Industrial Guardians

Hello and welcome to the latest edition of Engine Shed. In this month’s issue we will be looking at the new 0-6-0DH Sentinels as well as bringing you up to date with some of the new releases that the Hornby team has been working on, but first the Sentinels.

Alley & MacLellan, based in Glasgow had been producing Sentinel branded machinery, mainly for the maritime industry since 1875 but it was not until 1905 that they started to manufacture their first steam driven waggons. As the steam waggons became more of an important part of their business the Sentinel Waggon Works became a separate company and was based in Shrewsbury where it continued to build its now famous steam waggons along with industrial locomotives and the Sentinel-Cammell railcars.

The Shrewsbury Sentinel works continued to produce a varied array of steam waggons, Garner and HSG lorries as well as continuing to develop rail locomotives and railcars. During the Second World War, the factory produced a variety of military equipment but after 1945 returned to producing steam waggons as well as steam and diesel powered lorries and buses. Unfortunately due to poor sales, the company ceased production of lorries and the factory was acquired by Rolls-Royce for diesel engine production.

In 1957 Rolls-Royce was persuaded to produce a small diesel locomotive which took 2 years to develop which proved to be a success and orders were soon placed. By 1963 four types of diesel powered Sentinel locomotives were in production one of which was a 48 ton 0-6-0 rod coupled machine that was powered by a Rolls-Royce C8SFL eight cylinder engine and is the subject of Hornby’s latest industrial locomotive.

The first fully detailed industrial locomotive that Hornby produced was the Sentinel 4wDM released in 2013. Since then there have been several variants introduced both with and without connecting rods with the latest model, the Hitachi Sentinel 0-4-0 ‘Chiaki Ueda’, named after (at the time) Hitachi Rail’s Chairman. Since then Hornby has introduced or at least announced several different industrial locomotives including the diminutive 48DS and its big brother the Ruston & Hornsby 88DS, a model which has yet to be released. However, back in late 2019, it was felt that Hornby should once again look at the Sentinel range of locomotives and this time the 0-6-0 coupled version was chosen.

All models requiring new tooling are carefully researched before a designer even starts to look at  ‘putting pen to paper’ or to be more accurate ‘cursor to screen’. Such considerations taken into account include any historical information, available liveries, specific design considerations, detail differences and of course any reference images. From there a brief is given to the designer and that is when the design work really begins.

The design started in April 2020 during the first COVID lockdown, which is not ideal when starting a new project as invariably there will be questions needing answers and reference material not easily at hand, but progress continued at a steady rate. Of course, the designer did have the advantage of some 300+ images of the Sentinel to consult and that did make his task a little easier.

Credited to Colin Girlie Collection

One of the attributes of a good designer is to look at past similar models and see if any improvements or enhancements could be made and so it was with this model. Examining the 0-4-0 Sentinel the designer was able to identify certain areas that he believed he could improve when it came to the new 0-6-0 Sentinel. Firstly, he looked at the 0-4-0 locomotive’s construction and whereas the body and the chassis framework were part of the same assembly, he opted to design a totally different chassis for the new 0-6-0 version that would be assembled separately to the body. Such a design allowed for two important improvements; The first was the more straightforward fitting of a 6pin decoder in the model, while the second was ensuring a high degree of cab detail could be included which was not possible on the previous 4 wheel Sentinel. An added advantage to the separate diecast chassis was the extra weight which of course allowed for greater pulling power.

The design took at least two months to complete but it was not until after a visit to the East Somerset Railway in June 2020 and a thorough examination of Sentinel No. PBA 39 could the final touches to the design be completed. It was not until after a thorough design review between Hornby’s development manager and the designer, that the model was signed off and ready for the drawings to be converted into a 3D printed model. Once that part of the process had been approved the model was cleared for tooling work to commence.

It is without question that COVID has caused more than a little disruption in Hornby’s development schedule but luckily that had not impacted the delivery expectations of this new Sentinel as it was not until January of this year that the model was announced.

Initially, there are three versions which are now available and these are, R30083 Port of Bristol Authority No. 39 as examined at the East Somerset Railway, R30084 Manchester Ship Canal No. 3001 and finally NCB ‘Stanton’ No. 57.

Each of these models has a story to tell as to their journey from the Sentinel Works in the early 60s to the present day and it is a mark of the build quality that even after the many years of hard haulage that all three are going strong to this day.

A Group of Growlers

We rarely mention RailRoad models in Engine Shed but in this issue, we are highlighting a trio of RailRoad Plus Class 37 models that are planned to be released over the next couple of months.

