The LNER Encyclopedia

I'm sure I've seen photos of an A? tank engine in service in Scotland, but I can't find a reference. Can someone enlighten me - I'm seeking justification for a spot of 'modeller's licence'. Many thanks.

Richard

Ar up rlucas!

The Pacific Tanks you refer to are either the Wemyss Bay tanks of the LMS or the Robinson A8s?

I'm sure it was a photo of an LNER Pacific tank that loco I saw - I think it was an A8, but wouldn't swear to it, and I'm pretty sure it was taken in Fife - where my proposed model is to be located.

I live a couple of hundred yards away from Cairns Bridge on the old East Fife Central Railway. I want to build a model loosely based on what might have happened had been extended to, as planned, to join the St Andrews - Anstruther line, gained a passenger service, and become upgraded to a secondary line providing occasional diversion and relief for the ECML and Fife Coast routes through Fife. In an even less likely scenario, I'm thinking of giving the 'Caley' running rights, mainly so I can run a Pickersgill 4-4-0.a 'Jumbo' and a '439'. Either or both of the big High Level tank engines could represent the motive power of a version of the Wemyss Railway, though I'm not sure if I can stretch to including the Wemyss Estate's 3' 6" gauge interurban tramway! There's good few interesting prototypes hereabouts.

I cannot find any reference anywhere to A5 or A8 tanks running in Scotland. The Caley 4-6-2 tanks were in the main allocated in the West, and in later years went as bankers to Beattock where they were eventually replaced by LMS 2-6-4 tanks, Beattock also having an allocation of 0-4-4 tanks. (439 class et seq.)

Some of the L1 class (Thompson) were built in Scotland but were never used in revenue service in Scotland.

I had a scan of A5 and A8 allocations and couldn't see any Scottish allocations:

A5: http://brdatabase.info/locoqry.php?acti ... page=alloc
A8: http://brdatabase.info/locoqry.php?acti ... page=alloc

ditto with the L1's although the data isn't quite complete:

L1: http://brdatabase.info/locoqry.php?acti ... page=alloc

The beauty of modelling is that you can do what you like! I was planning a layout based on the North London line in the late 50's early 60's so I could have 1st generation diesel electrics and diesel hydraulics, and locos from the GWR/SR/LMS and LNER all passing one another with alacrity! I could have a WR B-B baby warship piloting a failed NBL type 1 passing an S15 piloting a 4F, and why not!

Thanks for all your endeavours! However, this: http://www.railuk.info/steam/getsteam.php?row_id=21415 69891 as being last shedded at Thornton Junction, 62A. It seems that BR did allocate A8s to a Scottish Shed. 69866 , 69860, 69869, 69882 are also shown as 62A engines when withdrawn - http://www.railuk.info/steam/getshed.php?id=344

Seems I can stretch facts a little and pretend the LNER did the same! I'm going to allow myself an F4 as well - the LNER did send some of those North!

I'm afraid the railuk information is incorrect. They have, by mistake, combined information for Thornaby (51L) and Thornton Jct (62A) for several locos. There are a number of other NER locomotives listed on that page that were never allocated to 62A - for example, the J26, J27 and Q6 locos listed.

All the A8 locomotives listed as withdrawn from 62A were actually withdrawn from 51L.

I have a pic of a Crystal Palace tank at St Boswells on a North bound freight.

I have a pic of a Crystal Palace tank at St Boswells on a North bound freight.

What do you mean by a Crystal Palace Tank? I suspect you may be getting the ex NB class C15 and C16 tanks confused with the ex GCR C14s.

A Crystal Palace is an F7, isn't it?

Andy W wrote:I'm afraid the railuk information is incorrect. They have, by mistake, combined information for Thornaby (51L) and Thornton Jct (62A) for several locos. There are a number of other NER locomotives listed on that page that were never allocated to 62A - for example, the J26, J27 and Q6 locos listed.

All the A8 locomotives listed as withdrawn from 62A were actually withdrawn from 51L.

Ah well - thanks forputting me right about.

You mean a Tomato House as they were called in Scotland - and F7 of which several were allocated to St. Margarets in the 1930s.

Now, there may have been some confusion between H1 and A8 classes. The H1s were all rebuilt as A8, but 4-4-4 H1 class 2160 was allocated to Duns from July 1934 until July 1936 working between Berwick and St. Boswells - it was seen as far north as Galashiels.

See Fig 204 in RCTS Part 7.

According to a letter in response to the article 'I remember Crieff' in the June '56 Trains Illustrated, a Caley Pickersgill 4-6-2T was allocated to Stirling for a period and found its way to Crieff on occasions: this is pre '56 so may even be just post war: but Crieff had a pick up goods daily from Stirling as well as troop trains and portions from Buchanan St on a daily basis. So the 4-6-2T could well have made its way on, occasion, to Fife via Alloa and Cowdenbeath...you could certainly assume it might have been trialled on coal trains!