Rapido UK Newsletter No. 60

©2025 Rapido Trains Ltd

Revisiting Our Recent Announcements! 

Earlier this month, we announced a plethora of pretty models. Since then, we have had even more 3D-printed samples of some of these astonishing announcements. That’s right, even more progress in just 2 weeks!

So, just in case you missed them, or you wanted to see what's new already, we thought we’d do a quick recap. 

An Announcement on a Massive Scale – New 009 Gauge Locomotive and Oodles of Samples. 

That’s right, we kicked off our announcements on a massive scale.

We not only introduced you to an exciting new 009 Gauge Kerr, Stuart & Co. ‘What if’ Short-Tank Sirdar tooling, but also showed off a lorry load of engineering prototypes for our upcoming 009 All-Purpose Wagons, and both the Short and Long Tank Sirdars. For models of such a narrow gauge, this was massive!

With all of the excitement around the range, we wanted to gauge interest in this newly-acquired bounty of prototypes, so we took the entire lot to Railex; we even found time to give them a trundle around some of the visiting layouts. The 009 Society and its members were also on hand at the show and kindly offered their expert guidance. With the series of gratifying noises they made when we handed them the samples, we think they went down well!

If you missed Railex, here are a few shots of the range of samples we had on show, and based on everyone's incredibly kind feedback, we are looking forward to getting our very first 009 Gauge models into customers' hands as soon as possible.

You can pre-order all of our upcoming 009 range via our website or any of our Official Retailers. 

Loched and loaded – New OO Gauge Highland Railway Loch Class + New 3D-Printed Sample! 

To kick off the week's OO Gauge announcements, we headed back to look at the enchanting railways that wove their way through the Scottish Highlands.

We had already announced Caledonian Railway No.123 months ago, and had the D40 hidden up our kilts, so we knew that our range of Scottish prototypes was diverse enough to cater to the majority of jubilant Scottish modellers. Following the success and popularity of the ‘Jones Goods’, another Highland Railway loco seemed like an obvious choice. 

This ideally needed to be a passenger loco, and knowing that the Loch shared a tender with its bigger and older sibling sealed the deal. We were making the Highland Railway Loch Class!

The reaction to this announcement was brilliant, so we were over the moon when Modelu sent us 3D prints of the loco part of the upcoming model. As they were one of the many surprises to greet those who attended Railex, it seemed silly to show off prints of the tender, as you already know what a production model will look like; we simply connected it up to one of our Jones Tenders and put it on display for all to enjoy. 

We know what those who got to see it at Railex had to say, but what do you make of it?

Keep Sojering On – New OO Gauge LNER D40 (GNoSR V & F) + New 3D-Printed Sample! 

With a new Scottish loco already announced along with some GNoSR liveried coaches in Batch 3 of Evolution, we had thoroughly satiated our Scottish fans with just one announcement, right?

WRONG!

The OO Gauge LNER D40 (GNoSR V & F) was launched with the subtlety of a swinging claymore. 'The Sojer' marched its way into existence and the Legendary ‘Gordon Highlander’ was finally going to be made in Ready-to-Run model form.

Our latest addition to the Scottish Legends collection received a warmer welcome than a generous dram on a cold winter's evening. So, it was only fitting that we also asked Modelu to produce a print of this legendary loco for our upcoming shows.

However, as we are firmly planted in the land of the former SECR we thought we would get the G Class variant printed – but don’t worry we will have a full-bodied Scottish Engineering Prototype to show in the not to distant future.

With the loco's history also being very much tied to the local area, attendees of Railex lapped up this spectacular sample. 

A Sinking Feeling U Expected This One – New OO Gauge SR U Class + New 3D-Printed Sample!

Up Periscope! There's more news on the horizon.

The rumour mill was off the charts on this one; our notifications of a new comment or product suggestion pinged more regularly than sonar. It was as if the community had cracked the model railway enigma. Of course, we didn’t help matters. Back in 2024, we posted photographs of members of our team gleefully enjoying a cab ride or two on U Class 'Mogul' 31806, which was at the Kent and East Sussex Railway as part of an event we had sponsored.
A coincidence?

