LMS 2P 4-4-0

I must have bumped into the same guy at 27D - showing the permit meant nothing to him whatsoever.

 

I envy you guys who were old enough to go round steam sheds. I was only 7 in 1962 when steam finished in Essex (apart from some freight to Tilbury I didn't know about) . My dad did get my cousin and I into Lostock Hall in Summer 1967. And he got a rocket from my Mum because we were in smart clothes and of course got covered in filth climbing over the withdrawn locos on the dump.

 

We aim to restore 34081's steam operated firehole doors ere long.

 

Regarding Watford's 2P 40657; it was always there blowing off steam when, in the morning my RT bus swung into the Junction for me to change to another. It pulled our Branch Line Soc. train on 12th March 1961 from Watford to Rickmansworth Church Street. Being unable to run round owing to the five coaches it set the train back to shunt it onto the loop. Then it ran round on the platform road. It then took us tender first to Watford and up the branch to St.Albans Abbey where the 4F 44575 that had taken us from St.Pancras to Watford, now backed on from the Hatfield bay . We then proceeded via the GNR Hatfield line back to St.Pancras.

 

Out of interest, how did it get from the Hatfield line to St. Pancras, i.e. where was the connection from the GNR to the Midland?


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Looping the loop via Canonbury and Lea Bridge. See Six Bells Jct.

 

living in Harrow , i saw Watford's 2P 40672 several times but only ever light engine . 40657 i never saw . Duchesses did do some heavy daytime work. i can recall several occasions with 19 on heading North.
i saw 40659 somewhere between Harrow and Euston . a Corkerhill 2P in London must have had a very odd travellers tale to tell if we did but know it

double heading on the WCML was by no means unusual - but not with a 2P !

 

? 40659 was a Crewe North loco, tfrd to Watford in 1959 and withdrawn from there. Pete Johnson in his memoirs mentions they had 2Ps at Crewe North specifically to assist trains, what were referred to as the "up and down" bankers. There is an image on p63 of Vol. 2 of 40659 which he describes as the "downhill" banker i.e. the one used towards London.

 

The only picture I ever took of a 2P piloting a Duchess was in the summer of 1958 southbound at Penrith, 40656 and an unrecorded Pacific

 

What does it say on the Hawkseye?

 

"Penrith for Ullswater Lake"

Richard.

 

I don’t know what sort of ailment caused the Duchess to need a pilot but I’m sure the crew weren’t best pleased to see they had been given a 2P

 

Thank you.

 

Broken headlamp bracket?

 

Cracking photo! The 2P doing its utmost to look like it's contributing, whilst being propelled by the Pacific! Unless the Pacific was in trouble, of course.

Richard.

At least the Pacific only had to shove the 2P up the southbound climb to Shap - I can imagine some new words and phrases being invented if they'd have set off from Tebay Northbound with a 2P as pilot!

Richard.

 

I hope you don't mind but I have taken the liberty of using your image to have a play with the Colorize filter in the new Photoshop 2021 which I have just downloaded. If you would like me to delete it, please advise and I will do so.

 

Pilots were taken for all sorts of reasons, and one was to save a path in getting an engine back to its home shed. Thus 5637 found itself in front of 6202 on 8 October 1952, and so was written off in the horrendous accident at Harrow. If the Pacific really was ailing, I'd be amazed if they'd put a Class 2 on the front.

A couple of points about the Pacific in the photo: it has the full dropped running plate so 6230-34 or 6249-52 (plus 6242 following repairs from the same Harrow accident); and the tender appears to be an ex-streamlined one, so 6230-31, 6242, or 6249-52.

 

Is Shap hard then? Looks less of a climb than Honiton bank ...



(500+ tons, no pilot, no sweat ...)

Tom

 

This is Pete Johnson's account of a trip on the "bank loco" to London. Seems a bit easier than having to fill a Duchess' box.

 

Not necessarily an ex streamlined tender. 6253-55 were fitted with tenders with the high curve behind the cab. Tender no 9816 was transferred to 6242 in 1951 which it kept until withdrawal. 6254/5 kept their original tenders throughout. The last two had the same design but they were riveted. The joys of engine picking