Accurascale Goes Nuclear With KUA Flask Wagon in OO
Well, we did say that our announcement at Warley this year would be something big, and with the prototypes at over 80ft long they do not get much bigger than the impressive KUA, 150-ton, four bogie nuclear flask wagon!
These impressive beasts were built by Bombardier/Prorail of Wakefield in 1998 and designed to carry spent nuclear fuel from Royal Navy nuclear submarines from their bases at Devonport and Rosyth to Sellafield for disposal.
As well as these bases, the two KUA wagons have travelled extensively across the UK network, reaching Gerogemas Junction at the top of Scotland, to Washwood Heath and Wembley Yard as well as Eastleigh.
When loaded the KUAs are always accompanied by DRS courier coaches carrying elite protection teams – often Royal Marines or similarly trained Army units - and frequently double headed to allow for the failure of a locomotive.
The Royal Navy still has numerous retired but fully fuelled nuclear submarines in southern England and Scotland and these wagons are expected to see ongoing use for years to come.
The KUA is a suitably impressive wagon to complement our forthcoming DRS Class 37/6 range. The production of the wagons will be a small production run due to the limited nature of the prototypes, which were previously considered to be unlikely to appear in ready to run format. But we like them, so we decided to go for it!
This project has come about quite quickly thanks to the work of our friends at Revolution Trains, who have provided us with the data and opportunity to produce this specialised and interesting wagons in 4mm scale. Revolution Trains are producing the KUA wagons in N, so customers of both OO and N are served well through our cooperation and partnerships on these projects!
We are offering these highly limited run of wagons in packs of two for a retail price of for £159.95 and they will be available direct through Accurascale or via Accurascale’s network of approved stockists. Delivery is slated for mid 2020. You can order direct here or click here to find your local Accurascale Stockist
Specification
- Highly detailed, accurate scale model
- Factory-fitted detail parts (brake pipes, lamp irons, etc.)
- Factory-fitted etched metal details where required
- Factory-fitted pipework
- Sprung metal buffers
- Fully detailed under-frame
- Blackened metal 12mm disc wheels on metal axles, RP25.88 profile sets with 14.4mm back to backs and 26mm over pinpoints
- NEM coupler pockets fitted on 'kinematic' mounts with narrow tension lock couplers provided
- Additional internal weight
- Designed for easy conversion to EM and P4 gauges
- Length of Wagon, over buffers of 321.8mm