Class 52 'Western' crew figures

In what we believe is an 'industry first', we have commissioned crew figures for our forthcoming Class 52 'Western' diesel-hydraulic from Alan Buttler of Modelu.

We have long admired the work Alan has done in bringing new levels of realism to models of the human form in a variety of scales, but these are the first to be made using an entirely new technique in which colour is applied as an integral part of the 3D printing process. That means they don't have to be painted which avoids overly harsh or unrealistic colours, or clogging detail with poor brush work, to say nothing of saving an enormous amount of time.

Like all Modelu figures, the files for 3D printing are laser scanned from life. Now, however, the actual colours are recorded at the same time. Pigments are introduced at the printing-out stage which colours the surface of the figures in a remarkably accurate way. Because the 3D print comes direct from the scanned CAD data, all the subtlties of light falling on creases in fabric, dirt on shoes etc, are faithfully reproduced.

We took the decision to fit crews in the Western because the cabs are so 'glassy' that the interiors are highly visible. Also, as these models will be highly complex with wiring for headcode boxes, marker lights, cab interior lighting, working fans and other features, we don't recommend that they should be dismantled by the customer, so unless otherwise requested in advance, all the models will be supplied with a driver and second man installed at one end, the other end remaining empty for posing in shed scenes etc.

CLICK HERE for a short video showing the crews being trial-fitted to a pre-production rough sample of the Class 52 control desk.

These crew figures represent an absoulte step-change in the representation of people for our models. Thank you Alan for all your hard work – watch this space for news of more figures for our locomotives..!

To view the full Modelu range, CLICK HERE.