Once our final Railex announcement had surfaced, it was the news U had all been waiting for. We had thoroughly torpedoed your inbox with the sublime OO Gauge SR U Class. 

However, since this depth charge had gone off, we have had even more news for you!

We had battened down the hatches, and the design team put Das Boot to the metal, figuratively speaking, of course. So, just before Railex, we were able to provide our friends at Modelu with the first CAD. Thanks to their efforts, the final 3D-print to pop up on the eve of Railex was the U Class. This meant we were able to put it on display for the adoring crowd of fellow Southerners, and it went down a storm.

This finely-detailed example definitely won’t have the traditional bottle of champagne smashed across it, as we hope to show it off at all of the upcoming shows we are attending. We think you’ll agree that this already looks incredible.

With more opportunities for wordplay than the fish van and banana van combined, we cannot wait to delve into the depths of this pun-laden, target-rich environment over the coming months. Although that ship might have already sailed…

You can pre-order the OO Gauge SR U Class from our website and any of our Official Retailers now!

It is also worth bearing in mind that we are closing the order book on Evolution Batch 2 liveries on Monday October 27^th. This batch includes the Highland Railway livery, which is ideal to run with the newly-announced Loch Class, so if you don’t want to miss out, get your pre-orders in before the deadline.

All of the aforementioned prototypes and samples will be on show at all of our upcoming shows.

The order book is open, and you can pre-order all of the new announcements directly from our website or from any of our Official Retailers now!

Product Updates

Gradual Evolution – IMPORTANT Evolution Batch 1 Delivery Update! (OO Gauge)

We have some important news to share with you regarding the upcoming delivery of our first batch of Evolution coaches. If you have pre-ordered our OO Gauge Evolution Coaches, please ensure you read this update carefully.

We have been utterly bowled over by the public response and popularity of these models; however, this popularity means that we have taken the decision to split Batch 1 into 3 delivery stages, rather than having completed models sitting around at the factory.

We suspect you have lots of questions, so let's see if we can answer as many of them as possible in a short Q&A.

When will each of the delivery stages arrive?

Stage 1 of Batch 1 liveries are on track for the original Q4 delivery date. We are expecting them to be completed and ready to send to the UK during Q4.

Stage 2 of Batch 1 liveries will be a month or so behind Stage 2. Work will continue with these liveries the moment Stage 1 is shipped and we expect to deliver these in early 2026.

Stage 3 of Batch 1 liveries will follow Stage 2 and we hope these will ship in mid Q1, arriving with you later that quarter.

Obviously these are subject to change if anything untoward happens, but rest assured we will keep you updated.

What liveries are in each stage?

The factory has selected the liveries that give them the greatest chance of getting these completed in a timely manner. We won’t bore you with the technical reasons, but they have been able to confirm the following:

Stage 1 - SECR, LB&SCR, and LMR liveries.

Stage 2 – SDJR, MR and GNR liveries

Stage 3 – LNWR, GWR and GCR liveries.

Will this impact the price?

If you have ordered direct from us the cost of your order will not change. If we split your order, you will still only pay one set of postage charges – we will cover the rest!

If you have pre-ordered from any of our Official Retailers, this will be at their discretion. 

Will Batch 2 and Batch 3 liveries also be split into delivery stages?

At this point, we simply don’t know, with the order books still being open for both, this will entirely depend on the number of orders, the complexity of the liveries and the factory. It is entirely possible that this could happen, and if this is the case, we will share any new information with you.

We appreciate that this isn’t the exciting shipping news that you were all hoping for; however, we pride ourselves on being as transparent with our customers as possible, so we would rather manage expectations now than leave some of you disappointed when your models don’t arrive. 

If you have any further queries, don’t hesitate to contact us via our Customer Service email address, and we will get back to you as soon as we can. 

