Introduced in 1951, the BR Class 415 4EPB (4-car, Electro-Pneumatic Brakes) is a classic southern ‘slam-door’ third-rail EMU which had a career spanning 44 years. Each 4-car set was comprised of two powered driving cars and two trailers, originally with compartment seating. The class was designed for a mixture of inner-city and suburban operations on the third-rail DC lines out of south London, and its top speed of 75mph was enough for runs further out of town.
In 1960 the first British Rail designed units were introduced, based on the then current Mark 1 Suburban stock offered superior strength and weight saving over the Southern Bulleid design.
A refurbishment in the late 1970s/early 1980s started converting the six-seat compartment stock to 3+2-seat open saloons. At the same time, the red-brown horsehair seating and metal-framed cord overhead luggage racks were replaced with standard Mark 2 seats and metal racks. The partitions were painted in light cream: three publicity panels about 15 cm x 40 cm filled the space on the compartment walls between the top of the seats and the luggage racks. The other fittings were a chain alarm-cord in a recess above and to one side of the door, and the door-lock itself.
The door window could also be opened full-length into a recess in the door panel beneath, initially supported at the bottom by a leather strop, which was soon replaced by a metal friction-bar at the top, bearing on the side-rails - in general they were either closed or with a one- or two-inch opening.
The flooring was a strong linoleum on wooded baulks: the linoleum was not present in the guards compartments, which together with the cabs were painted in a dark green. A mirror to a roof periscope facing along the length of the unit was fitted centrally to the guard's side of the rear compartment partition, together with a handle for the sweep-arm cleaner of the roof glass.
Underneath was a small worksurface about 2'x1', a swivel-chair screwed to the floor, and variously a short ladder for evacuating coaches, sometimes a medical cabinet, and a rail-shorting bar would be fixed to the side of the compartment. The driver's cab was fitted with one flap-down seat on each side: the driver occupied the left-hand position.
The BR Class 415 4EPB for Train Simulator faithfully recreates this classic unit as it operated for British Rail in its final years. Re-live the heyday of these classic heritage electric multiple units over their old stomping ground - South London Network.