Railion ASF Diesel Shunting Tractor V

Railion ASF Diesel Shunting Tractor V

1:160 scale model produced by Arnold. This model is ready-to-run straight out of the box and would make a excellent addition to any model railway collection.

Features:

• Analogue DC Model
• Best suited to Epoch V Model Railways
• This model mainly operates in Switzerland
• Decorated in Railion company markings
• Best suited to 192mm radius curves

Details

The ASF EL16 (often just called EL 16) was a battery-electric shunting locomotive built from 1966 to 1990 by VEB Lokomotivbau-Elektrotechnische Werke “Hans Beimler” (LEW) in East Germany. It was designed as a compact, depot shunter for moving rolling stock around yards, workshops, container terminals, and other industrial locations without overhead wires. Production ran for over two decades, with around 500+ examples constructed in several variants.

The EL 16 is a two-axle battery locomotive weighing about 12 tonnes, with 110 V battery power and a maximum speed around 6 km/h, ideal for slow but powerful yard duties. Early units were delivered to the East German Deutsche Reichsbahn (DR), which designated them ASF — short for Akkuschleppfahrzeug (“battery-powered towing vehicle”) — and this name is now commonly used for the type. Over time, many EL 16s also went to industrial users in Germany and abroad, including Poland, Hungary and Czechoslovakia.

Thanks to their small size and distinctive look, EL 16 battery shunters make great subjects for industrial and depot scenes on model railways, especially in HO scale where they add operational interest and character to yards and workshops.