Magnificent Mini-Minks – Iron Mink Production Samples (N Gauge)

On a gloomy September morning, these were dropped off at Rapido HQ. At first, we were a little gutted to see these arrive a matter of days after Railex, but with so many new models on the way, this was almost an inevitability. However, its lateness was soon overshadowed by just how colourful and detailed these samples were. It certainly brightened up our day. 

Complimenting our previous N Gauge rolling stock nicely, these highly detailed GWR Minks, and Not-Quite-Mink counterparts will look at home on a multitude of N Gauge layouts. We think pictures can say a thousand words, so here are some close-up shots of the painted production samples on our test track. 

We will conduct a thorough review of these models, and once we are happy to progress, the factory will begin full production of the rest of them.

With production imminent, you are rapidly running out of time to pre-order them, and with only a handful of different versions still available to order directly through our website, time is running out. 

Expert Guidance! A Few Tweaks to ‘V’ Class No. 113

As with all of our projects, we consult experts in the relevant field. The D40 was no different. Upon closer inspection, our kind and observant GNoSR enthusiasts realised we had made a couple of errors on SKU 959001/ 959501 - ‘V’ Class in Lined Brunswick Green No. 113.

So, following this feedback, we have made the necessary changes to correct this model's livery. Here is a shot of the updated model. 

You will notice that the following changes have occurred:



-         The lining colour has been changed to red

-         The lining panel corners have been changed to curve inwards

-         Dark green borders have been added

-         The cabside and window lining have been updated. 

These updated images will appear on our website shortly and shall be available to all of our retailers.



Order books are open for ‘V’ Class No. 113 and all of the other LNER D40 variants now. You can place your pre-order and find out more by going to our website. 

An In-depth Look Inside the Factory! – LNER J52/2 Factory Update (OO Gauge)

Lots of you have been patiently waiting for more news on this project, so we are pleased to say that we have the mother of all updates for you: an incredibly detailed look at how the J52/2 is being made in our factory.

Earlier this month, Jason travelled to our factory in China to get a first-hand look at how things are progressing. As Rapido’s head honcho, this is definitely one of the perks of the job. Someone was brave enough to hold a camera on him while he skipped like a school kid from department to department, noisily distracting our hard-working factory staff. Can you blame Jason, who wouldn’t want to see how a model loco is made?

Even if the J52/2 is not your thing, this video gives you a wonderful insight into our process and demonstrates why we trust our factory to consistently produce lovely models.

We hope you enjoy the video, and please excuse our eccentric and enthusiastic Canadian boss. They don’t let him leave the North American office too often!

For those of you who want a closer look, here are a few pictures of them to get your teeth into.

We have a limited number of OO Gauge LNER J52/2 available. Pre-order yours from our website now, as you can see, they are progressing rather nicely.

AB Fireless Update (OO Gauge)

Sometimes things just don’t go to plan.

As many of you will have seen we received decorated samples of our fireless locomotives a few months ago. These were subjected to our usual checking process and were passed for final production and shipping.

These locomotives have now arrived in the UK and been thorough our extensive Quality Control inspections.

Sadly, we have taken the decision to return all these models to our factory as a number of issues have been identified. These issues were not present on the decorated samples.

This is not a decision we have taken lightly and we all share your disappointment that these models will take longer to arrive with our fellow modellers.

We want to offer you the best models and we felt these models did not live up to that expectation and we would rather deal with the disappointment of a delay than the disappointment of an unsatisfactory model.

At present we do not know when they will be rectified and returned but we promise to keep you informed as and when we have further news.

On behalf of the whole team at Rapido we offer our apologies for this unexpected delay.

Factory Photos



Whilst Jason was visiting our factories he took plenty of photos of our upcoming projects so we thought we would show some of them off this month.

The eagerly anticipated S160 is moving through the paintshop - thee samples receiving the USATC grey.

Some maroon S160s are breaking cover too

Adverts, mirrors, seats and luggage racks are undergoing assembly ready to be installed in Evolution coaches.

