In the concluding part of the series looking at gaps in the range of ready-to-run main line steam locomotives in ‘OO’ gauge, TREVOR JONES and BEN CHURCH examine the BR Standards.
On formation in 1948, British Railways inherited a disparate fleet of locomotives from the former ‘Big Four’. Some were very modern, some very old, and most had been worked very hard during the Second World War.
A final new generation of steam locomotives was envisaged before replacement by diesel and electric equivalents, but before detailed design work started, BR wanted to understand the capabilities of its most capable inherited locomotives.
The 1948 locomotive exchanges tested select designs from the former ‘Big Four’ on lines and routes to which they were not native, allowing BR to gain an understanding of what features worked best. It was also - and perhaps of more use than the results obtained - a way of demonstrating that the old regional order had been replaced by a national railway. Chief Mechanical Engineer Robert Riddles picked out some of the best features to design a standardised, easy to maintain, cheap to build, efficient and effective fleet of steam locomotives, able to work on all regions and replace older locomotive classes.
Abo…