There were 309 of the English Electric Type 3, later reclassified under TOPs as Class 37s built between 1960 and 1965, with approximately 60 still in operation today on the national network. Used over the years for both passenger and freight haulage these veritable workhorses carry a variety of nicknames including Growlers and Tractors, which no doubt has something to do with the instantly recognisable sound generated by the fitted English Electric DC traction motors.

Delayed from 2021 due to amongst other issues, the COVID situation, the three illustrated Class 37 RailRoad Plus models certainly make up in stunning liveries what they may lack in detail. Each model is powered by a five pole skew wound motor and has pickups on each bogie which certainly ensures smooth and dependable running even at slow speeds.

Two of the three carry etched metal nameplates while the Colas Rail model is fitted with a TTS sound decoder which along with all the expected sounds associated with a Class 37 features the unmistakable cold start sound sequence.

A trio of 37s - Certainly great additions and definitely welcomed by those who may model on a budget.

Coming Soon

Following the Chinese New Year, we have a month full of new arrivals ahead of us!

The powerful and mighty Class 08s will be heading into our warehouse soon, including the BR version with sound!

• R3898TTS BR  Class 08  0-6-0 3817 - Era 6
• R3899 BR, Class 08, 0-6-0, 08715 - Era 8
• R3900 GWR  Class 08  0-6-0  08645  St. Piran  - Era 11

Highly anticipated, the A1/A3 models with diecast footplate and flickering firebox can finally be fully admired soon – those arriving in the next few weeks include ‘Knight of the Thistle’, ‘Flying Scotsman’, ‘Doncaster’ and ‘Lemberg’.

• R3989 LNER, A1 Class, 2564 'Knight of Thistle' (diecast footplate and flickering firebox) - Era 3
• R3991 BR, A3 Class, 4-6-2, 60103 'Flying Scotsman' (diecast footplate and flickering firebox) - Era 4
• R30087 LNER  A3 Class  No. 45 'Lemberg' (diecast footplate and flickering firebox) - Era 3
• R3990 LNER  A1 Class  No. 2547 'Doncaster' (diecast footplate and flickering firebox) - Era 3

If you’re working on a scenic layout project and you’re after new buildings or structures then we have you covered with this assortment, including a Scottish Croft, Village Pump, Stone Footbridge and plenty more!

With so much more arriving in March, we don’t want to bombard you, so be sure to sign up for the Hornby Newsletter at the bottom of this page for all the latest updates on new arrivals.

Message from Montana

Terrier 150^th Anniversary

We are thrilled to be joining Kent & East Sussex Railways and The Terrier Trust in celebrating a huge 150 years of the Terrier. In accordance with the special year, we are pleased to share the official Terrier 150 website as prepared by the organising group for the anniversary. Included on the site is all the latest news, details of the surviving Terriers and a calendar of events to celebrate the occasion.

Plus, we will be producing a special limited-edition Terrier 150 Train Pack including LBSCR Terrier ‘Poplar’ No. 70 and SR Terrier No. 2678. Click here for more information or to order yours!

Ex-Display Weekend

If you’re local to Margate or fancy a seaside visit be sure to visit the Hornby Visitor Centre on the weekend of 5^th and 6^th March as there will be an ‘ex-display’ sale taking place including not only Hornby models but also Scalextric, Airfix, Corgi and Humbrol products. For further details regarding the Hornby Visitor Centre and the address details head over to this page.

Included in the 2022 Hornby Collector Club offering we have three new and exclusive models available at various price points. If you’re a Club Member and fancy getting your hands on one of these be sure to place your order or if you’re interested in ordering and you’re not a Club Member, click here for all the details regarding signing up.

A stunning, celebratory Class 90 for 100 Years of Malcolm Rail is included in the Club range, featuring a unique livery and including a special anniversary logo.

2022 marks two key anniversaries for Hornby, including 70 years of Tri-ang Railways and 50 years of Hornby Railways and we are delighted to celebrate the occasion with this 0-4-0.

Another special anniversary this year is the 150^th of the Terrier! As above, a limited edition Train Pack is being produced to commemorate the occasion, but we also have plenty of other new Terriers available including ‘Martello’ no 662.

For further information regarding the Hornby Collector Club please click here.

And that brings this month’s Engine Shed to a close for yet another month but please do let us have your feedback.  Perhaps you would like us to cover a specific subject in future Engine Shed blogs, or maybe you might just have a suggestion of a particular model that you think we should produce. Whatever the case do let us have your thoughts and ideas, we are always keen to receive feedback.

Until next month enjoy your modelling.

Be sure to follow Hornby on Facebook, Twitter, TikTok and Instagram to be kept up to date on all the latest news and product updates. Don’t forget to subscribe to the Hornby YouTube channel too!

Happy Modelling!

The Engine Shed Team

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