Graham Farish 372-261 N Gauge Class 47 47727 'Rebecca' Colas

Summary

Towards the end of the 1950s, British Railways began planning a second generation of diesel locomotives. After investigating several prototypes, BR decided to place an order with Brush Engineering for 20 locomotives during February 1961. The resulting design became the iconic Brush Type 4 Diesel locomotive, practical, versatile design with a very distinctive cab. Powered with a Sulzer engine and initially rated at 2750hp, the locomotive could achieve a top speed of 75mph with a tractive effort of 55000lb. Building commenced in January 1962 and the first locomotive D1500 appeared in late September of the same year with test runs on the London Midland Region and Western Region. The design was a success and BR went on to order a total of 512 with continuous production through to early 1967, forming the largest single class of main-line diesel locomotives in the UK.