LMS Route: Nuneaton to Birmingham New Street

LMS Route: Birmingham New Street to Tamworth

Saltley Shed: mrsalt653

An unidentified BR 'Crosti' 2-10-0 and classmate No 92024 are seen in company with ex-LMS 8F 2-8-0 No 48339 stabled in one of Saltley's roundhouses in August 1966. Former LMS 8F No 48339 was built by Horwich in January 1944 and remained in service until October 1966 when it was withdrawn from Croes Newydd shed in Wrexham to be scrapped in January 1967 by Drapers Ltd of Hull. Built at Crewe in June 1955 No 92024 was one of ten 9Fs fitted with the experimental Franco-Crosti boiler designed to provide more economical running costs.

Within five years No 92024 had its pre-heater sealed off in February 1960 so that it could work in conventional form and remained in the form seen above until November 1967 when it was withdrawn from Birkenhead shed to be scrapped in May 1968 by GH Campbell of Airdrie in Scotland. The Franco-Crosti boiler took the form of a single cylindrical water drum running along the underside of the main boiler barrel; the standard chimney at the front was only used during lighting-up, in normal working the gases went through firetubes inside the preheater drum that led to a second smokebox situated beneath the boiler from which there emerged a chimney on the right-hand side (fireman's), just forward of the firebox.

In the event, the experiment did not deliver the hoped-for benefits, and efficiency was not increased sufficiently to justify the cost and complexity of both the construction and the maintenance. Moreover, conditions were unpleasant on the footplate in a cross-wind, this in spite the later provision of a small deflector plate forward of the chimney. These problems led to the subsequent sealing off of the preheater drum, over the period 1959-1961, and the locomotives were then worked conventionally. As a result of this, there was a reduced ability to to generate steam, and so their power classification was reduced from 9F to 8F.

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