GWR Route: Banbury to Wolverhampton

GWR Route: North Warwickshire Line

Birmingham Snow Hill Station: gwrbsh1784

Great Western Railway 51xx class 2-6-2T No 5138 travelling light bunker first on the up through main line in the early 1930s. This locomotive was built in February 1906 at Swindon Works as part of lot 159 and was originally numbered No 3138. The sloping side tanks could hold 2,000 gallons of water and these were the first Great Western Railway locomotives to be fitted with a two way steam operated water pickup, which could be used to collect water from water troughs. The locomotive had a standard No 2 long coned sloping boiler, which operated a pressure of 195 lbs giving a tractive effort at 85% of 23,690 lb and were classified in power group D. The maximum axle weight was 18 tons, 4 cwt, which restricted these locomotives to main lines and a few branches (Route colour Red). Several of the locomotives performed banking duties and from 1909 all the class were fitted with struts to relieve the strain on the front buffer beam. No 3138 was fitted with a boiler with a two row 12 tube / 72 element superheater arrangement in November 1911. In 1919 the boiler pressure was standardised at 200 lbs giving a tractive effort at 85% of 24,300 lb. At around the same time the bunkers were extended to hold a further 18 cwt of coal.

In 1927, to increase the operational versatility of the 31xx locomotives, the weight was reduced by limiting the tank capacity to 1,600 gallons, subsequently the whole class had their weight redistributed and the tanks were altered back to their original figure. This weight redistribution reduced the maximum axle weight to 17 tons 5 cwt and allowed the locomotives to traverse Blue coloured routes. To distinguish those locomotives that had been modified, they were renumbered as 51xx locomotives (keeping the last two digits). No 3138 was modified in August 1928 and renumbered as No 5138. Short safety valve bonnets and narrow cast iron chimneys were fitted at about the same time. In February 1948 the front end of No 5138 was modified with curved drop ends and outside steam pipes. At the same time a lower profile cab roof with sliding shutters was fitted.

The 31xx locomotives were mainly allocated to Newport Division and No 3138 was known to have been allocated at Newport shed (NPT) in January 1921 and at Severn Tunnel Junction shed (STJ) in May 1922. Following the weight redistribution and renumbering the 51xx locomotives were mainly found in the Wolverhampton Division and No 5138 was known to have been allocated at Tyseley shed (TYS) in January 1934, at Leamington shed (LMTN) in January 1938 and at Stourbridge shed (STB) prior to nationalisation in January 1947. No 5138 was withdrawn from Wellington shed (84H) in November 1952.

Robert Ferris

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