[Virtual MOC] Stadler Flirt UK - TfW Class 231

[Hod Carrier]

Sorry for not posting anything up for a while. I needed a bit of a break after the hullabaloo of OcTRAINber. I thought I'd share what I'd been working on prior to OcTRAINber taking all my time. I had intended to build this but I'm unsure if that will now happen, so I'm sharing this as a virtual MOC.

The Stadler Flirt has been a feature of European railways for several years, but it's only recently that Stadler has been providing these trains to the UK. Obviously this meant that the design needed adapting to suit the UK rail network's requirements, but I think that the resulting train is a very handsome thing which is proving popular among those who use them.

The first versions to arrive in the UK were for Greater Anglia and came in two forms; a semi-articulated 12-car electric train (Class 745) for services between London and Norwich and Stansted Express, and a 3 or 4-car fully articulated bi-mode train (Class 755) for regional and local services. I had wanted to build a version of this train, but the livery used by Greater Anglia is quite complex and would be difficult to reproduce in LEGO.

745009 Stowmarket 13/05/22 - 1P51 1600 Norwich to London Liverpool Street by Ryan Hayward, on Flickr

755412 Turves 20/04/22 - 2E76 1156 Ipswich to Peterborough by Ryan Hayward, on Flickr

Luckily for me, a second batch of Flirt UK trains were under construction for Welsh operator Transport for Wales, and the livery that was being applied to their trains was a lot more LEGO-friendly. As with the first batch, these units for Wales would come in two different forms; a 4-car single-mode diesel-electric train (Class 231) and a 3 or 4-car tri-mode train (Class 756). At the point where I started work on the design, the single-mode Class 231 was the only version in existence, with deliveries and test-running only just having begun. As a result, this was the version that I based my model on.

231002. by curly42, on Flickr

And this is my version, rendered in UK-scale friendly 7-wide.

There were a few challenges to overcome with this design. The train has a very distinctive body profile as well as that cab shape. It took several attempts at both to get to a final design that would be both buildable and look right as well as be able to take lights in the cab front.

Power and control would have been distributed throughout the train. In common with the LMS Articulated Railcar, the Flirt would have train motors mounted on their sides together with weight bricks within the body in the windowless sections just behind each cab driving Technic bogies, as conventional use of these motors would be too big. There would have been a battery box hidden in the train toilet with a PFx Brick in the central "power pod". I had been busy researching magnetic connectors for the wiring runs between cars when I broke-off from working on the design of this model.

The sloping cab tapers towards the front of the train, which I've had a go at capturing. Roof-mounted equipment has also been modelled as accurately as possible.

The "power pod" containing 4 diesel motor-generator units. The detailing on the sides has necessitated a fair amount of "snotting", but it looks OK. Hopefully it would be strong enough when built.

As always, thoughts, comments and feedback are welcomed. I doubt that this train will ever get built, as I'm currently busy with a non-railway project, but who knows how I'll feel about it later.

[Feuer Zug]

Superb work recreating the Stadler FLIRT design. The roof of the power car is interesting with the NPU of Speed Champion wheels.

[Ts__]

Looks very good! The shape of the body fits, not yet really happy I am with the front. But this is also very difficult to implement with Lego bricks.
I find the side windows are not perfect.

But that's complaining on a high level ;-)
 

1 hour ago, Hod Carrier said:

I needed a bit of a break after the hullabaloo of OcTRAINber. I thought I'd share what I'd been working on prior to OcTRAINber taking all my time.

I can understand, being an OcTRAINber is a full time job. Did you actually receive your prize?

Thomas

[Asper]

Wow, wonderful. Great job on the shape of the train. I like how you integrated the "old" hinge plates into the roof.

[Hod Carrier]

Thank you, gentlemen. 

@Asper @Feuer Zug It’s a model using parts ancient and modern.   These were the best techniques I could find to recreate the various vents on the roof.

@Ts__ I agree that the side window is the wrong size and shape, but that was the compromise that I had to make to ensure that the slope and taper of the cab could be made. There’s quite a lot of snotting and supporting structures going on inside that had to be accommodated. I spent a lot of time wondering if I could have done that detail better, but concluded that the only way I make it better was to make the rest of it worse, so I decided that I could live with it 

There have been a lot of compromises made, such as the inset headlights. The original design was closer to the real train, but it would not have been possible to include LEDs. What you see here is probably the most buildable version in the closest design I could make.

No news on the prize as yet.

[Darkkostas25]

Astounding and marvellous! I adore your building techniques that are really sometimes - outside the box

[Hod Carrier]

@Darkkostas25 Thank you. That’s very kind of you to say. 

[LEGO Train 12 Volts]

Another undisputed work of art ... your style of perfection is unmistakable!

[Ashi Valkoinen]

Welcome to the FLIRT-family! It looks clean and really fitting the original one, nice work!

[Hod Carrier]

@LEGO Train 12 Volts Thank you. You know me. I just keep going until I get it as close to reality as I can.

@Ashi Valkoinen Thanks for the welcome. I was a little worried that you'd also been working on the UK version of the FLIRT and I didn't want to tread on your toes.

[Ashi Valkoinen]

Fortunately UK is totally out of my interest, except my swiss Traverso which has nothing to do with my homeland, Hungary, I build things only related to Hungarian railways. :)

However I see that UK-style trains are quite popular, the angled bottom part thanks to the different clearences compared to continental Europe make them look unique.

[MasterHenry2180]

Wow,sooooo coool!!!!

can I see how you built the cab? I kinda wanna make a bi-level version of your creation.

[Hod Carrier]

Forgive the boost, but I've been tinkering on and off with the Flirt. Initially this was to address concerns about it's structural integrity, but I thought I'd also have another go at addressing some of the design choices I had made with the original design. Most of this is around the driver's cab, as can be seen by this side-by-side comparison.

One of the biggest errors was the angle of the windscreen, which I had made too steep. Some newer parts have helped me to get a smoother shape, although one or two cheats are needed to get the shape shown here.

The cab now has a more curved profile that more accurately follows the shape of the real train. I've also addressed the side window, which would require a custom made sticker or printed parts.

The head-on view makes the new design look a little bit too wide, but it's about as close as I can make it. On the positive side, the shape of the lights are nearer to the real train than the previous version.

While I've been tinkering, I took the chance to use more recent pictures to correct the roof of the power pod. Unlike the diesel-electric Class 231 which has four diesel motor-generator units (MGUs), the Class 756 is a tri-mode train that operates mostly as a battery-electric train and has only one MGU. This means that the roof details are different, which I've replicated here.

I'm still not sure about whether or not this model will ever get built. The idea for power and control was to have some manner of smart brick hidden in the power pod with wiring through the train for lighting, etc, but it seems that the state of third party supply has taken something of a dip. The ideal was the PFx Brick with a matching light board, but it seems that the focus on their track system has meant that the Brick has fallen off the table. It may be that the only option will be BuWizz, but it's expensive and not really ideal for my needs.

Either way, here is the model as a virtual design at least.

[Darkkostas25]

Gourges builds, and fine new solutions/additions, and details

[Shiva]

That post was not a "boost", but an update to the model. And a nice update too.

[Selander]

That's a brilliant update 🙌👍🤞😍

[zephyr1934]

Very well done! Great update that brings a lot of improvements

[idlemarvel]

Great model with a lot of attention to detail. If you ever built it, I'm guessing a 4-car set would be quite heavy (let's not mention the cost!) and would required a few motors.