designation AL5 (meaning the 5th design of 25 kV AC locomotive), and locomotives were numbered E3056-E3095. In 1968, this was changed to Class 85, when BR introduced the TOPS numbering system. From 1971 onwards, locomotives were progressively renumbered into the 85001-040 series.

Catalogue listing

Model details

Prototype information

^* Class names often change over the lifespan of a locomotive, so this is not necessarily the class name used by the operator in the period modelled.

Bachmann model Class 85 locomotive, running number 85040, is presented in a weathered British Rail Blue livery. The kit measures 230 mm in length and is DCC Ready, fitted with a 21‑pin socket. It can negotiate a minimum curve of 438 mm (2nd radius) and includes both directional and interior lighting. The locomotive is powered by electricity, reproducing a Bo‑Bo wheel arrangement, and is supplied with a manufacturer part number 31‑678A. It represents British Rail Class 85, built between 1961 and 1964, of which 40 examples were produced. The model is capable of a maximum speed of 80 mph (100 mph on the prototype) and depicts the TOPS era British Rail Blue period.

The model includes an accessory pack with a poseable pantograph, a headcode box appropriate to the era, and cab interior lights. The real Class 85 locomotives were 25 kV overhead AC units introduced during the early 1960s to service the newly electrified West Coast Main Line, operating services between Birmingham, Crewe, Manchester Piccadilly, Liverpool and later Preston, with electrification reaching London Euston by 1965. Initially classified as AL5 and numbered E3056‑E3095, they were re‑classified under the TOPS system as Class 85 and renumbered 85001‑040 from 1971 onward.