Oxford Diecast - NOB001 - Bus, Bedford, OB/OWB - British Rail - HWO 881

Specific Item Information: The Bedford OB Coach chassis was introduced in 1939. It had a wheelbase of 14ft 6 inches and was designed to carry 26 to 29 passengers depending on the bodywork. It was fitted with a 27hp petrol engine and had a 4 speed gearbox with a fully floating rear axle. Only 73 were built prior to World War II, but it reappeared in an unchanged form at the end of the war. It continued production until 1950. Over 12,500 were produced making it one of the most popular buses of its type.

Road Name History: British Railways (BR), which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was the state-owned company that operated most of the overground rail transport in Great Britain between 1948 and 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the "Big Four" British railway companies and lasted until the gradual privatisation of British Rail, in stages between 1994 and 1997. Originally a trading brand of the Railway Executive of the British Transport Commission, it became an independent statutory corporation in 1962 designated as the British Railways Board.

British Rail designed and manufactured rolling stock from 1948 to 1989, at which time its subsidiary British Rail Engineering Limited (BREL) was privatised.

1997 marked the end of the privatization effort in which the last assets of British Rail were sold to 31 regional freight and passenger operators as well as Railtrack (which was later brought under public control as Network Rail), which was given the track and infrastructure.

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Manufacturer Information: Established in 1993, Oxford Diecast is a British Company that specializes in high-quality die-cast metal vehicles. Produced in various scales, the firm's models are marketed as collector items, gifts, and promotional products. Their largest production goes to OO scale (1:76) and in 2015 they introduced railway products under 'Oxford Rail' brand.
Their N-scale collection is using the 1:148 scale ratio as most British manufacturers.