Peco OO9 GR-321 Slate Wagons 1 Braked, 2 Unbraked - Pack of 3 Wagons
Trains of slate wagons used to be gravity run from the quarries at Blaenau Ffestiniog to the harbour at Porthmadoc, this model pack of 3 ready to run wagons includes 1 braked vehicle and removable slate loads which are conveniently hollow, thus giving the modeller the added option of including some further weight if required.
Roughly one in five wagons was fitted with brakes. These were spread throughout the train and turned so the brake handles were all on the same side of the train, pointing towards Porthmadog. Different colours painted on the side bars denoted the various slate quarry companies; our packs feature random selections of these.
As these wagons tend to run in long rakes, the models have semi-permanent close-couplings fitted in their NEM pockets. These can be pulled out with fine nosed pliers and replaced with conventional OO-9 hoop-and-loop couplings (supplied) at each end of the rake.
The 1’11.5” gauge Ffestiniog Railway in North Wales was built in the 1830s to carry slate from the quarries around Blaenau Ffestiniog down to Porthmadog for exporting by sea all over the world. Originally horses would haul rakes of empty waggons up the continuously graded line to the quarries (the coloured markings on the waggons depict the quarry it was assigned to). Once loaded, long rakes of waggons return to Porthmadog under gravity, with the brakesmen jumping across the waggons to apply the brakes when required. This operation continued with steam locomotives replacing the horses. Today the Ffestiniog is one of the leading tourist railways in the UK, but on special occasions demonstration gravity slate trains are still operated, manned by the dedicated team that maintains the fleet of waggons.