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Bachmann 39-620A

SE&CR 60ft Birdcage Brake Third SE&CR Dark Lake

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

Prototype Era
Era 2 (1875 to 1923) Pre-grouping

Manufacturer description

Highlights

• both bodyside window configurations tooled for
• flush-glazed
• correct window corner radii
• fully detailed interior with partitions 
• saloon tables 
• lavatories appropriate to prototype
• fully decorated seating painted in accurate colours
• exquisite underframe detailing
• finely mounded brake details
• 4 sets of very finely moulded queen post truss rodding and turnbuckles
• Dynamos and battery boxes fitted to the SE&CR composite as prototype
• Dynamos fitted to the SR / BR Composite and the Brake Third as per prototype
• all new well detailed 8ft Heavy Fox coil spring bolster bogies 
• metal wheels sets and pin point axles running in metal bearings 
• Detachable couplings in NEM pockets 
• close coupling mechanism

Separately applied fittings include:

• roof vents
• vacuum pipes
• handrails 
• grab handles 
• lamp irons and brake control apparatus (Brake coaches only)

 

History

 

Sixty-two 60ft three coach ‘birdcage’ sets were introduced by the South Eastern and Chatham Railway (SE&CR) between 1912 and 1915. The characteristic birdcage lookouts over each of the guards compartments give these sets their name and typify standard SE&CR non-corridor coaching stock. With their distinct character, being of pre-grouping origin, these sets were long lived and little modified during their lifetime, so have a wide applicability to modellers.

 

The sets comprised  2nd/ 3rd class composite Brake Lavatory (later declassified to Brake Lavatory Third), a 1st / 2nd (later declassified to 1st/ 3rd) Lavatory Composite  and Brake Third. The Composites were built in batches with two distinct body side variations. The initial order had two wide windows on each side for the saloon, and the later examples had one wide and one narrow window for the saloon.

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 SE&CR 60ft Birdcage Brake Third – Dark Lake (2020 range)

Model number: 39‑620A
Running number: 1144
Length: 260 mm
Coach type: South Eastern & Chatham Railway 60‑ft Birdcage, Brake Third (BT)
Operator: South Eastern & Chatham Railway
Class represented: Third class
Period depicted: pre‑grouping (1912‑1915)
Finish: Pristine
Livery: Dark Lake

Key features

- Bodyside windows accurately toiled for flush‑glazed fitting and correct corner radii.
- Fully detailed interior with partitions, saloon tables and prototype‑accurate lavatories.
- Seating painted in correct colours and finely detailed underframe.
- Brake details modelled with mounded finish and four sets of finely moulded queen‑post truss rodding and turnbuckles.
- Dynamos and battery boxes fitted to the SE&CR composite, and dynamos to the SR/BR composite and the Brake Third as per prototype.
- New 8‑ft Heavy Fox coil‑spring bolster bogies, metal wheelsets and pin‑point axles running in metal bearings.
- Detachable couplings in NEM pockets with close‑coupling mechanism.
- Separate fittings include roof vents, vacuum pipes, handrails, grab handles, lamp irons and brake control apparatus (brake coaches only).

Historical context

Between 1912 and 1915 the South Eastern and Chatham Railway introduced sixty‑two 60‑ft three‑coach “birdcage” sets. The distinctive birdcage lookouts over each guard’s compartment gave the sets their name and typify standard SE&CR non‑corridor coaching stock. The sets comprised a Brake Lavatory Third, a Lavatory Composite (later 1st/3rd) and a Brake Third. Composite cars were built in two body‑side variations: early examples with two wide saloon windows per side and later examples with one wide and one narrow window. The design remained largely unchanged throughout its service life, offering broad applicability to modellers.