LMS Route: Grand Junction Railway

Hamstead and Great Barr Station: lnwrgb2290a

Close up of image 'lnwrgb2290' showing the Coal Tank's fireman snatching a brief respite from firing to pose to the camera. The 0-6-2 tank was perhaps that most uninspiring configuration yet paradoxically the ‘Coal Tanks’ became a firm favorite. They were maids-of-all-work with not the slightest hint of glamour; only a middling amount of power (compared to later designs); and their inadequate brake leverage led mostly to excitement in their inability to stop: Crews must have had many a nervous moment! But they were work-a-day engines, hard to beat for value for money with a wide range of flexibility. Lacking even the shapely spokes of normal wheels, perhaps it was Webb's H-spoked Explain 'H-Spoke Wheel' wheels of cast iron which set the seal on their rugged chunkiness. It was 1881 when Mr. Webb Explain 'Webb, Francis William (1836—1906)' designed this tank engine version of the successful 17” Coal Engine, the first of 300 built over the next eighteen years. It was almost entirely built of Crewe standard parts, including the radial rear axle Explain 'Radial Axle' – a simple and excellent design. Most were relieved of freight duties when the extent of their appalling brakes (initially made of wood!) were uncovered, and some were fitted for motor train Explain 'Motor Train' working. Between the front and rear tanks there was a tall step over a flexible water hose, and this was always good for tripping the crew up when getting in or out. Courtesy of the London North Western Society (LNWR Society).

back