Somerset Holiday Post V: "4160, ex-GWR 41XX Large Prairie Tank"...
This "same day" post will talk about my visit to the footplate of ex-GWR 41XX (5101 class) 2-6-2 Large Prairie Tank No4160. Whilst at Bishops Lydeard, I was invited into the cab for a look and a chat with the very friendly & helpful crew. This isn't the first time I've been on the footplate of a '41', I did enjoy a full round trip of the Great Central Railway in the cab of No4141 (now out of ticket). However, this is the first time I've "analysed" the cab of one properly! Here we go...
The first thing I noticed about the cab was how "imposing" (is that the word?!) the pole reverser is on the drivers side. You certainly must have to squeeze round it when its set to "full reverse". The GWR Number 2 boiler is very large and stands out greatly in the cab. At the top of the boiler is the Manifold, seen below. The two handles atop the manifold are the "Steam Valves" for the two injectors. Also in this image, in the bottom right, can be seen the combined Steam & Vacuum Brake handle.
The 5101 Class was built for fast passenger work and, in total, 209 of them were built. They employed six 5ft 8" driving wheels along with two 3ft 8" pony wheels (one at each end, meaning they were a 2-6-2). The GWR Number 2 boiler made for a 200psi blowing off pressure which, coupled with two 18" x 30" cylinders made a very powerful tank engine indeed. This power gave them a classification of "BR 4MT" or "GWR D". With a weight of just over 78 tons the engine's were also classified under the "GWR Blue Route Allocation" (this was necessary to prevent heavy axle loads on weight-restricted lines). Below can be seen the "Hydrostatic Lubricator" which many GWR engine's carried...
No look on the footplate is complete until you've had a look in the firebox! In the view below the side stays, front stays and the brick arch can be seen. Below the brick arch can be seen the relatively thin fire. The firebox on these engines includes a 20.35 sq ft grate area which is more than enough to heat the good sized boiler!...
The visibility, looking through the fireman's side spectacle glass (below), on these engines is relatively good. The track ahead can be seen very clearly due to the small slope at the smokebox end of the side tanks...
On the fireman's side can be seen the pressure gauge and the steam heating pressure gauge. The engine's only water gauge class can also be seen. To the left of the spectacle glass is the water tank gauge. For your interest, the water capacity of these engines was 2000 gallons. In the bottom left of the image below can be seen the 'feed valve' for the "wash down pipe". A pick-axe for breaking up the coal can also be seen in the image...
A close up of the water tank gauge...
I very much enjoyed my visit to the footplate of 4160, its always nice to have a look! Thanks to the crew for inviting me. 4160 herself will only be in service tomorrow before being removed for a "boiler washout". Following this, she will be back in full WSR service. With her boiler ticket lasting until 2017, the near future looks very bright indeed for 4160. Thanks for reading...
This "same day" post will talk about my visit to the footplate of ex-GWR 41XX (5101 class) 2-6-2 Large Prairie Tank No4160. Whilst at Bishops Lydeard, I was invited into the cab for a look and a chat with the very friendly & helpful crew. This isn't the first time I've been on the footplate of a '41', I did enjoy a full round trip of the Great Central Railway in the cab of No4141 (now out of ticket). However, this is the first time I've "analysed" the cab of one properly! Here we go...
The first thing I noticed about the cab was how "imposing" (is that the word?!) the pole reverser is on the drivers side. You certainly must have to squeeze round it when its set to "full reverse". The GWR Number 2 boiler is very large and stands out greatly in the cab. At the top of the boiler is the Manifold, seen below. The two handles atop the manifold are the "Steam Valves" for the two injectors. Also in this image, in the bottom right, can be seen the combined Steam & Vacuum Brake handle.
The 5101 Class was built for fast passenger work and, in total, 209 of them were built. They employed six 5ft 8" driving wheels along with two 3ft 8" pony wheels (one at each end, meaning they were a 2-6-2). The GWR Number 2 boiler made for a 200psi blowing off pressure which, coupled with two 18" x 30" cylinders made a very powerful tank engine indeed. This power gave them a classification of "BR 4MT" or "GWR D". With a weight of just over 78 tons the engine's were also classified under the "GWR Blue Route Allocation" (this was necessary to prevent heavy axle loads on weight-restricted lines). Below can be seen the "Hydrostatic Lubricator" which many GWR engine's carried... 
No look on the footplate is complete until you've had a look in the firebox! In the view below the side stays, front stays and the brick arch can be seen. Below the brick arch can be seen the relatively thin fire. The firebox on these engines includes a 20.35 sq ft grate area which is more than enough to heat the good sized boiler!...
The visibility, looking through the fireman's side spectacle glass (below), on these engines is relatively good. The track ahead can be seen very clearly due to the small slope at the smokebox end of the side tanks...
On the fireman's side can be seen the pressure gauge and the steam heating pressure gauge. The engine's only water gauge class can also be seen. To the left of the spectacle glass is the water tank gauge. For your interest, the water capacity of these engines was 2000 gallons. In the bottom left of the image below can be seen the 'feed valve' for the "wash down pipe". A pick-axe for breaking up the coal can also be seen in the image...
A close up of the water tank gauge...
I very much enjoyed my visit to the footplate of 4160, its always nice to have a look! Thanks to the crew for inviting me. 4160 herself will only be in service tomorrow before being removed for a "boiler washout". Following this, she will be back in full WSR service. With her boiler ticket lasting until 2017, the near future looks very bright indeed for 4160. Thanks for reading...
No comments:
Post a Comment