Current and Proposed New-Builds

Unfortunately, one of the many things that is very wrong about that one is that the bogies are knackered. IIRC, 45015 and a preserved 25 managed to escape the gas axe because they were so knackered that moving them was a total pain, which has also made restoring them too difficult as well!

 

Thanks Pete! I'd be in favour of all of these, and might support one or two, but I think that your No 3, the LNWR 'Problem', would be more interesting if in original condition. The only surviving engine by John Ramsbottom, one of our greatest railway engineers, is an 0-4-0 ST in badly "restored"(!) condition, and a replica of his 'Problem' - as built - would be a more fitting monument to him.

 

45015 has been mentioned - but I think they got away with it...

 

Popcorn at the ready...

 

NBR A Class 0-6-2T

 

Full size Triang Nellie! (Gets coat!)

 

Its quite striking isn't it. More like that than the oft quoted LSWR C14 IMHO!

 

How about designing and building a real Nellie then!!

 

Metropolitan railway 0-6-4....

 

Absoulutely agree with you!
This beauty one?:http://spellerweb.net/rhindex/UKRH/OtherRailways/JonesGClass.jpg

Knut

 

Yes.

 

Handy for London use....

 

A fair point, although an as-built DX might be a better example - in green livery and named!

I hadn't really thought of particular engineers that are under-represent, I was thinking more of railways and locos that would have some practical use - though I admit it is hard to see what the Garratt could be used for - perhaps that should be crossed of the list as impractical even as a fantasy! Though, technically , it does have two engines. On the other hand I don't know if in its life it ever actually hauled a train.

 

The LNER Garrett and Big Bertha were never intended as traction units, they were solely for the purpose of banking at Wath and Lickey. I have seen a photo of the Garrett on a freight working at Woodhead once, and I believe the Midland tried Bertha out on the Wellingborough to Cricklewood coal hauls once, without success

 

These proved very prone to frame cracking and were not perpetuated. The same boiler design was used for the later 4-4-4s

PH

 

And?

 

Not a good choice of prototype if this exercise is anything more than one of fantasy.

PH

 

Wasn't that the reason Met No.1 (the 0-4-4t) survives? IIRC, a LPTB 0-6-4t was the first choice for preservation ..... until the would-be buyers were advised about the state of the frames? Pity one of the Met 4-4-4t's didn't survive, if only for the sake of preserving the wheel arrangement.

Adhesion-wise, the 4-4-4t has to be one of the worst formats to grace the rails. Those built by Sir Vincent Raven were (IMO) rather splendid looking machines, but all were later rebuilt by HNG as class A8 pacific tanks. In Sweden, they went one better, producing a 2-4-4t, seemingly just to have a passenger loco which no-one would pinch to run bulk iron ore trains!

Here's the LNER Encyclopedia page on the Raven locos:
https://www.lner.info/locos/H/h1.php

A 3'-0" gauge example existed on the County Donegal, where the inherent adhesion problems were compounded by increased axle load to produce a pair of Class 3 4-4-4t locos, which were restricted to operations between Stranorlar, Strabane and Derry. One went in 1933, the other lasted until closure of the Strabane-Derry line in 1953 (although always worked by the CDRJC, this section was wholly owned by the NCC, passing to the UTA after the British Transport Commission pulled out of the six counties, the only surprise there being it took 'em over 5 years to close it!).

 

Wasn’t there a 2-4-4 tank on one on the Northern Ireland 3’0” gauge lines as well? Also the GWR and LMS had a small number of 4-4-4Ts, the GWR ones came from the MSWJR and the LMS ones from the Wirral railway.

 

I believe the first choice was actually L52, an F-class 0-6-2T, which the buyer was indeed warned off because of the state of its frames. There used to be a telling of the tale out there somewhere in the wilds of the internet. Met No.1 is nice and the number is good PR, but the F-class were very handsome little engines and L52 had dual brakes already, which would have come in handy in more recent times.