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Hornby R30440

RailRoad - Railfreight Distribution - Class 47 - 'The Sapper' 47306

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

Prototype Era
Era 11 (2016 to 2026) The Last Days of Privatisation

Manufacturer description

A striking and authentic addition to any diesel-era collection, the R30440 Railfreight Distribution Class 47 Co-Co 47306 ‘The Sapper’ is finished in the Railfreight Distribution livery.

This detailed model includes separately fitted plastic buffers and NEM coupling pockets. It comes equipped with a 21-pin DCC decoder socket, making it easy to upgrade for digital operation.

History

A total of 512 Brush Type 4s were built by Brush Traction at its Falcon Works in Loughborough, and by BR at its Crewe Works. This locomotive entered traffic as D1787 in 1964 at Tinsley and was used extensively on merry-go-round trains. 

It was renumbered 47306 in 1974 and became part of the EWS fleet inherited from BR in 1997, painted in BR Freightliner Distribution livery and named ‘The Sapper’. It finished its career at Bescot in February 1999 and, after a period in storage at St Blazey, moved to the Bodmin Railway for preservation in 2007, where it has been restored to full working condition.

Product videos

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  HM I DCC - Advanced Control System Arrives!

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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.

Hornby RailRoad Railfreight Distribution Class 47 ‘The Sapper’ (model number R30440) is a 251 mm long, CO‑CO diesel locomotive kit in the Railfreight Distribution livery. It is fitted with separate plastic buffers, NEM coupling pockets and a 21‑pin DCC decoder socket, making it DCC ready. The model can negotiate a minimum curve radius of the 2nd radius (438 mm) and uses a standard tension‑lock coupling. Designed by Brush Traction, the model represents the current era and carries the manufacturer part number R30440.

A total of 512 Brush Type 4 locomotives were built by Brush Traction at its Falcon Works in Loughborough and by British Railways at Crewe Works. This particular locomotive entered service as D1787 in 1964 at Tinsley and was used extensively on merry‑go‑round freight trains. It was renumbered 47306 in 1974, entered the EWS fleet inherited from British Railways in 1997, and was repainted in the BR Freightliner Distribution livery under the name ‘The Sapper’. The locomotive finished its operational career at Bescot on 02 February 1999, spent a period in storage at St Blazey, and was transferred to the Bodmin Railway for preservation in 2007, where it has been restored to full working condition.