GCR Class 8K

GCR Classes 8K and 8M

63601 rolling into Rothley on the Great Central Railway

Type and origin Power type Steam Designer John G. Robinson Builder 8K:GCR Gorton Works (56)  Kitson & Co. (20)  North British Locomotive Co. (50) Build date 1911–1914 Total produced 8K: 126 8M: 19 ROD 2-8-0: 521

Specifications Configuration: ​  • Whyte 2-8-0  • UIC 1′D h2 Gauge 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge Leading dia. 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) Driver dia. 4 ft 8 in (1,422 mm) Loco weight 72.5–74.65 long tons (73.66–75.85 t; 81.20–83.61 short tons) Fuel type Coal Fuel capacity 6 long tons 0 cwt (13,400 lb or 6.1 t) Water cap 4,000 imp gal (18,000 l; 4,800 US gal) Firebox:  • Firegrate area 26.24 sq ft (2.438 m2) Boiler pressure 180 psi (1.24 MPa) Cylinders Two, outside Cylinder size 21 in × 26 in (533 mm × 660 mm)

Performance figures Tractive effort 31,325 lbf (139.34 kN)

Career Operators Great Central Railway → London and North Eastern Railway → British Railways Class GCR: 8K, 8M LNER: O4, O5 Power class BR: 7F Axle load class LNER/BR: Route Availability 6 Disposition One preserved, remainder scrapped

The Great Central Railway (GCR) Class 8K 2-8-0 is a class of steam locomotive designed for heavy freight. Introduced in 1911, and designed by John G. Robinson, 126 were built for the GCR prior to the First World War. Including wartime construction for the British Army ROD and the post-war GCR Class 8M, the class and its derivatives totalled 666 locomotives.

The first of the 8K class was outshopped from the GCR's Gorton workshops in 1911. It was essentially a superheated version of an earlier 0-8-0, the 8A class, with the addition of a pony truck. This both supported the greater front end weight and gave a steadier ride. The 8K was introduced to anticipate the increased traffic from the GCR's vast new docks complex at Immingham in North East Lincolnshire and by June 1914 126 were in traffic. During the First World War there were experiments with oil burning 8Ks with larger bogie tenders.

Post-war, a further 19 locomotives were built in 1918–21 to a modified design with a larger boiler (GCR class 8M). In 1922 the GCR rebuilt two Class 8M to Class 8K.

Robust and straightforward, the Class 8K 2-8-0 steamed well and proved outstandingly reliable, qualities that commended the design to the Ministry of Munitions. Sir Sam Fay ensured that it became the standard locomotive during the First World War as the ROD 2-8-0, used by the Railway Operating Division of the Royal Engineers. 521 ROD locomotives were built in 1917-19 to essentially the same design as the GCR's 8K locomotives, differing only in minor details, such as the fitting of Westinghouse Air Brakes and the use of steel for the boiler tubes and inner firebox. After the war, the surviving ROD locomotives were sold to various railway companies, with the GCR itself purchasing 3 in 1919, which were added to its indigenous 8K fleet.