Trains of slate wagons used to be gravity run from the quarries at Blaenau Ffestiniog to the harbour at Porthmadoc, this model pack is of 3 unbraked vehicles and has 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.