GER Class M15
No. 67200 at Ongar Station, March 1957
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| Type and origin | |
|---|---|
| Power type | Steam |
| Designer | F4, Thomas William Worsdell F5, James Holden |
| Builder | Stratford Works |
| Build date | F4 built 1884-1909 F5 rebuilt 1911-1920 |
| Total produced | 160 |
| Specifications | |
|---|---|
| Configuration | 2-4-2T |
| Gauge | 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) |
| Driver dia. | 5 ft 4 in (1.626 m) |
| Loco weight | 53 long tons 19 cwt (120,800 lb or 54.8 t) |
| Fuel type | Coal |
| Boiler pressure | F4, 160 psi (1.10 MPa) F5, 180 psi (1.24 MPa) |
| Cylinders | Two, inside |
| Cylinder size | 17.5 in × 24 in (440 mm × 610 mm) |
| Valve gear | F4, Joy valve gear F5, Stephenson valve gear |
| Performance figures | |
|---|---|
| Tractive effort | F4, 15,618 lbf (69.47 kN) F5, 17,571 lbf (78.16 kN) |
| Career | |
|---|---|
| Operators | GER » LNER |
| Class | GER: M15 and M15R LNER: F4 and F5 |
| Nicknames | Gobblers |
| Withdrawn | 1955–1958 |
| Disposition | All original locomotives scrapped; one new-build under construction |
The GER Class M15 was a class of 160 2-4-2T steam locomotives designed by Thomas William Worsdell and built for the Great Eastern Railway between 1884 and 1909. The original (F4) class of locomotives were fitted with Joy valve gear which was notoriously difficult to 'set'. This earned them the nickname of 'Gobblers' thanks to their high coal consumption rates. As a result, between 1911 and 1920, 30 of them were rebuilt by James Holden with Stephenson valve gear and higher pressure boilers. Despite this, the nickname stuck for many years after.
Rebuilding included the fitting of a higher pressure boiler, and also involved replacing Joy valve gear with Stephenson valve gear thus forming the M15R class.
Many were fitted with condensing gear for working in the London area and a few were fitted with push-pull apparatus for working trains on the route to Ongar station.
They all passed to the London and North Eastern Railway (LNER) at the 1923 grouping and received the following classifications:
Some of the F4s and all of the F5s passed into British Railways (BR) ownership in 1948 and their BR numbers were:
None of the F5s or F4s survived into preservation, however a project to build a new F5 was launched in the early 2000s and as of January 2014 has progressed well. So far the main frames, smokebox, cab/bunker platework and lots of smaller components have been acquired/manufactured. The project is partway through a move to Tyseley Locomotive Works for erection and construction work to continue following a long period at Mangapps Railway Museum. The completed locomotive (originally set to appear as 67218 in BR Black) is to be outshopped as No.789 in Great Eastern Railway blue livery.
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Wikipedia