Piko 59124 H0 - BR 247 diesel locomotive, Sersa, Era VI, DCC with sound

Digital Siemens Vectron Class 247 diesel locomotive model in Sersa colours

A digital model of the Siemens Vectron DE diesel locomotive, designated Class 247 in Germany — the rare diesel variant of the popular Vectron family. The version reproduced by PIKO carries the large-format advertising livery of the Swiss company Sersa and comes with a factory-fitted sound decoder.

The model reproduces the large-format advertising livery of the prototype with sharp printing edges. The design is based on the same platform as the electric Vectron variants, with the characteristically lengthened body housing the diesel power pack. Two traction tyres increase pulling power. The factory-fitted PIKO sound decoder in PluX22 standard works with a matching speaker and reproduces the characteristic sounds of the diesel engine.

Model specifications:

• Scale: H0 (1:87)
• Catalogue number: 59124
• Manufacturer: PIKO
• Model length: 230 mm
• Era: VI
• Power supply: DC
• Decoder socket: NEM 658 – PluX22
• Decoder: PIKO sound decoder, factory-fitted
• Traction tyres: 2
• Coupling: NEM 362 coupler pocket with close coupling kinematics
• Minimum radius: 358 mm
• Lighting: lights changing with the direction of travel: white and red
• The model is painted and ready to run
• Recommended age: 14 years and over

Please note: a DCC command station and powered track are required to operate this model.

The model is not a starter set and does not include track or a controller. To use all the digital functions — sound and independent lighting control — a DCC command station is required (for example the PIKO SmartControl or any other DCC-compatible controller) connected to powered track. The model can also be run on a conventional analogue DC layout, but only provided that the decoder has the alternative power source function enabled (analogue operation — controlled in the DCC standard by bit 2 of register CV29). It is active by default, but if it has previously been switched off, applying DC to the track may damage the decoder. In analogue mode only basic running is available — without sound or digital functions.

Model railways – digital or analogue control?

The digital DCC control system allows several locomotives to run independently on the same track. Each vehicle receives individual commands while the rail voltage stays constant, which makes realistic operation possible and allows the lights and sound effects of every locomotive to be controlled separately. In an analogue system all vehicles on a given circuit are controlled at once by varying the supply voltage. PIKO model 59124 has a factory-fitted sound decoder and is intended above all for digital operation.

About the Siemens Vectron DE (Class 247):

The Vectron DE is the diesel-electric member of the Vectron family, first shown at InnoTrans in 2010. Structurally it derives from the ER 20 Hercules, fitted with a more powerful engine and new cab fronts in Vectron styling. Power comes from a sixteen-cylinder MTU 16V 4000 R84 rated at 2,400 kW, working through electric transmission. The carbody is about one metre longer than on the electric versions to accommodate the power pack and fuel tanks.

Commercially the DE variant remained an episode. Only a small series was built, spread across a handful of operators — from the Siemens test centre at Wegberg-Wildenrath through RTS Rail Transport Service and Eisenbahngesellschaft Potsdam to Austria’s Stern & Hafferl and RDC Autozug Sylt. In 2019 Siemens withdrew the DE from the range for lack of demand, replacing it with the Dual Mode variant.

One of the operators is the Swiss company Sersa, today part of the Rhomberg Sersa Rail Group — a major track construction contractor and railway operator with its own fleet of locomotives, infrastructure vehicles and special wagons. In its distinctive red corporate livery the Vectron DE hauls engineering trains and permanent-way material. That is the livery reproduced by this model in era VI.

Prototype specifications (Siemens Vectron DE, Class 247):

• Manufacturer: Siemens Mobility, Munich-Allach
• Deliveries: from around 2010–2011 until 2019 (end of production)
• Wheel arrangement: Bo'Bo'
• Length: approx. 19,980 mm
• Weight: up to 90 t
• Engine: MTU 16V 4000 R84 rated at 2,400 kW (approx. 2,000 kW at the wheel rim)
• Top speed: 160 km/h
• Role: freight, engineering and passenger trains on non-electrified lines

About the manufacturer – PIKO:

PIKO is a German manufacturer of model railways with more than seventy years of tradition, founded in 1949 in Sonneberg. Today it is one of the most popular model railway brands in Europe and a leading producer of Polish prototype models, including locomotives and coaches in PKP, PKP Intercity and PKP Cargo colours. The range covers H0, TT, N and G scales, from individual wagons to comprehensive starter sets and digital control systems. The PIKO Expert range combines a high level of detail with modern digital technology — with factory-fitted DCC and sound decoders in selected models. PIKO products are valued by modellers and collectors worldwide.