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

Heljan 45402

Class 45/1 45133 BR Blue with Full Yellow Ends Diesel Locomotive

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

All-new Derby/Sulzer Type 4 in ‘OO’ now being tooled and featuring a large number of authentic detail variations – including the first-ever accurate models of ETH-fitted Class 45/1s.

HELJAN’s next ‘OO’ gauge BR diesel locomotive project will be an all-new Class 45, celebrating the 60th anniversary of this popular class in 2020.

No fewer than four versions are being prepared initially, depicting vacuum-braked and steam-heated locomotives in split-centre headcode condition, dual-braked, steam heat Class 45/0s with rebuilt ‘sealed beam’ nose ends and, for the first time, accurate models of Class 45/1s with or without the high-intensity headlight fitted in their final years.

The Class 45s are well known for the myriad detail variations across the class and our models will reflect that with a wide range of authentic differences according period, livery, sub-class and individual locomotives.

Variations will include open or plated boiler steps and roof hatches, bodyside grilles or plated panels (or a combination of both), original or modernised underframe tanks with air cylinders, optional inner sandboxes and boiler hatch covers and more.

The models build on the research and development that went into our well-received ‘O’ gauge Class 45 and many of the fine details seen on that model have been incorporated into its little sisters. Other features include a 21-pin DCC interface, NEM coupler pockets neatly designed as part of the bufferbeams, ample provision for DCC sound installation, LED lighting appropriate to each version and separately switched cab and tail lights.

The first batch will cover a broad cross-section of BR green, BR blue and special liveries from the early-1960s to the late-1980s. Production of each version will be strictly limited and early ordering is recommended to avoid disappointment.

Detailed design work was completed earlier this year and tooling is in progress and first releases planned in the third quarter of 2020.

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.

Heljan Class 45/1 No. 45133 is a 2‑mm (OO) gauge model of a British Rail diesel‑electric locomotive in the original BR blue livery with full yellow ends. The locomotive is presented in a pristine finish and carries the running number 45133; it represents a member of the Class 45 series built at Derby Works between 1960 and 1962, of which 127 were produced.

The model is DCC‑ready, offering a 21‑pin socket for digital control, and is fitted with NEM coupler pockets integrated into the bufferbeams. It runs on all wheels, has directional and interior LED lighting, and can be equipped with DCC sound. The locomotive measures 270 mm in length, can negotiate a minimum 2nd‑radius curve of 438 mm, and is supplied with a Co‑Co wheel arrangement, diesel motive power and a maximum speed of 90 mph. Other features include a 2nd‑radius minimum curve, 21‑pin DCC interface, and separate cab and tail lights.

Heljan’s launch of this model forms part of a broader OO‑gauge range introduced to mark the 60th anniversary of the Class 45 in 2020. The range will include several variations covering vacuum‑braked, steam‑heated, dual‑braked and final‑year ETH‑fitted configurations, with differences such as boiler steps, roof hatches, bodyside grilles, underframe tanks, inner sandboxes and headlamp types. Production is limited; the first releases were scheduled for the third quarter of 2020, and early orders were advised.