Let's face it, there is nothing more splendid when it comes to Irish steam than the GSR 800s, the Edgar Bredin masterpiece designed and built in Inchicore.
The mighty 800 Class has occupied legendary status for almost 90 years. Despite a remarkably short working life, the 800s has transcended her time in service to become an icon of Irish railway history, with generations of enthusiasts wondering what it must have been like to witness her storming towards Cork with an express train in tow.
Well, we can't quite recreate that. We can, however, recreate her in miniature to a standard worthy of her legendary status.
We're delighted to announce that our all-new GSR 800 Class locomotives are now in full production, with completion scheduled before the end of this year before beginning their journey from China and onwards to layouts and display cabinets across the world.
It's always an exciting milestone when a project reaches this stage. After countless hours of research, CAD development, tooling revisions, testing and refinement, there's something immensely satisfying about seeing thousands of individual components finally coming together on the production line.
It's fair to say that the 800 Class has been one of our most eagerly anticipated projects. We've been inundated with orders and messages from modellers asking when they'll arrive, demanding sneak peeks and politely requesting updates.
First up, we're finally ready to let the mighty 800 speak for herself.
We've been working away on the sound project for these locomotives and we're delighted to confirm that we'll be unveiling it for the very first time in the coming weeks. Capturing the unmistakable character of this Irish icon has been a hugely enjoyable challenge and we're very much looking forward to sharing the results with you.
We'll also be unveiling decorated samples which have yet to make their public debut. These latest samples represent our best look yet at the finished models and we're tremendously excited to finally pull back the curtain on them. We know many of you have been waiting patiently to see these locomotives wearing their finery and we don't think you'll be disappointed.
Then there's the matter of that model.
From the moment we announced No. 800 in her stunning photographic grey livery, we knew she deserved something a little special. After all, if ever there was a locomotive worthy of being treated like royalty, surely Maedb must be somewhere near the front of the queue.
So, we're delighted to reveal that we'll also be showcasing the bespoke wooden presentation box created exclusively for No. 800 in photographic grey. This isn't merely packaging; it's a fitting tribute to one of the most significant locomotives in Irish railway history and provides a suitably luxurious home for what is sure to become one of the centrepieces of many collections.
As production continues over the coming months, we'll be bringing you plenty more updates as we reach new milestones. Seeing Ireland's most famous steam locomotive move from announcement to production has been incredibly rewarding for the whole team and we can't wait to finally get these models into your hands.
Before we go, we'd like to leave you with one final tease.
No, we haven't forgotten about the Class 22000 InterCity Railcars. In fact, we've been keeping rather busy behind the scenes. We've got a very special and exciting update planned for the end of August which we're dying to share with you.
In the meantime, we'll have plenty more 800 Class goodness coming your way over the next few weeks.
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