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Hornby R40506

BR - MK1 Corridor - W24371 - Second Class Coach

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

Prototype Eras
Era 4 (1948 to 1956) British Railways Early Crest
Era 5 (1956 to 1966) British Railways Late Crest

Manufacturer description

The Mk1 was BR’s first standardised design of railway carriage with thousands built across BR’s carriage works in Derby, Wolverton, Doncaster, York, Eastleigh, and Swindon between 1951 and 1963. The design was also used on first generation Diesel Multiple Units (DMUs) until 1974 and for non-passenger stock such as parcel vans and full brake vehicles.

The new coaches gradually replaced older designs inherited from the ‘Big Four’ at nationalisation in 1968 and were used on all British Railways regions. The standard underframe length was 63ft 5in (19.33m) with gangwayed bodies 64ft 6in (19.7m), though suburban coaches and parcel vans were shorter.

Coaches were either fully open or were corridor coaches with seating compartments. Bodywork was of steel panels on wooden frames, with a separate underframe consisting of heavy steel sections braced with steel trusses, originally mounted on ‘BR1’ bogies, though these were superseded by a new cast-steel design from 1958 known as the ‘Commonwealth’ bogie. Later examples utilised a Swindon-designed ‘B4’ bogie which gave a much-improved ride and was adopted for use on Southern Region Mk1 Electric Multiple Units (EMUs).

This highly detailed OO gauge model coach represents a second class corridor coach from the Western Region.

Catalogue listing

Model details

Prototype information

Hornby BR MK1 Corridor – W24371 – Second Class Coach is a OO gauge model of a British Railways second‑class corridor carriage. The model is supplied with the manufacturer part number R40506 and represents the early British Railways crest period, covering the years 1951 to 1963 when the Mk 1 design was first introduced.

The Mk 1 was British Railways’ first standardised carriage design, built in large numbers at Derby, Wolverton, Doncaster, York, Eastleigh and Swindon. The standard underframe measures 63 ft 5 in (19.33 m) and the gangwayed body 64 ft 6 in (19.7 m), although shorter versions were produced for suburban work and parcel vans. The body consists of steel panels on a wooden frame, mounted on a heavy steel underframe with original BR1 bogies later replaced by Commonwealth cast‑steel bogies and, in later examples, Swindon‑designed B4 bogies.

This model specifically reproduces a second‑class corridor coach from the Western Region, featuring the typical steel‑on‑wood construction and the corridor layout with individual seating compartments. It is suitable for collectors and railway model enthusiasts seeking an accurate representation of a post‑war British Railways carriage.