GREAT EIGHT! – STANIER’S ICONIC 8F JOINS THE BACHMANN BRANCHLINE RANGE
The LMS Stanier Class 8F 2-8-0 was one of Britain’s most numerous and successful steam locomotives, and after producing award winning models of the iconic type for its Graham Farish N Scale range, ninety years since the first example emerged from the LMS’s Crewe Works it’s time to welcome OO scale models of the 8F to Bachmann’s Branchline range for the first time.
Designed by William Stanier for the London, Midland & Scottish Railway (LMS), the 8F was the modern solution that the LMS had been looking for to reduce dependency on its overstretched fleet of 0-6-0s, and its ageing 0-8-0s. The 2-8-0s built by Stanier’s former employer the Great Western Railway (GWR) had already revolutionised locomotive design and performance, and Stanier incorporated several design cues from those successful machines into the 8F.
The construction, operators and working lives of the 8Fs is complicated, but essentially 852 were built, albeit just 331 had been ordered by the LMS, the first of which was built at Crewe in 1935 and the last at Horwich in 1945.
As the Second World War took hold, Robert Riddles, the Mechanical & Electrical Engineer for the LMS Scottish Region, who had been seconded to the Ministry of Supply, intervened when an order for 300 ROD 2-8-0s was placed. The ‘ROD’s had proven themselves invaluable during the First World War, but Riddles instead insisted that Stanier 8Fs would be the War Department’s standard steam locomotive for this new conflict.
As a result, further orders were placed with a multitude of workshops across England and Scotland and 8Fs were built by all of the ‘Big 4’ – the GWR, LNER and Southern Railway (SR), as well as the LMS and outside contractors. The Ministry of Supply ordered 208 for the War Department, most of which were sent overseas, mainly to serve with the Middle East Forces of the British Army. Of the 8Fs that operated outside of Britain, some were lost in transit and never saw service, others were lost in action, and following the cessation of hostilities, many of the overseas machines were sold, mainly to state railways in the Middle East but some as far afield as China, whilst several returned to the UK.
The Railway Executive Committee (REC), which took control of the Big 4 during World War Two, ordered 245 more for the LMS. These were built by the GWR, LNER and SR, with the GWR and LNER effectively being loaned the locomotives they had built until after the war.
The LNER placed its own orders for Stanier’s design too, which is classified as O6, these came from Brighton Works (25) and its own Darlington (23) and Doncaster Works (20), totalling 68 locomotives. In all, 852 Stanier 8Fs had been built once the last examples were completed in 1945.
By the time of Nationalisation in 1948, British Railways (BR) inherited a total of 624 8Fs; the LMS fleet of 331 was now notionally 311-strong following requisitions and re-acquisitions, but remember that they also effectively held ownership of the 245 REC locomotives and the 68 from the LNER. Following various repatriations, the BR-fleet peaked at 666 between 1957 and 1960, with the overwhelming majority falling under the control of the London Midland Region, although a small number enjoyed allocations on the Western Region.
For a fleet so large, variations were few and far between, the most obvious being the use of Stanier 4,000-gallon tenders with either rivetted or welded bodies, with some later receiving Fowler 3,500-gallon versions after losing their Stanier tenders to Jubilees.
In service the 8F’s duties were easily defined, it if was long and heavy, an 8F would haul it. Their economic performance and versatility saw them hauling coal, cement, cattle, perishables, ballast, oil; all was within the capabilities of Stanier’s ultimate freight locomotive.
Passenger turns were not unheard of either, particularly during summer weekends and excursion traffic.
The Class endured until 1960 when the first example succumbed to withdrawal, yet only a single locomotive bowed out, joined by four more in 1962. It was 1964 that saw the first double digit withdrawals yet at the start of 1968, the final year of steam working on British Rail, 150 were still in use centred around North West England, the final bastion of steam.
It would be an 8F, No. 48518, that would haul the last commercially operated steam-hauled goods train on BR, while classmate No. 48773, which is now preserved, operated on the 4th August 1968, the final day of ‘normal’ steam on BR, hauling a leg of the Locomotive Club of Great Britain’s ‘Farewell to Steam Railtour’.
For such a large Class it is perhaps disappointing that just eight Stanier 8Fs remain in the UK today. Two of these have been repatriated from Turkey, while four more remain there along with a single example in Israel and one in Iraq, bringing the total to 14 still in existence on dry land – others remain underwater following their loss at sea during World War Two.
A new subject for the Bachmann Branchline range, the 8F joins a burgeoning stable of LMS machines and draws inspiration from its award winning smaller brother produced by the company’s Graham Farish brand.
