Graham Farish Class 20/0 N Scale Models Get New Tooling and Sound Options

Bachmann Europe played on the Class 20's legendary habit of running nose-to-nose when it announced "a pair of major enhancements" for the Graham Farish N Scale Class 20/0 on March 20, 2026. The two upgrades are new body tooling and the introduction of sound-fitted options, both targeting the popular N scale rendition of the English Electric Type 1.

The new body tooling is designed to capture the distinct 'Scottish' variants of the Class 20, a detail that will matter to modellers recreating Scottish Region workings where the type was a fixture. The original announcement stated plainly: "The iconic BR Class 20 Diesel Locomotives are famous for working in pairs and so we are delighted to reveal a pair of major enhancements for the popular Graham Farish N Scale Class 20/0 models." Specific sub-variants, running numbers, and liveries represented by the new tooling have not yet been detailed publicly, nor have technical specifications for the sound-fitted units, including decoder type, sound file content, or speaker configuration.

The Class 20/0 announcement landed three days after Bachmann Europe unveiled its broader Spring British Railway Announcements on March 17, framing the Class 20/0 upgrades as one of "the next two new tooling projects" to make their public debut in that cycle. Bachmann noted that 2025 had been a productive year, with thirteen new tooling projects delivered to retailers and a further seven revealed for delivery during 2026, placing this latest Class 20/0 work within a sustained programme of N scale development.

The Spring announcements also included several other Graham Farish N gauge items. A new batch of the SECR C Class 0-6-0 was confirmed, returning in SECR lined green and BR black liveries with new running numbers and expected to arrive in stock during Q1 2026. A fresh run of Class 66 diesels in DB Cargo red, Freightliner green, and GBRf Europorte liveries was announced with a Q1/Q2 2026 stock arrival estimate. Decorated samples for the previously announced GWR Hall Class and Modified Hall Class 4-6-0 locomotives were also revealed, with pre-orders open. On the OO side, EFE Rail's newly tooled Class 313 and Class 314 EMUs were confirmed with full range details published and pre-orders open.

Pricing, product codes, release dates, and availability for the upgraded Class 20/0 models remain to be confirmed by Bachmann Europe. Given the pace of announcements so far in 2026, those details are likely to follow as the range moves toward production.