Bachmann Class 69s

The real Class 69 Diesel Locomotives have been created for GBRf through the conversion of redundant Class 56s and we are delighted to present this Bachmann Branchline OO scale model of Britain’s newest mainline diesel.

Produced under an exclusive agreement with GBRf, the Branchline model has been painstakingly developed hand-in-hand with the introduction of the GBRf fleet. With the Class 69s being built from donor locomotives that were first built by three different works and have themselves seen almost fifty years of use and modification, Bachmann has worked closely with GBRf to accommodate any detail differences that were present on the donors and have remained apparent on the rebuilt machines, along with any changes made to the final design of the Class 69 during the ongoing build programme.

This diligent approach has resulted in a truly magnificent model which befits the Branchline name, capturing the Class 56 shape to a tee alongside the modern adornments and many changes made to the locomotives to create the 69s.

The bodyshell features crisp, accurate mouldings to depict the main features along with separately fitted parts, including etched bodyside and roof fan grilles, metal windscreen wipers and separately fitted driver’s door handrails. Inside the cab there is interior detailing which will be decorated appropriately whilst machine room detailing is visible through the bodyside grilles. The underframe equipment is all present and correct, composed of many separate parts along with sandboxes and sandpipes and sprung metal buffers, but it is the bogies that really bring this model to life. It’s hard to describe these as anything but a work of art, using countless separate components to model every aspect of the bogie in full relief, from the brakes to the suspension, even down to the separately fitted bogie-body securing chains.

All of this detail, both inside and out, will be brought to life with an exquisite livery application using true-to-prototype colours, fonts and logos and with the help of GBRf official livery diagrams.

Under the body, the Branchline Class 69 features our proven drive system using a 5 pole motor with twin flywheels driving all axles on each bogie. Electrical pick-up comes from all wheels whilst DCC provision comes in the form of a Plux22 interface. Directional lighting is of course provided, along with cab and machine room lighting when used on DCC. The Dual Fitted speaker system is fitted to every model and this is fully utilised in our SOUND FITTED and SOUND FITTED DELUXE variants. Talking of SOUND FITTED DELUXE, opt for our top of the range model and you can enjoy the additional features of motorised radiator fans and DCC-uncoupling – thanks to the Bachmann Auto-release Coupling System!


Bachmann gave this update in February 2025:

It has been a few years since our upcoming OO scale models of the Class 69 were first announced for the Bachmann Branchline range, and it’s clear from all of the questions that we’ve received since then that there is a keen interest for these new locomotives. Our models have been developed concurrently with the production of the real locomotives and we have recently received the livery samples for our miniature Class 69s, so this is a great opportunity to go into more detail about the many features that you can expect to see when they arrive.

As the Class 69s were rebuilt from Class 56s, which themselves had various build differences, the cab ends of our models can depict locomotives with either an aluminium nose – which exhibits a gentle curve underneath the windows – or a steel nose with its flat top. There are also different side window arrangements, depending on whether the donor locomotive was Romanian or Doncaster/Crewe built. The different cab combinations are all adorned with metal windscreen wipers and separately fitted handrails along both sides of the driver’s doors.

The interiors of the cabs have been decorated with a similarly high level of detail, with the chairs and desks fully painted and warning signs and information panels printed along the walls. The machine room interiors are also fully decorated despite only being visible through the bodyside grilles, with each pipe, cable, dial and fan having been faithfully picked out. The decorations in both rooms are complemented by separately controllable interior lighting when used on DCC. 

There are sprung buffers on the bufferbeam, whilst under the solebar, the bogies will have full-relief detail and feature a wealth of separately fitted components including the brakes, suspension equipment and securing chains. 

The models also all share the following features:

• Five pole, twin shaft motor with two flywheels providing drive to both bogies
• All axle drive with electrical pickup from all wheels and separate metal bearings fitted to each axle
• Close coupling mechanism fitted at each end, each of which is fitted with coupling pockets to NEM362 standards
• Directional lighting, switchable on/off at either end on DCC or Analogue control
• Plux22 DCC decoder interface – recommended Decoder Item No. 36-570B
• Each model supplied with a full set of decorated, model-specific bufferbeam pipework and accessory parts, including etched nameplates where applicable

There will also be SOUND FITTED and SOUND FITTED DELUXE versions of each model. These versions will be fitted with an ESU Loksound V5 DCC Sound Decoder that has been pre-programmed with an exclusive sound project using recordings from real locomotives. 

Our SOUND FITTED and SOUND FITTED DELUXE models will be the first to feature our new Dual Fitted XL Speaker System which combines two speakers, including our new speaker with enhanced bass reproduction, for optimum sound performance. The Class 69 also boasts our Bach-Up Stay Alive System which prevents stalling, light flicker and sound cut-outs when running on DCC. And that’s not all, our top of the range SOUND FITTED DELUXE models feature motorised radiator fans and Bachmann’s revolutionary Auto-Release Coupling System for hands-free, DCC operated uncoupling.

Both the SOUND FITTED and SOUND FITTED DELUXE variants can also be used on most Analogue (DC) layouts, where they will play authentic engine start up sequences and running sounds when power is applied.

The Class 69s were designed by GB Railfreight, who had a requirement for additional locomotives with similar capabilities to their existing Class 66s. They were converted from older Class 56 locomotives which had originally been constructed by British Rail Engineering Limited in Crewe and Doncaster, along with Electroputere in Romania. The conversion included the installation of new equipment and systems, including the same type of EMD 710 diesel engine that was used on the Class 66. The first ten Class 69 locomotives were in service by the start of 2024, with further locomotives still to be completed.