📢 Please take a minute to read this personal message from the creator of RailwayModels.uk

Dapol 4S-028-005DWL

Highly Detailed Deluxe Weathered SECR Maunsell D1 Class BR Black (Late Crest) 4-4-0 Steam Locomotive No.31246

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

Prototype Era
Era 5 (1956 to 1966) British Railways Late Crest

Manufacturer description

Exclusive Model, Produced by Dapol.

Highly detailed model with deluxe weathering. Coal load added.

Brief History:

After 1901 the D class locomotive fast became the mainline locomotive of choice on the south coast, (making the SE&CR’s first mainline express formation) further (for the time) powerful locomotives were investigated by the companies. After Richard Maunsell took the reigns from Harry Wainwright in 1913 he worked on a series of new locomotives which were intended for a long service life, this involved the conversion and upgrade of 11 E class locomotives, resulting in the E1 class. This proved very successful and led directly to the conversion of 21 D class into the D1 class between 1921 and 1927. Though arguably, not as elegant as the D class equipped with a larger boiler, a belpaire firebox and longer travel cylinders the D1 was able to produce a considerable haulage and power increase over its predecessors.

Initially allocated to Ashford shed, this class was to be found all over the south-eastern division from London to the south.

Withdrawn in November 1961, no preserved examples exist.

Specification:

Technical Specification
• Diecast Chassis
• Low centre of gravity located between the driving wheels
• NEM couplings with removable coupling pocket
• Sprung buffers
• R2 (438mm/17.2”) minimum radius
• Pickup from tender and driving wheels
• Powerful 5 pole motor located within boiler
• Pull Out PCB for a tool-free DCC & Speaker fitting.
• ‘Snap-fit’ conductive tender drawbar
• Options for bass reflex speaker in tender (pre-wired)
• Firebox glow
• Profiled wheels
• Detailed motion
• Removable coal load with internal tender profiling
• Fully detailed back-head and cab interior.
• Back by Dapol’s comprehensive warranty and service

Variations (dependent on model represented)

• Two frame variations (to include early D class conversions)
• Two cab types
• Two Chimney types
• Two Smokebox types
• Three dome types (with/without top feed and plated)
• Two safety valve types (Ross-pop and Ramsbottom)
• With and without snifter valves
• ‘High capacity’ tenders
• Manual and automatic lubricators
• Additional minor detail variations

 

 

Catalogue listing

Model details

Prototype information

Dapol Highly Detailed Deluxe Weathered SECR Maunsell D1 Class BR Black (Late Crest) 4‑4‑0 Steam Locomotive No.31246 is a limited edition model released as part of the Rails of Sheffield range. The model is DCC ready (DCC 18), finished in a weathered black livery, and carries the manufacturer part number 4S‑028‑005DWL. It represents the British Railways late‑crest period and is an exclusive Dapol production.

The locomotive portrayed is a conversion of the original SE&CR D class, upgraded to the D1 class between 1921 and 1927 under the direction of Richard Maunsell. Initially allocated to Ashford shed, the class operated widely across the south‑eastern division from London to the south coast. The real locomotives were withdrawn in November 1961 and no examples survive in preservation.

Key technical features include a die‑cast chassis with a low centre of gravity between the driving wheels, NEM couplings with a removable coupling pocket, sprung buffers and a minimum radius of 438 mm (17.2 in). Power is supplied by a five‑pole motor situated within the boiler, with pickup from both tender and driving wheels. The model incorporates a pull‑out PCB for tool‑free DCC and speaker fitting, a snap‑fit conductive tender drawbar, options for a bass‑reflex speaker pre‑wired in the tender, firebox glow, profiled wheels, detailed motion, a removable coal load with internal tender profiling, and fully detailed back‑head and cab interior. It is backed by Dapol’s comprehensive warranty and service.

The model is offered in a range of variations depending on the prototype represented, including two frame types, two cab styles, two chimney designs, two smokebox forms, three dome configurations, two safety‑valve types, options for snifter valves, high‑capacity tenders, and manual or automatic lubricators, together with several minor detail differences.