Graham Farish Class 150/2 371-327
Following the success of Bachmann's 00 scale Class 150 'Sprinter', the two-car N gauge version has now been released. Four versions are due this year and a fifth one will be in a train set. Two recently released are
Class 150/1 150125 in Central Trains livery (371-326) and Class 150/2 150256 in Arriva Trains Wales / Arriva Cymru livery (371-327).The sample reviewed here is the 150/2 in Arriva Trains Wales blue livery, with lighter blue doors. Being of the later subclass, it has corridor connections in both cab fronts, whereas the one in Central Trains livery has a plain cab front. Our sample is based on one built in 1987 at BREL York. The printing is very fine with a very thin yellow line low on both sides and the steps picked out in yellow. The curved flash on the cab sides is in cream paint. The intermediate corridor connector doors are white and the window frames are raised. The latter are very neatly picked out in silver and have clear glazing. The under-floor detail is all there and there are nicely formed seating units inside. The back half of the motorised car is taken up with the motor but, in this scale, it is much less noticeable.
The manufacturers recommend that it is not used on less than second radius curves. Thanks to pick-ups on all wheels, the models performance is very good, being smooth at all speeds. There is also working directional lighting. The extras bag for each car contains two close couplers, an imitation BSI coupler and a snowplough. Nowadays Graham Farish locomotives come with illustrated instructions - a great improvement!
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