DB CLASS 66s

Bright Red ‘Sheds’ Finished in Latest Liveries.

Observers of the contemporary railway will have noticed the shift towards a more austere form of corporate identity for Deutsche Bahn locomotives in the UK. Having re-branded itself from DB Schenker to DB Cargo, locomotives and wagons have been emerging with simple DB branding, in common with stock operating on the European mainland.

The bright red and grey livery is certainly eye-catching, especially when a freshly painted locomotive is seen hauling a complete rake of matching red wagons. Having looked into the subject of banking locomotives recently (issue 234 of Model Rail magazine), the idea of recreating one of the DB Class 66s equipped for Lickey banking duties appealed. Having approached Precision Labels for a set of suitable decals, he suggested also modelling 66136, with its special scheme commemorating the Yiwu (China) to London overland freight service, which seemed like a great idea.

Using both a Bachmann and a Hornby 66, the re-branding didn’t take long and Precision Labels also supplied sets of 3D-printed side mirrors and swing-knuckle couplers, making the job complete. The spotlights fitted to Lickey banker 66055 were scratchbuilt from plastic rod and brass wire – fitting working LEDs seemed like a step too far!

See a full demo in the next issue of Model Rail (MR235), out on 4 May.