A ‘PEP’ IN OUR STEP
The next all-new tooling projects to emerge from Bachmann’s EFE Rail brand are the Class 313 and Class 314 Electric Multiple Units (EMUs).
Both classes were developments of British Rail’s prototype ‘Standard Suburban Train’, for which three prototype units were built at the start of the 1970s. Designated 2-PEP and 4-PEP, which stood for Prototype Electro Pneumatic, these prototypes spawned a family of units known as the ‘PEP family’. The Class 313 were the very first production units to appear from this family, which eventually spanned five classes and encompassed some 755 individual vehicles. The new EFE Rail models signal the first time that ‘PEP family’ EMUs have been produced ready-to-run in OO Scale, and both the Class 313 and 314 units have been accommodated in the tooling suite.
The three-car Class 313s were not only the first production ‘PEP’ units to be built, but were also the first ‘dual-mode’ EMUs, having the ability to collect power from 25kV AC overhead power lines via a pantograph on the centre car, or from third rail shoegear for 750V DC pick-up. A total of 64 Class 313s were built by British Rail Engineering Limited (BREL) at York Works in 1976-1977. The units were put to work on the Great Northern Inner Suburban lines operating from London Moorgate, and for 10 years they served their intended route before operations spread further afield. Under Network SouthEast, which was established in 1986, some units worked out of London Euston to Watford and on North London services.
Privatisation in the mid-1990s saw the Class 313 fleet split between Silverlink and West Anglia Great Northern (WAGN), whose units were later operated by First Capital Connect and finally Great Northern. The Silverlink units were transferred to London Overground in 2007, but these were soon replaced by new trains, with the ‘313s’ heading instead to Southern to operate Coastway services radiating from Brighton. During its final years of service with Southern, the pioneer unit No. 313201 (originally No. 313001) was repainted into heritage BR Blue & Grey. Meanwhile, No. 313121 was one of four former Silverlink Class 313s that Southern did not take on, and instead this unit found a second use with Network Rail as a test train. It was converted in 2013 to enable NR engineers to test the new European Rail Traffic Management System, gaining the distinctive yellow livery, and is now preserved, having been put up for sale by Network Rail in 2023.
The Class 314s comprised a smaller fleet of just 16 three-car units and these were constructed two years after the Class 313 build programme had been completed, once again at BREL York. Unlike their earlier counterparts, the Class 314s went north of the border to work on the then-newly opened Argyle Line. The units collected power from 25kV AC overhead lines only, for which they are equipped with a pantograph on the central PTSO (Pantograph Tourist Second Open) vehicle, and did not have the third rail pick-up of their Class 313 siblings.
Based at Hyndland and then Glasgow Shields Road depot, Class 314 operations spread to the North Clyde routes quite early on and after 20 years serving the Argyle Line, transfers to other routes such as the Cathcart Circle and the Inverclyde Line took place. The final Class 314 to operate a public service was No. 314216 in December 2019. This was followed by a special farewell tour for the class a few days later, which used two Class 314s formed as a six-car set.
With careers spanning six decades, the Class 313s and 314s have been a missing link in the BR second-generation story for too long. The new models from EFE Rail therefore offer a suite of tooling that caters for both classes, covering the length and breadth of their long working lives.
Each unit comprises three highly detailed vehicles featuring precision moulded bodyshells adorned with separate detailing parts and an extensive collection of underfloor equipment and separately fitted pipework. Principal among these is the intricately detailed pantograph on the centre car, which can be manually raised or lowered according to the user’s requirements. Elsewhere, separate wire handrails are fitted on either side of the large double passenger doors, while the Class 313 units come with the option of the roof-mounted air conditioning pods where applicable.
A notable difference between the two classes is the fitting of the third rail shoegear on the dual voltage Class 313s, which has been exquisitely moulded and mounted to the bogies. This feature is absent on the Class 314s, as per the prototypes, which collected power from overhead power lines only. The bogies themselves are fitted with metal wheels and again carry fine details such as pipe runs and air cushion suspension.
Drive is provided through the centre car, with a coreless motor powering each bogie and mounted within a diecast metal chassis to give a strong drive mechanism and low centre of gravity. This vehicle also houses the Plux22 DCC decoder socket and a pre-fitted speaker, enabling users to fit their own sound decoders should they wish to do so. Furthermore, close-fitting electrical conductive couplings mean that just one decoder controls both motors and the lighting in all three vehicles.
Both outer cars are fitted with directional lighting, illuminated headcode and destination blinds, and high-intensity headlights where applicable. These functions, together with the warm interior and cab lights, can be enjoyed by both analogue and DCC users. On DCC, much of the lighting can be controlled independently, while door interlock lights can be turned on using a function key.
The interiors are moulded to replicate the different versions of the 3+2 seating used on the two classes: high-backed on the Class 313 and low-backed on the 314s, with each set of seats featuring defined seat cushions.
A selection of models covering both classes will be available, with delivery expected in the first half of 2026. Each three-car unit carries a RRP of £349.95 for the analogue version, and full details of the various liveries and running numbers will be detailed in Bachmann’s Winter 2025 British Railway Announcements on 5th November.
