A South Wales 37 with sound!

Relive the days of the blue 37s on heavy South Wales coal and ore trains with this new DCC sound equiped model of Cardiff Cantons' 37 254.

Powered by Bachmanns' proven all-wheel-drive mechanism with central motor, flywheels and diecast chassis, the latest version of the 37 bodyshell accurately captures the blue era appearance, though possibly a lot of weathering might be needed to replicate just how dirty these hard worked locomotives became!

Remember! Antics online price includes standard mainland UK delivery of your new 37!

37 254's long and continuing career began in January 1965 at the Vulcan Foundry as D6954. The new locomotive was sent to the Western region and at the new Cardiff Canton diesel shed.

The locomotive remained allocated to South wales shed for many years, but travelled widely, having been recorded on passenger services in East Anglia!

Period modelled
The new TOPS number of 37 254 was applied in 1974 and duties in South Wales continued. The twin tank conversion was applied to the loco in 1979, greatly extending the operation range and, in 1981,  37 254 featured with a classmate on a charter train and was also recorded banking on the Lickey grade, including pushing a failed 47 into Birmingham! Other passenger related duties included hauling a test train into Wapping Wharf in Bristol (site of the former Bristol Industrial Museum) prioir to a charter train working into the site.

The locomotive received a classified repair early in 1984 and may have been repainted at this time, marking the probable end of the 'modelled condition' period.

In 1985 a downturn in business saw 37 254 stored briefly, but more passenger duties followed that summer with workings to Aberystwyth and Cardiff-Crewe trains mixed with regular South Wales heavy freight duties. The summer of 1988 saw extensive passenger use on sections of Cardiff-Portsmouth/Weymouth services and a return to the Cambrian route to Pwllheli. The beginning of 1989 saw 37 254 assigned to the Railfreight Metals Cardiff locomotive pool, clearly contiuing a life in the service of the South Wales steel industry, probably unaffecetd by the transfer of the locomotive to the civil engineers in 1991, which marked another summer of occasional passenger train haulage on 'Thunderbird' duties!

In 1992 37 254 was assigned to passenger duties for the first time, joining Regional Railways South Wales & West, based appropriately at Cardiff Canton! The locomotive hauled Cardiff/Bristol-Weymouth services through the summer and into 1993, when the locomotive is recorded as a Sandite loco (Sandite is a compound applied to the rails to aid adhesion, particularly in autumn) and in use with Regional railways (Cardiff of course!). The following spring 37 254 moved back to the freight sector with the new Trainload shadow franchise, working into the far South West and Cornwall.

Several unusual passenger workings and railtours were powered by 37 254 in the mid 1990s, the summer of 1997 even featuring a return to the Bristol-Weymouth services, but by the end of 1998 the years and miles since the last major overhaul were telling and 37 254 was first stored unservicable and then sent for component recovery. Inevitably withdraw followed in January 1999

Quite astoundingly this did not prove to be the final act for 37 254! Purchased as a possible preservation and still in the 1980s engineers' grey & yellow livery, 37 254 was returned to operation on 2006 and is currently active with the Spa Valley Railway following full recommissioning in April 2008.