Boasting a diecast metal boiler and running plate, this is no lightweight machine and the Branchline model has been designed to emulate the capabilities of its prototype. Adorning the locomotive are separate metal wire handrails, fitted to turned metal knobs where appropriate, and turned brass safety valves along with metal top feed pipes. The whistle, sandboxes, lamp irons and smokebox darts are all added individually, along with the lubricators and their pipework, steam pipes and smokebox saddle. Sprung metal buffers are fitted to the bufferbeam which can be smooth or rivetted to suit individual locomotives.
The smokebox door is another separate part allowing various numberplate and lamp bracket configurations to be depicted. Further additions come in the form of the reverser rod, which can be straight or curved to match the prototype, and Automatic Warning System (AWS) equipment where required. Below the boiler and it is possible to see further detailing representing the locomotive’s frames and internal gear modelled atop the chassis.
The cab is a precision moulded part, complete with accurate rivet pattern detailing and with flush glazed windows. Added to this are further individual components such as the cab roof ventilator and the myriad controls, dials, gauges and valves that make up the locomotive backhead. The locomotive to tender fallplate is reproduced in metal, hinged to the cab floor and is complete with the hinge detail added to the top surface.
The locomotive connects to the tender through an adjustable length drawbar, meanwhile tender options come in the form of the rivetted or welded Stanier 4,000-gallon types, or the Fowler 3,500-gallon tender. All three employ precision moulded bodyshells atop a detailed chassis that features full-relief spring and axle box detailing. The chassis steps and those at the rear of the tender are all present, along with separate metal handrails and lamp irons plus sprung metal buffers. The inner end of the tenders exhibit the loco-to-tender buffers, hand brakes and water scoop controls, and equipment cabinets. Turned metal tank vents are fitted to the tender tops along with the tender dome and separate filler lids, an authentic coal load competes the look.
Moving below the running plate and two types of driving wheels are modelled, those with fabricated balance weights and those with cast weights, in each case differently sized weights are present on different wheels. The cylinders and motion are all modelled authentically, using a combination of moulded, cast and fabricated components for accuracy and reliability – a characteristic that can be taken for granted with Bachmann models.
Further detail is engraved or moulded into the diecast chassis block which is then adorned with separate sandboxes, metal sand pipes and separate brake gear and rigging, this detail extends to the tender chassis too. The front pony truck sports integral guard irons, is sprung for assured running, and houses an integral NEM coupling pocket, a second of which is fitted to the rear of the tender.
Turning away from the model’s good looks and inside we find a powerful coreless motor which provides drive through the diecast metal gearbox to the third set of driving wheels – extensive testing during the development process has proven this to be a prime arrangement allowing the model to haul prototypical trains with ease. Electrical collection comes from all eight driving wheels and tender pickups are fitted too, while each driving axle runs in separate metal bearings.
DCC provision comes in the shape of a Plux22 DCC Decoder socket that is fitted within the boiler and DCC users can benefit from uninterrupted running thanks to the pre-installed Bach-Up Stay Alive system. A firebox lighting system gives added impact within the cab and this operates on both analogue and DCC. The Dual Fitted speaker system which is included with every model sees a speaker fitted inside the locomotive’s boiler, with a second located in the tender for optimal sound reproduction.
SOUND FITTED and SOUND FITTED DELUXE models will come with a Zimo MS450P22 DCC Sound Decoder pre-fitted and again, this feature can be used on both analogue and DCC. For the ultimate operational experience, SOUND FITTED DELUXE models include a Auto-Release Coupling fitted to the tender to provide hands-free uncoupling controlled by a single DCC function.
Despite the livery options extending little further than all-over black, the paint application will be executed to the usual exceptional standards for which Bachmann is renowned. The base decoration will then be adorned with precision-printed logos and numerals, all minute replicas of the prototype. The cab interior, with its firebox lighting system, will be brought to life with the pipework, controls and dials all decorated, extending right down to the needles on the pressure dials. Optional accessories include a set of closed cab doors, front steps and cylinder drain cocks for fitting where operating curves allow, and in some cases snowploughs too.
Tooling for the Branchline 8F is now complete and the livery samples will arrive for review in the coming weeks, ahead of the models hitting the shelves of Bachmann retailers in Summer 2026. Pricing starts at £249.95, rising to £359.95 for SOUND FITTED examples and £379.95 for the ultimate SOUND FITTED DELUXE versions. Orders can be placed with Bachmann retailers now to secure your model ahead of their arrival in 2026.
