Bachmann Class 57xx LT Pannier Tank
The first Class 57xx tanks were introduced on the GWR in 1929 and built to a design by Collett. Building of them took place between 1929 and 1950 and a total of 863 served the GWR and Western Region of British Railways. Many were built at Swindon but others were contracted out to private builders. The first withdrawals took place in 1956 and all had gone from BR metals by the end of 1966. However, some had been sold to London Transport (LT) and the last of these was not withdrawn until 1971. In LT ownership, they were used on engineers' trains and also for hauling rubbish to Watford tip. There were 13 in the LT fleet and towards the end they attracted a lot of interest from railway enthusiasts.
The former Mainline model was replaced in 2005 by a retooled Class 57xx, with new bunker and a new cab, which had good interior detail. It was given circular water fillers and lamp brackets and it made use of the chassis previously produced for the subclass 8750 model. During 2007, the models became 'DCC ready' with 8-pin sockets fitted. Our model (32-217) is numbered L89 and is the fifth LT version to be modelled by Bachmann and the second since the model was retooled.