Furness Railway K2 Class Explained

Furness Railway K2 class
Powertype:Steam
Designer:W. F. Pettigrew
Builder:Sharp, Stewart and Company
Serialnumber:4174–4179, 4651–4652
Builddate:1896 (6), 1900 (2)
Totalproduction:8
Uicclass:2′B
Leadingdiameter:3feet
Driverdiameter:6feet
Length:48feet
Locoweight:
41lcwt6lcwt
Tenderweight:
28lcwt5lcwt
Fueltype:Coal
Fuelcap:
3LT
Watercap:2500impgal
Boilerpressure:1502NaN2
Cylindercount:Two
Cylindersize:18x
Valvegear:Stephenson
Tractiveeffort:137701NaN1
Operator:FR » LMS
Operatorclass:FR: 21 class ("K2")
Powerclass:LMS: 1P
Fleetnumbers:FR: 21–22, 34–35 (renumbered 44–47) 36–37, 124–125;
LMS: 10135–10142
Nicknames:Larger Seagulls
Withdrawndate:1929–1931
Disposition:All scrapped

The Furness Railway 21 class (classified "K2" by Bob Rush)[1] or "Larger Seagulls", were a class of eight steam locomotives designed by W. F. Pettigrew and built by Sharp, Stewart and Company of Glasgow for the Furness Railway. Six were built in 1896, and two more in 1900. They were built to supersede the 120 class on the heavier and more important trains and were in turn replaced on the railway’s top trains with the 115 class in the 1920s. They had 6feet diameter driving wheels with 18x cylinders.

Numbering

The first six of 1896 were numbered 21, 22, 34, 35, 36 and 37 by the Furness Railway (works numbers were 4174–4179). In 1900, two extra engines were added to the class, Furness Railway numbers 124–125. (works numbers 4651–4652). In 1913, two engines, FR Nos. 34 and 37, were fitted with experimental Phoenix smokebox superheaters, however, these were removed the following year. At some point in time locomotives 21, 22, 34 and 35 were renumbered 44–47 respectively.

By 1923 and the grouping of the FR into the London, Midland and Scottish Railway, all eight engines were still in service, and received LMS numbers, these being 10135–10142 (in order of their later numbers). They lasted until the late 1920s and early 1930s, performing secondary duties on the home turf, between Barrow-in-Furness and Whitehaven.

Tenders

The six-wheeled tenders that this class used were also used by the Furness Railway D3 0-6-0 tender engines. They carried of water and 3.5LT of coal, their weight being 28.25LT.

Withdrawal

The class was withdrawn from 1929 to 1931 and scrapped.

Table of witdrawals

[2]

! Year !! Quantity in
service at
start of year !! Quantity
withdrawn !! Locomotive numbers!Notes

1929 8 6 align=left 10135/38-42
1930 2 1 align=left 10137
1931 1 1 align=left 10136

Edward the Blue Engine

Edward the Blue Engine, from the Railway Series books and the spin-off television series Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends, is described as bearing "a quite striking similarity" to the Furness "Larger Seagulls".[3] The Edwardian type is a fairly common design pattern in British steam locomotives. However Edward differs in having a cab with dual glazed side windows, a much more characteristic feature of North Eastern railway locomotives. The tapered non-circular spectacle plate windows and the higher boiler line are distinctively those of the NER Class R1.[4]

See also

References

Bibliography

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Furness Railway locomotive history.
  2. Web site: May 17, 2024 . FR/LMS "K2" Class 4-4-0 (Brdatabase). Brdatabase.
  3. Book: Sibley , Brian . Brian Sibley

    . The Thomas the Tank Engine Man . Brian Sibley . 2015 . Lion Books . 978-0-7459-7027-1 . 289.

  4. Web site: The W. Worsdell Class D21 (NER Class R1) 4-4-0 Locomotives . LNER Encyclopedia .