Evolution coaches are seen undergoing tampo printing to add the lining, numbering and lettering details to each livery.

As mentioned above SDJR livery will be delivered in the second tranche of Evolution Batch 1 coaches. Here we see the first proper glimpse of a sample!

Many, many, many bogies for Evolution are being assembled, including the lovely Mansell wheels.

Our Great Northern Railway vans are currently going through the paint shop and are seen on the drying racks.

One of several production lines currently assembling our Evolution coaches.

Order Book Closing Dates

We have two order books closing this month, and both are fascinating examples of freight rolling stock. Both being interesting prototypes and with a multitude of liveries available, there is bound to be one to catch your eye. 

The order book closing deadline is this coming Monday. You aren’t going to want to miss out on these, so make sure you get your pre-orders in this weekend if you want to be guaranteed these wagons. 

Order books close on Monday the 29th of September for the following:

OO Gauge GCR 15T Brake Van

OO Gauge Ammonium Nitrate / Chemical Tank

This month we’ve had a new batch of Evolution Coach liveries announced, and let's not forget the shipping and production news for Batch 1 mentioned earlier in this newsletter, which included the first colour samples. So, we thought it was high time we moved Batch 2 of Evolution to the next stage of their development, too. As a result we will be closing the orderbooks on Monday the 27^th of October.

Remember, if you want to pre-order any of these models, you can do so directly through our website or with any of our Official Retailers. 

Rapido Railex 2025 Recap

Wow. We weren’t sure how we were going to beat last year's epic event. But we are pretty sure we managed it.

Armed with the knowledge that we would have 5 incredible announcements in the run-up to the show, we waited patiently to see everyone's thoughts and feedback on them. We then confidently loaded the lorries with our stand, our samples and all the gubbins needed to put on a memorable show.

Much like last year, we crammed the Market Hall in Maidstone full of some of the nicest layouts on the exhibition circuit, a sprinkling of some awesome retailers, many of whom are our Official Retailers, and then finished it off with cabinets full of our upcoming models.

We surprised many of you by bringing a bunch of unseen 3D prints, and had our test track on hand so you could see and hear a variety of our engineering prototypes in their natural habitat. 

As with all of the events we attend, our staff were on hand to greet you and answer everyone's burning questions. We had a wicked time talking to you all, and this was definitely a highlight for us.

The show wouldn’t have been the roaring success that it was without the efforts of all of the layout and stall holders involved. Everyone bought their ‘A' game to Railex, and we were incredibly grateful for it, as it was the vital ingredient we needed.

In summary, we want to thank everyone who helped make this mad event happen. You don’t know how much it means to us!

So, with two Railexes under our belt (should that be two Railexi?), what crazy idea do you guys think we are going to do next year to top this?

We are going to have to sit down, have a drink, and mull it over. 

National Festival of Railway Modelling 2025

Last year, we proudly attended the very first National Festival of Railway Modelling. So, when we were asked to return this year, we agreed without hesitation. We will be returning with a brand new stand, an armful of our latest samples and prototypes, and our usual infectious enthusiasm for all things trains.

If you we unable to join us at Railex, this will be your next opportunity to see all of the amazing samples we had on show. In addition to samples of the latest announcements and recently arrived colour production prototypes, we will also have an engineering prototype of the OO Gauge LB&SCR 8-Ton Goods Van that we designed at last year's show.

You can find us at Stand 26 so have your questions at the ready and pop by and see us. We can’t wait to see what you think of the latest announcements.

Oh, and for those of you who are wondering if we will be including our usual tongue-in-cheek posters in the loos, well, you are just going to have to spend a penny and find out for yourself…

You can pre-order tickets and find out more about the event HERE.

With everything going on this month we have honestly run out of time for a Thought Of The Month – but don’t worry – it shall return shortly along with all the latest news, samples and updates you expect each month. Until then – happy modelling!

The Rapido Trains UK Team