Heljan 1800 Sound

BR Gas Turbine 18000 Class Locomotive BR Black with Silver Trim - DCC Sound

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

Prototype Era
Era 4 (1948 to 1956) British Railways Early Crest

Manufacturer description

Rails of Sheffield Exclusive - Pre Fitted with DCC Sound by Rails

VERY LIMITED STOCK

British Rail 18000 Gas Turbine Prototype Locomotive nicknamed ‘Kerosene Castle’

BR gloss black with silver trim (1949-56 condition)

Model Specification

• 21-pin DCC socket with easy access
• Directional LED Lighting, Cab lighting and engine room lighting!
  
• Heavy die-cast metal chassis with central motor and flywheels giving powerful performance
• Separately fitted wire handrails and sandpipes
• Spoked wheels
• Etched grilles
• Sprung buffers
• Flush glazing
• An optional Western Region style train reporting number frame and numerals will also be included in the package, allowing modellers to add this distinctive WR feature to the front of the locomotive.

Proposed model based on a unique gas turbine prototype built for BR, but ordered by the GWR in the 1940s. British Rail 18000 was a prototype mainline gas turbine-electric locomotive built for British Railways in 1949 by Brown, Boveri & Cie in Switzerland. It had, however, been ordered by the Great Western Railway in 1946, but construction was delayed. It spent its working life on the Western Region of British Railways, operating express passenger services from London Paddington to the West of England.
Loco was delivered in BR black with silver trim, but later painted in BR lined green with early emblem and then late crest, offering three livery options.
After withdrawal from BR service it went abroad and was used in various experiments in Austria and Switzerland in the 1960s and 1970s. Stored for many years in Vienna, it returned to the UK in the early-1990s for preservation and now resides at Didcot Railway Centre, albeit with many external modifications and without any internal equipment.
In terms of size and specification, this loco is similar to Heljan prototypes such as Kestrel and Falcon.

Catalogue listing

Model details

Heljan BR 18000 class gas turbine locomotive is offered as a limited edition model under the Rails of Sheffield range. The kit is supplied in BR gloss black with silver trim and includes pre‑fitted DCC Sound electronics, a 21‑pin DCC socket with easy access and interior lighting comprising directional LEDs, cab lighting and engine‑room lighting.

The model features a heavy die‑cast metal chassis with a centrally mounted motor and flywheels for strong performance. Details include separately fitted wire handrails and sandpipes, spoked wheels, etched grilles, sprung buffers and flush glazing. An optional Western Region style train reporting number frame and numerals are provided for adding the distinctive WR feature to the front of the locomotive.

The prototype represented by the model is the British Rail 18000 gas turbine‑electric locomotive, built in 1949 by Brown, Boveri & Cie in Switzerland after being ordered by the Great Western Railway in 1946. It operated express passenger services on the Western Region from London Paddington to the West of England, initially in BR black with silver trim and later in BR lined green with early and late crests. After withdrawal it was used in experimental work abroad and is now preserved at Didcot Railway Centre.