7 Plank Wagon Neasden No.1

7 Plank Wagon Neasden No.1

Details

Model:

Add an iconic piece of British railway history to your OO gauge freight fleet with the Rapido Trains UK Gloucester 7-Plank Private Owner Wagon. Faithfully reproduced from one of the most recognisable private owner wagon designs ever built, this highly detailed model captures the distinctive appearance of the Gloucester Railway Carriage and Wagon Company's famous 15-foot, 7-plank open wagon.

This model includes a fully decorated interior, accurately moulded internal strapping with rivet detail, finely reproduced underframe components, and a crisp, authentic private owner livery. Brass bearings provide smooth, free-running performance, while NEM 363 coupling pockets ensure compatibility with a wide range of OO gauge rolling stock.

Whether you're recreating a busy colliery, industrial railway, or main line goods service, this versatile wagon is an ideal addition to any steam-era or early British Railways freight train. Their distinctive proportions and superb detailing make them the perfect companion to Rapido's expanding range of private owner wagons.

Features:

• 1:76 Scale Model
• This model is best suited to 371mm radius curves
• This model is fitted with NEM style couplings
• RCH 1907 Spec Open Wagon
• Neasden Great Central & Metropolitan No. 1
• 7-plank wagon with side doors
• 15ft length, inside diagonal bracing
• Square grease axleboxes
• Single-sided brakes
• Straight V-hangers
• Ribbed buffers
• Split-spoke wheels running in metal bearings
• High level of detail above and below the floor line
• High-quality livery application

Historical Background

For more than 120 years, the Gloucester Railway Carriage and Wagon Company was one of Britain's leading manufacturers of railway rolling stock. Although renowned for producing coaches, railcars and even military vehicles, the company became equally famous for the thousands of freight wagons it supplied to railway companies and private industry throughout the UK and overseas.

Among its most enduring designs was the 15-foot Gloucester 7-plank open wagon. Introduced during the 1890s, the wagon featured a robust internal strapping arrangement and was built in both end-door and non-end-door configurations. Remarkably, the basic design remained largely unchanged until the early 1920s, reflecting its practicality, durability and widespread popularity.

Thousands of these wagons were either sold outright or supplied as part of Gloucester's extensive wagon hire fleet, serving collieries, merchants, factories and industrial concerns across Britain. Following nationalisation after the Second World War, many hired wagons became British Railways property, although the exact number of surviving 1890s-built examples remains unknown. Sadly, none of these historic wagons survived into preservation, making Rapido Trains UK's meticulously researched model an excellent way to preserve the memory of one of Britain's most significant private owner wagon designs.