Barry Railway Class L

Barry Railway Class L
Type and origin Power type Steam Designer John Auld Builder Hawthorn Leslie and Company Build date 1914 Total produced 10
Specifications Configuration: ​  •  Whyte 0-6-4T  •  UIC C2 n2t Gauge 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge Driver dia. 4 ft 7 in (1.397 m) Trailing dia. 3 ft 1 in (0.940 m) Wheelbase 28 ft 0 in (8.534 m) Loco weight 74 long tons 15 cwt (167,400 lb or 75.9 t) (83.7 short tons) Fuel type Coal Cylinders Two inside Cylinder size 18.5 in × 26 in (470 mm × 660 mm)
Performance figures Tractive effort 24,755 lbf (110.12 kN)
Career Operators BR → GWR Delivered 1914 Withdrawn 1926 Disposition All scrapped

Barry Railway Class L were 0-6-4T steam tank locomotives of the Barry Railway in South Wales. They were designed by John Auld, his only design for the Barry Railway, built by Hawthorn Leslie and Company and were introduced in 1914. They were originally intended for use on heavy coal trains from Trehafod but, as the B1 class proved more than adequate for the work, they were assigned to different duties. These included pulling mineral trains from Rhymney and New Tredegar on the Brecon and Merthyr, from Rogerstone Yard on the Great Western and from Neath Junction, also on the Great Western. They were also to be seen occasionally pulling the suburban service to Cardiff.

Design fault

One problem faced was a design fault that caused it to derail when travelling smokebox-first over facing hand-operated points, usually found in colliery sidings, marshalling yards and the dock area. The rear coupled wheels beneath the cab would force the tongue of the points open, directing the trailing bogie onto the diverging track. This was because the points lacked a locking mechanism like those on the main line. This could result in derailment; No 147 ended up on its side when entering Barry Sidings with a coal train from Coity. Less extreme but still serious damage could occur, for the balancing pipe between the side and bunker tanks would rapidly lose water if damaged, and the fire would have to be dropped to prevent a boiler explosion. In practical terms, crews would usually fix this by having the fireman hold the point lever while the driver went through very slowly. Several design changes were tried on both the class and the track to permanently fix the issue, but none were fully successful.

Withdrawal

The class passed into GWR ownership in 1922 and were all scrapped in 1926. One story claims this was unintentional due to a clerical error at Swindon, but has never been confirmed.

Numbering

Year	Quantity	Manufacturer	Serial numbers	Barry numbers	GWR numbers	Notes
1914	10	Hawthorn Leslie	3038–3047	139–148	1347–1355, 1357

References

• The Barry Railway (reprint with addenda and amendments), Barrie, DSM, Oakwood Press (1983), pp199–200 ISBN   0853612366
• Rails to Prosperity – The Barry & After 1884–1984, Miller, Brian J, Regional Publications (Bristol) Ltd (1984), p19 ISBN   0906570174
• The Barry Railway – Diagrams and Photographs of Locomotives, Coaches and Wagons, Mountford Eric, R, Oakwood Press Headington (1987), p19 ISBN   0853613559
• The Vale of Glamorgan Railway, Chapman, Colin, Oakwood Press Usk (1998), ISBN   0853615233
• The Locomotives of the Great Western Railway – Part Ten, Absorbed Engines, 1922–1947, Reed, P.J.T. et al, The Railway Correspondence and Travel Society (1966) pp K48-K49
• Great Western Absorbed Engines, Russell, JH, Oxford Publishing Company (1978), pp 47–48 SBN: 902888749