Dapol Class 56 N Gauge samples due, liveries and prices revealed

The first four production samples of Dapol’s N gauge Class 56 have reached the point where the project stops being promise and starts looking like a model you can actually budget and plan around. Dapol said the samples were in hand at Chirk, its North Wales base near Wrexham, and that is the milestone readers watch for: it is when tooling, decoration and final fit begin to show whether the retooled locomotive is on track for the shop shelf.

Those first four samples are 56006 in BR Blue, 56007 in Transrail, 56054 in BR Railfreight Coal and 56059 in EWS. A second batch is due to follow by the end of June or the start of July, covering 56131 in blue with a large BR logo, 56302 in Fastline and 56303 in DCR. Dapol has also put prices on the range at £156.60 for DCC Ready versions and £188.99 for DCC Fitted examples, a clear split that gives buyers a simple early check on whether they want to install their own decoder or pay for the factory fit.

What matters now is not just that the samples exist, but what Dapol does with them. The design team has already reviewed the EP and decorated samples and sent feedback back to the factory for improvements, which is the sort of stage that can change lamp irons, livery placement, print sharpness and small body details before the full production run is locked in. Dapol also says the Class 56 is being retooled with an all-new bodyshell, so the current samples are the best indicator yet of how far that fresh tooling has pushed the model beyond the 2012 version.

Delivery timing still has some moving parts. Dapol now expects the first four production samples to arrive in the UK towards the end of May and be in shops by the beginning of June, while the later trio is due at the end of June or possibly into early July. The company has also flagged international shipping issues from the Far East as a possible delay factor, so sample arrival should raise confidence in pre-orders without being treated as a guarantee of an exact store date.

The prototype itself gives the project a built-in audience. The real Class 56 was a Type 5 Co-Co diesel-electric built between 1976 and 1983, with 135 produced in total and a Ruston-Paxman unit rated at 3,250 bhp. Dapol’s livery spread mirrors that long life, from BR Blue through freight-era Transrail, Railfreight Coal and EWS to later operators Fastline and DCR. 56006 carries extra weight too: the Class 56 Group says it was the first Class 56 to enter service on 25 February 1977, and the only BR Class 56 in preservation after being saved in November 2012.