BR 50ton Ballast Hopper WHALE

BR 50ton Ballast Hopper WHALE/YHA - built 1966 - OO unpainted plastic kit

Require glue, paint, transfers, couplings, wheels (Gibson 12mm & brass bearings) to complete.

These larger hoppers had a roller-bearing plate bogie (this is a "one-piece" moulding) and were a basically a stretched Walrus, but air-braked. The wagons required strengthening and were moved off the Southern Region in 1982, some working, for example, from a quarry near Shrewsbury. Apparently the designer of the Whales travelled from Meldon Quarry to Taunton on their first trip, in the brake van at the rear of the train. He is said to have emerged onto the platform looking rather green and demanding disciplinary action, as the train had run at 60mph, and the wagons were only designed for 30-45mph! This was how they ended their days, as from 2000 Network Rail imposed a 30mph speed restriction on them.

The bogie ballast hoppers suffered from distortion, and some SR hoppers and Walruses got extra plates on the bottom edge at the end of the sides. Some of the SR ones had wider vertical channels fitted at the end of the sides. Even the later Sealions showed some bending at this point due to the hopper section sagging inboard of the bogie mounting. It is thought that all Whales have now been withdrawn.

Alan Gibson Wheels compatible : 12mm 3-hole