Engine In 1946, Reginald Payne used the later series of E2 locomotives as the basis for the character Thomas the Tank Engine in the second book of The Railway Series by the Reverend W. Awdry. 00 Gauge models Trix produced a model of the first series Class E2 in 1961. It was designed for the Trix Twin 3-rail system but could be converted to 2-rail using the optional 2-rail pick up included with the locomotive. Hornby produced the locomotive in its earliest form as an 00 gauge model. Production lasted from 1979 to 1985 in three distinct variants with four reference numbers. In 1985 the tooling was retired and after some alterations, was instead used as the basis for the Thomas the Tank Engine model. Bachmann have also produced several different-coloured E2-based models in their Junior Range. References External links Railuk database LB&SCR online, E2 class Southern E-Group – LB&SCR E2 Class page 0-6-0T locomotives E2 Railway locomotives introduced in 1913 Scrapped locomotives